Business transition and wealth strategies

Transitioning the family business doesn’t have to be complicated or messy.

transitioning-the-family-business

Transitioning the family business shouldn’t be a “do it yourself” project.

Luminira Business Transition and Wealth Strategies brings clarity, focus and specialized expertise to make the whole process less daunting. We offer tailored, strategic support for business owners looking to move on, protect their wealth and not rock the family boat. With over 35 years of experience in legal, tax, financial and business coaching, you’re getting the best transition team leadership in the country.

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Well-structured business transition planning improves your long-term viability and preserves your wealth for generations to come.

We help you maximize the value of your business and its potential selling price, explore the broadest range of transition options and combinations, choose and train the right successor, and put in place proper financing and tax planning — all with the goal of maintaining the health of your business and harmony in your family.

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Lisa recently quarterbacked the succession plan for our family business and we couldn’t have put it in better hands.

Ted Edgar | Can-Ross Environmental Services Ltd.

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successful-business-transition-planning

Successful business transition is a process, not an event.

It can take several years to plan and implement your business transition. It not only involves coordination of various specialized experts, many technical strategies and steps (which can take time) but also requires time for thought, reflection and acceptance of the changes to come. Starting the planning sooner rather than later offers you the greatest latitude and chance of successful outcomes.

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Lisa was creative and thorough in helping us navigate the complex legal considerations inherent in restructuring a business.

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winning-teams-need-a-great-leader

Like anything in life, winning teams need a great leader.

Business transition is not a “DIY” project. It requires planning decisions that involve complex questions of law, tax and business planning, including the types of property to own, the form of ownership, and, for small business owners, the organization and operation of the business and steps for passing that business to the next generation. The only way to find the plan that's best for you is to work closely with an outside expert who has your best interests at heart and the professional expertise to assemble and lead the specialists required to complete the process.

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The experience of working with Lisa and her team has been invaluable and has been one of the best and important business decisions we have made.

Ben & Joyce Meyer

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our-approach

Our Approach

We respect the decades of hard work families have invested in building successful enterprises. Our business transition and wealth support services secure the continuity of these companies and grow family wealth for generations to come. We simplify a complex process by planning for and managing all taxation, accounting, law, finance, and family and enterprise governance matters – as well as family dynamics.

With our comprehensive knowledge and extensive experience working with business owners, we are uniquely suited to support business families.

HERE IS HOW WE DO IT:

We assemble the complete picture

We gather all of the component parts and put together a solid plan for moving forward. Our clients find that having the complete picture allows them to see the future more clearly and often leads to new opportunities.

We value process and outcome

Our thoughtful, methodical process guides business families through all of the complexities and big decisions to be considered to arrive at a sensible roadmap everyone can follow.

We guide and implement flawlessly

With over 30 years experience in tax, corporate law, estate and business planning, we are the right ones to lead and manage the process. We bring the right team together and make sure things get done.

We are steady family advisors

Successful business transition can take several years to plan and implement. Ongoing support and advice is essential to ensure continuity and protect wealth. We are always here for our clients.

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Lisa had this innate and patient ability to keep me resolved and focused. Her gentle but persistent reminder of our responsibilities to both the business and our family has been a guiding light.

Wendy & Don Smith | Smith’s Funeral Services (Burlington) Ltd.

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our-services

Our Services

Our services are tailored to your family’s unique circumstances and needs. These services can include:

Business succession planning

Want to begin to slow down and start transitioning the business to the next generation? The right business succession plan achieves this objective and strengthens the business and family in the process. We guide and support you on this careful journey with thoughtful planning and exceptional technical expertise.

Wealth transfer planning

You have worked hard to build your family wealth. A carefully thought out and technically sound wealth transfer plan ensures that wealth is protected for your benefit and that of future generations. We help you sort through the complexities and assess the options to create a plan that is right for you and your family.

Family council planning and governance

Effective communication is the key to a successful transition of a family business, and for continuing harmony in the family. A Family Council is often the best method for facilitating that communication. We help design and establish the right Family Council and governance structure that will work for you and your family.

Philanthropic planning and charitable giving

Many business families want to give back to their communities and/or support charitable causes. Through careful planning, you can structure your support to maximize its impact while providing tax savings for the family. Family involvement in philanthropic activities often serves to underline and strengthen family values.

Tax planning oversight

A key part of business transition is tax planning and tax minimization. Our extensive background in tax law enables us to work with tax specialists as appropriate to make sure you are not paying more tax than you should.

Asset protection and other risk management services

We identify steps you could be taking to help protect your wealth and manage the financial risks you and your family enterprise may be facing. This process includes assessing ownership structures and tax exposure, and putting protective measures in place.

Family business coaching and facilitation

We take a genuine interest in our clients’ family enterprises and the successful resolution of their long-term goals and objectives. We bring expertise and offer an objective sounding board as you make important decisions affecting your business and your family.

Investment monitoring and performance assessment

In addition to the wealth that is invested in their businesses, many business owners have investments managed by third party advisors. We help monitor these “outside the family enterprise” investments to ensure they continue to meet your goals and objectives.

For more information about our services, please get in touch.
  We would be pleased to discuss your family’s needs and how we can be of assistance.

meet-lisa-collins-two

Meet Lisa Collins

Lisa collins

Lisa Collins, QC, TEP

Principal

Lisa Collins has over 35 years of experience providing quality services and counsel to business owners and other high net-worth families. She is a retired member of the Law Society of British Columbia, and has extensive experience in wealth planning and management.

Lisa performs the role of trusted advisor to provide personalized solutions for peace-of-mind, long term financial security, and wealth preservation for future generations. With her extensive background in tax, corporate law, estate and business planning, she is the right one to lead the process.

