The Place to Go to Transition Out of Your Business
OUR PHILOSOPHY ABOUT SELLING BUSINESSES
We don’t look at businesses as commodities to be bought and sold without regard for the people who put their lives into them. We are trusted advisors to business owners, similar to their accountants or lawyers.
We look at the people in the deals. This is a life-changing experience for them and they need someone who genuinely cares to help them through the process. A family’s business has been a huge part of their lives and leaving it can be like losing a loved one. But if we do our job well, we help clients welcome and embrace this new stage of their lives.
EDUCATION COMES FIRST
One of the sadder moments of Founder Randy’s career was when he had to tell a couple that their business was worth closer to $1.5 million than the $3 million they thought they would get. Needless to say, this completely shattered their retirement dreams.
After several similar situations, he became committed to finding a way to protect other business owners from this experience. He found the best way to do this was through educating business owners about valuation, and the process and concepts of selling their businesses, in language business owners understood.
That’s why we give our clients continuing educational and emotional support to ease their concerns. We also focus on doing things as efficiently as possible to minimize the things that can cause them a lot of stress. We’ve been there many times and know how to deal with challenges, problems, and issues that may arise.
We get a sense of achievement helping families successfully transition to a new phase of their lives. They’ve worked hard and deserve the most professional, most well-executed process for exiting their businesses.
Business is about relationships and we develop strong professional and personal relationships with our clients. We value them and are willing to go to war for them. The outcome? Freedom, more time for their families, and a stronger financial foundation.
Mission
To be Calgary’s most sought after transaction advisor for the sale of small to medium enterprise businesses.
Vision
With near-perfect success rates, our experience combined with our proven systems and processes help business owners transition to the next phase of their life with peace of mind.
Core Values
- Confidentiality – We are the ‘custodian’ of our clients’ information.
- Integrity – We do the ‘right thing’ even when no one is watching.
- Fairness – There doesn’t have to be a winner or loser.
- Ethics – We do what’s best for our client, even if it’s not best for us.
- Honesty – It is what it is.
- Improvement – We embrace the lessons of the past, so we can do even better tomorrow.
A message from Randy Koroluk, founder of the Alberta Business Exchange:
I’ve been selling businesses since 2001, and am working to make the Alberta Business Exchange the place for business owners to go to successfully transition out of their businesses.
At Alberta Business Exchange you’ll find the experience, professionalism, and commitment to confidentiality that will help you move into the next phase of your life.
Many people who work in this industry work alone. They do everything from the valuation, to the interviews, to writing and designing the Confidential Information Memorandum, to finding the buyer and leading negotiations. I have built a process that is much better than this - it brings many minds and different expertise together.
It takes very different skills to do these things and I don’t believe that one person can do them all well. That’s why I’ve built a team who understands how to help our clients succeed. You may never meet some of them, but you can trust that they are doing their very best for you, applying their special expertise, when it’s their turn to step in.
What’s important to me and my team? We value respect—for people, for confidentiality, and for our clients’ goals. Honesty is also important, and it involves being ethical, acting with integrity, and establishing trust. We also value fairness for both sellers and buyers, because one-sided transactions are not successful deals.
We value hard work—but it’s not really work when you love what you do. And although we work hard, we also try to have fun while we’re doing it.
Finally, we value achievement and quality. Because if you don’t reach your goal and do it well, there isn’t any point to being in business.
You can learn more about our history and team below, or get in touch to schedule a time to come in for a coffee. We’re always have time and enjoy meeting with Alberta business owners. Of course, there is never any obligation.
Sincerely, Randy Koroluk
Our History
The origins of the Alberta Business Exchange go back to the year 1999 when Randy hired a business broker to sell his business. The results were more than disappointing. Confidentiality was breached, causing Randy emotional and financial losses.
Determined to prevent the same thing from happening to other business owners, Randy decided to become a business broker and do it right. He immersed himself in education, researching everything he could get his hands on to become the most professional transaction advisor in the city.
This research, along with real-life testing, led to the development of a unique and more effective way of helping business owners sell their businesses. This model was a blend of theory and common sense, and proved that there’s always a buyer for a good business if it’s valued, packaged, and structured properly.
The first few years weren’t easy, but Randy strongly believed in what he was doing and he persevered. Eventually, his hard work and determination paid off.
Over the ensuing years, Randy helped nearly 150 business owners successfully transition out of their businesses and into the next phase of their lives.
Alberta Business Exchange is the continuation of that spirit and methodology, with refinements made to tailor its services to larger businesses. Today, we take a team approach to serving clients, with each member offering specialized knowledge and skills to ensure a high level of success.
Our Team
Randy Koroluk
President
Randy Koroluk is an entrepreneur who has owned and sold several businesses. During the late 90s, Randy noticed that owners of small- to medium-sized businesses needed a professional brokerage that would provide the education and dedication required for a business sale. He has committed almost two decades to designing and refining processes and systems that maximize the chances of successfully selling your business.
Randy has in-depth knowledge of finance and economics, and a Computer Science for Business Diploma from DeVry University. He is skilled at building trusting relationships and his passion for finding creative solutions based on fairness to all parties has made him a leader in the business brokerage field.
Hammad Razzaq
Vice President
Hammad joined ABE in the spring of 2021 as an Associate responsible for managing due diligence. On his own initiative, Hammad increased his role, conducting buyer research and improving several systems at ABE. During the fall of 2021, he took responsibility for all business development initiatives, primarily improving and growing ABE’s online presence.
Hammad’s innate entrepreneurial spirit, passion for deal-making, and strong work ethic, ideally fit with the values of ABE. This, combined with his past experiences and a degree in Business and Economics, earned him the position of Vice President in November 2021.
Peter Yates
Corporate Lawyer
Peter is a corporate lawyer helping small, medium and large-sized Alberta-based business clients that have local, Canadian and multi-national operations, often involving the purchase or sale of an entire business.
Peter is business-minded, goal-oriented and efficiency focused, so as not to "over-lawyer" transactions. He is flexible and coaches clients on how to approach legal matters to reduce legal fees.
Whether it’s support with financing and funding or day-to-day legal issues encountered in a commercial enterprise, Peter excels at providing the strategic counsel and pragmatic advice that clients need as they start, grow and/or sell their business.
"My approach is to focus on getting the deal done - without throwing up a bunch of issues and roadblocks that make things difficult for my clients."
Rennay Craats
Copywriter
Rennay Craats is a freelance writer that has worked with a variety of publications and businesses over the past twenty years. She has written for newspapers and magazines with articles ranging from examinations of luxury brands and excursions to profiling the accomplishments of some of Alberta’s most dynamic corporate leaders. For the past five years she has written extensively for Business in Calgary magazine highlighting local and regional companies, notable entrepreneurs and business issues.