Reempresa, 15 years of business lifeline

The survival of companies is key to maintaining the health of the Catalan economic ecosystem. It is not solely a matter of creating companies, but of ensuring that these ideas endure over time and pass into new hands that reinvent and preserve them. It is difficult to predict how long a company will live, but it is simpler to provide it with the necessary resources to continue working. Reempresa has been helping companies in this moment of transition for a decade and a half. The entity —created by Cecot, Autoocupació and with the support of the Generalitat de Catalunya —has consolidated itself as an instrument to facilitate business succession and prevent the closure of viable companies due to lack of continuity. According to data, during these fifteen years, more than 6,000 companies have been able to continue their activity, more than 17,000 jobs have been preserved, and almost 340 million euros of induced investment have been generated.

"This project works because there has been no anxiety, it works slowly and everything is not wanted for tomorrow," reflects Salvador Illa, president of the Generalitat de Catalunya, at the celebration of Reempresa's 15th anniversary. Often, the lack of generational succession is discussed. In some companies, passing from parents to children seems an impossible task. First, due to the lack of interest of some young people in dedicating themselves to what their parents did. Then, due to market instability, which can cause some successors not to clearly see the sector in which their parents' company is located. "Reempresa was born so that a viable company does not have to disappear due to any factor," recalls Xavier Panés, president of the Cecot Employers' Association and Reempresa. But, according to the leader of Cecot, this has not only been an initiative of a single entity, which has become "the key to its success": "The administration brings capacity and business entities contribute knowledge of the fabric and proximity to companies," he specifies.

The main idea of this initiative is to save companies, but without detaching them from innovation and transformation. That is why its creators also link it with entrepreneurship, since for Panés, "the entrepreneur not only creates a new company, they can also transform one." Specifically, a service is offered coordinated by professionals from the world of re-entrepreneurship and with the support of a wide network of collaborators. It is no longer an initiative to find executives; currently, it is a space for connection between companies. In this way, consultants handle all inquiries with total confidentiality and cross-reference the information provided by both entrepreneurs who do not want to continue, and re-entrepreneurs. As it is a non-profit entity, all services are free for the user, as the entities that promote them have received public co-financing.

The accompaniment covers the entire business transfer process. Reempresa offers individual advice to prepare the transfer or purchase plan, training for both parties so they can transfer or re-entrepreneur with peace of mind and security, and accompaniment to facilitate the transfer of knowledge between seller and buyer. In addition, it has a virtual market with more than 1,300 companies for sale in the trade, services, hospitality, and industry sectors, among others. And, so that financing is not an obstacle, it works with associations and banking entities to facilitate the purchase of an operating business. "Thanks to all this, in 15 years, more than 6,000 companies have been given for adoption," says Albert Colomer, president of the Autoocupació Foundation and member of the Reempresa Steering Committee. This figure, adds Colomer, "is half of the companies that close in Catalonia due to lack of succession."

This is what buyers and sellers are like

The reasons for selling or acquiring a business are diverse. Regarding the transferring individuals, one in two is over 50 years old, and one in two wants to retire, although there are also other reasons for transferring, such as personal reasons or even a change in professional career. Re-entrepreneurs, on the other hand, are mostly between 30 and 50 years old. They are not as young as people who start from scratch: they seek in re-entrepreneurship a more mature investment with less risk than starting a new project. Regarding gender, among transferring individuals, 54% are men and 46% are women, while among re-entrepreneurs, 60% are men and 40% are women.

According to Reempresa's infographics, by sectors, commerce (32%), services (30%) and hospitality (30%) concentrate the vast majority of successful re-entrepreneurships, followed by industry (6%) and construction (2%). As for induced investment, services lead the list with 84.2 million euros, followed by commerce (59 M€), hospitality (56.1 M€) and industry (48.4 M€). Further behind are construction and renovations (10.8 M€), agriculture (1.2 M€) and the 'other' category (600,000 €). The average price of operations varies greatly depending on the sector. Commerce and hospitality have the lowest price, 40,000 € on average, followed by others (60,000 €) and services (62,000 €). Agriculture stands at 102,000 €, construction and renovations at 138,000 € and industry is the sector with the highest average price, 183,000 €.

An initiative with a local network

Companies lacking succession, are mostly not large companies. The vast majority of closed businesses that Reempresa has tried to save are local shops. Therefore, a great connectivity with local administrations and county councils is needed. Reempresa has a total of 35 offices spread throughout the territory with about eighty employees. "Municipalism has managed to work alongside companies, business associations and the administration," explains Lluisa Moret, president of the Diputació de Barcelona. Specifically, their work has ensured that 3,500 companies out of the 6,000 mentioned remain within the deputation. "Economic dynamism must be a symbol of our home," highlights Moret, who has also championed the local business fabric and how "excellent" deals have been achieved between entrepreneurs and small local businesses.