If there’s one thing this global pandemic has done it’s remind us all of the importance of our loved ones to our happiness and overall mental health. Many of us, myself included, have been spending a lot more time around family since March — whether that’s through homeschooling or working from home — and we’re finding out that mixing business (and education) with family can have its challenges.
For many businesses, however, this is not news. An incredible 90% of all businesses in the United States are family-run, including 35% of all Fortune 500 companies. Locally, New Orleans’ culinary scene, for example, includes no shortage of multigenerational family-run success stories, including all the Brennan family offerings, Antoine’s and Dooky Chase, to name just a few. But running a business with your loved ones isn’t easy. According to the Tulane Family Business Center, only 30% of family businesses survive long enough to be taken over by the second generation, and only 10% live to see a third generation.
In this, our annual family business issue, we take a look at how this new global landscape is affecting local family-run businesses, starting with our cover story, a Q&A with Christa Cotton, CEO of New Orleans Beverage Group. If you like cocktails, you may be familiar with their El Guapo line of bitters and syrups. It may not be surprising that during the pandemic, sales have skyrocketed, but by how much is truly staggering. I bought a sample set of their bitters lately and used them to make my first real cocktail from home. I started simple with a lemon drop martini using El Guapo’s Lemon Drop bitters. I highly recommend — especially after a long day of work plus homeschool.
Our dining expert, the incomparable Poppy Tooker, spoke this month with Mark Latter about Tujague’s recent move and the effect he hopes it will have on securing his family’s legacy. We also picked the brains of six local financial experts and asked them to share their No. 1 piece of advice for family businesses in the current climate. Finally, Matt Hahne with West Wind Coaching separates truth from fiction when it comes to family business and offers up a few tips for success.
Whatever your business, I hope you are finding a way to adapt and even thrive in these challenging times. As always, if there’s any topic you’d like to see us take on, please send me us a note at Editorial@BizNewOrleans.com.
Thanks for reading and stay safe,
Kimberley Singletary, Managing Editor
