Control Situations

[DooDiligence]

Anyone have any past involvement in control situations where you stepped in & made things happen (present situations would be interesting too but I wouldn't presume to ask for proprietary info.)

 

I read Predators Ball years ago & just just got through with Buffets Ground Rules & am waiting for a copy of Barbarians at the Gate to arrive but I'd like a little local flavor.

 

I'd be fascinated to see a good anatomically correct disection of the original thesis & the subsequent results with all the meaty bits in between...

[eclecticvalue]

Take a look at Sitestar (syte) and Solitron devices (sodi) . There were members on this board who went activist and took over the companies and now have control over it.

[DooDiligence]

Awesome - thanks!

[Morgan]

The threads for Sitestar and Soditron are quite interesting and you should definitely read up on both of those.

 

I haven't taken control of any public companies, but I've purchased a number of distressed apartment buildings and turned them around. Renovate, clean the place up and rent them out. You have a lot of control when you own the place. This is different than owning a piece of a publically traded company. Basically as a small investor in a large company you have no control. With my apartment buildings, I can fire or hire people as needed, renovate to meet current market demands, change prices, etc, etc. There are many things that can be changed to increase the odds of success. So far for me, I have made much better returns by buying distressed properties and being hands on than investing elsewhere.

[DooDiligence]

The threads for Sitestar and Soditron are quite interesting and you should definitely read up on both of those.

 

I haven't taken control of any public companies, but I've purchased a number of distressed apartment buildings and turned them around. Renovate, clean the place up and rent them out. You have a lot of control when you own the place. This is different than owning a piece of a publically traded company. Basically as a small investor in a large company you have no control. With my apartment buildings, I can fire or hire people as needed, renovate to meet current market demands, change prices, etc, etc. There are many things that can be changed to increase the odds of success. So far for me, I have made much better returns by buying distressed properties and being hands on than investing elsewhere.

 

Thanks Eclectic & Morgan (I bookmarked both threads & will start working through them.)

 

My imagination has started running wild after reading about Buffets involvement with Dempster in the partnership days.

 

The thought of getting into something like that & turning it into an ongoing concern is appealing (I know it would be preferable to have competent management in place for a workout or asset play but the challenge of fixing something myself would be interesting if it came to that.)

 

Morgan - your method could also be rewarding both financially & emotionally.

 

More later from an evolving mind...

[bci23]

I think the idea of getting control of a company sounds awesome until you realize how much work is required and then how difficult it is to compound at 20%/yr after you have taken control, especially if your business is of low quality.

[LR1400]

It will be difficult to gain control but if you have the ambition and energy, go for it. What do tou really have to lose?

 

Your chances of getting wealthy investing in the s&p500 are slim. Go for it, don't use too much debt.

 

I am an owner and one of the managers of my family's business and it is rewarding and extremely difficult at the same time. Unless you LOVE operations I would greatly advise you to hire or retain an excellent operations person. That part of most businesses is draining and will typically derail your ability to research other investment and capital allocation opportunities.

 

As noted above, investing in distressed real estate is an excellent option. I do that as well, not really distressed too often, because the opportunities haven't presented themselves, yet. I will buy distressed real estate as the opportunities arise. Real estate lends itself well to long term debt.