Would you like to read more about Lisa’s experience and expertise?

Download Profile

testimonials

Testimonials

Read what our clients have to say about our work and our process:

 

  • Lisa has the ability to take something complex and make it easy to understand. She quickly earns your trust and is an easy person to confide in. Lisa recently quarterbacked the succession plan for our family business and we couldn’t have put it in better hands. She has a very sharp mind, is intuitive and is an excellent resource to any person heading up a family business.

    Ted Edgar | Can-Ross Environmental Services Ltd.
  • We first worked with Lisa in 2006. In 2012, when we decided to formalize our estate plan, restructure the companies and implement an estate freeze, there was absolutely no question in our mind with whom we wanted to work. Lisa is an authentic, true professional who has had an amazing ability to connect with us. From our experiences, she has always been genuinely interested in the successful resolution of our ultimate goals – both personal and corporate. Her knowledge of and experience with legal, tax and family dynamics are second to none. There were several times when I (Don) wanted to abandon the process and leave everything to be resolved by my Executor. Lisa had this innate and patient ability to keep me resolved and focused. Her gentle but persistent reminder of our responsibilities to both the business and our family has been a guiding light. Additionally, we admire and respect her unique ability to interface with our lawyer, accountant, financial advisors and (in our case) the provincial regulatory authority. Her technical and people skills have been invaluable! There are two words that come to mind when describing Lisa and her service – “Why” and “Trust”. She reassured us both and helped us define “why” we needed to address everything now rather than later. Throughout the process, we learned to “trust” her expertise and advice. Thank you, Lisa!

    Wendy & Don Smith | Smith’s Funeral Services (Burlington) Ltd.
  • My opinion of Lisa is that she is very thorough. She did a great job and was very professional. In regards to the services Lisa provided, she was great to deal with. The things that I value in dealing with Lisa was her frankness, her straight forward approach and her experience in her business practice.

    Steve Marshall | Steve Marshall Motors Ltd
  • Lisa has the ability to take something complex and make it easy to understand. She quickly earns your trust and is an easy person to confide in. Lisa recently quarterbacked the succession plan for our family business and we couldn’t have put it in better hands. She has a very sharp mind, is intuitive and is an excellent resource to any person heading up a family business.

    Ted Edgar | Can-Ross Environmental Services Ltd.
  • Lisa was exceedingly personable; and she took the time to understand our business and prepare the necessary documentation to manage our firm’s restructuring. She also addressed our concerns and provided clarification as needed. Lisa was creative and thorough in helping us navigate the complex legal considerations inherent in restructuring a business. Given that both my business partner and I are very busy, it was particularly helpful to us that Lisa was prepared to accommodate our respective schedules and adhere to our request that all transactions be completed by a specified date. Lisa also provided excellent direction regarding accounting and financial professionals with whom we could consult.

    Anonymous
  • Our experience with Lisa was very easy yet full of valuable information. Her low key approach to the law was very simple to understand and made a complicated situation very manageable.

    Doug & Sharon Thompson
  • Immediately what I can say about working with Lisa is that she’s gone right from business person to friend. I am very thankful that she entered the picture when she did and has done such a great job. It can be difficult to trust these days and with Lisa, I’ve been very comfortable with any decision and/or advice that she has given. She straightened out the things that we, my husband and I had worked so very hard for, ensuring that she covered all the bases. She got everything tidied up and I feel as though I got the best possible help I could have. In addition to doing such an excellent job we’ve developed a most valued friendship that I hope continues for a very long time. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend her to anyone.

    Peggy Elfreda Martin
  • We are both over the moon with what Lisa has been able to help us with. She’s very easy to talk to and understands what our needs are. In a layman’s terms kind of way she gets us where we need to be with what we are asking about in our life.

    Donna Edgar | Can-Ross Environmental Services Ltd.
  • From the first meeting, we have appreciated Lisa’s very knowledgeable, down-to-earth and easy manner. She has taken us through the many (many) steps of building an Estate Plan. Lisa has been very thorough, helping us to understand all important aspects and considerations. She is adept at offering perspective from a more objective point of view. As the process has moved forward Lisa involved our children, helping them to understand and preparing them for the transition and eventual shift to the next generation. The experience of working with Lisa and her team has been invaluable and has been one of the best and important business decisions we have made.”

    Ben & Joyce Meyer

 

 

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If you have any questions or comments, or would like to arrange a complimentary consultation, please feel free to contact us by phone or email. If you’d like to be the first to receive future articles by Lisa, be sure to subscribe to “Insight from Lisa Collins”!

(250) 857-4218

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insights-by-lisa-collins

Insights by Lisa Collins

Tips and strategies on family enterprises, managing business transition and supporting family wealth.

Key Elements of an Advisory Board

In an earlier article I outlined seven reasons why you may want an Advisory Board for your family business. In this article I discuss the two key elements to setting up an Advisory Board to ensure it is a good fit for you and your business. They are: Establishing a structure for the Advisory Board that will allow for it to

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7 Reasons for an Advisory Board

An Advisory Board can be critical for the continuing success, growth and sustainability of a family business. Here are seven reasons why you might want an Advisory Board for your family business: Your industry is evolving and you are not sure the direction your business should be taking. An advisory board can provide you with expert advice and direction that

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The “In-Law Factor”

When it comes to managing a family enterprise and in particular, its transition to the next generation, it is important to pay attention to the “in-law factor”. As their children marry or enter into longer term relationships, many business owners become concerned about the impact their daughters-in-law or sons-in-law will have. They worry about their in-law’s influence on their child.

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