Stella Kalinina for BI
Wolfgang Puck might hold the answer to a big problem for small-business owners.Puck is navigating a challenge many aging business owners face: succession planning.The 76-year-old chef and his 31-year-old son, Byron Lazaroff-Puck, spoke with BI's Anneta Konstantinides about the eventual changing of the guard at Puck's restaurant empire.To be clear, Puck isn't ready to hang up his chef's coat just yet. But Lazaroff-Puck, who is president of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, is taking on more responsibilities in his father's business after starting out as a dishwasher.Most SMB owners don't have 25 fine-dining restaurants, over 1,000 employees, and a global brand to consider. But the size of Puck's business doesn't insulate him from the challenges every owner faces when reaching retirement age.Lots of boomers who have spent decades as the face of their company — whether it's plumbing or Michelin-starred restaurants — grapple with how (and to whom) they pass the baton.A February report from McKinsey found that roughly 6 million SMBs will face ownership transitions by 2035 because of retiring boomers. But there's a catch. Only 1 million of those businesses were deemed "viable candidates for sale" per the report, meaning the vast majority are at risk of closure if they don't find a successor.
