Case Study: Creating A Sustainable and Adaptable Business Platform
The Challenge
A young entrepreneur had a vision of building a first-class hunting lodge on his grandfather’s farm to capitalize on the worldwide reputation of west-central Illinois for whitetail deer hunting. However, he needed more land, capital, personnel and a business platform to support the enterprise. Also, over time the whitetail deer hunting industry and market changed, and he had to change his business focus to remain viable. Our challenge has been to combine his evolving vision with our knowledge of business transactions, especially real estate, financing, tax, contracts, risk management and risk mitigation, to create a sustainable and adaptable business platform and address the inevitable challenges along the way.
Our Approach
Over a span of almost two decades we have provided a range of services to facilitate the entrepreneur’s construction of his vision. We took a multi-disciplinary approach by assembling skill sets needed for each phase of the lodge’s business development. Principally that included lawyers and paralegals familiar with agricultural, commercial and recreational land acquisition (whether through purchase or lease), construction and development, financing (both traditional bank financing and tax incentive financing), business entity formations and contractual arrangements between related entities to support an integrated business plan, and risk management and mitigation.
The Outcome
Today this entrepreneur has a multi-entity but efficient corporate structure that owns and operates a sprawling campus of lodges, cabins and other facilities that offer the following: whitetail deer, upland, waterfowl and turkey hunting; a sporting clays course; fishing; hayrides; horseback riding; birdwatching; settings for weddings, corporate retreats, and other special events; simple getaways for couples and families; and now an ATV park. He has diversified his facilities and offerings to remain viable and thrive in an evolving market place. We have kept him legally compliant, protected and nimble throughout that process.