Since there are currently a larger than normal number of financially troubled companies in the door and window industry, I thought it would make sense to discuss the drivers of valuation for a troubled company that may seek to be sold. First, though, let’s look at the valuation of a company that is not troubled [...]

I recently read the results of Bank of America’s 2009 CFO Outlook, which is an annual survey of some 600 chief financial officers of manufacturing companies (most of which are privately held with less than $200 million in revenue). As with most economic outlooks today, there was no shortage of negative opinions. The average [...]

With the International Builders Show coming up, I thought I’d share some thoughts regarding getting the most out of a trade show like this. One of the basics is to remember your business cards. I’ve met scores of people at trade shows who had forgotten theirs. The reason to bring a business card is to [...]

In the interest of being timely, I’m going to steal a little thunder from an upcoming installment in my three-part series of DWM articles regarding what businesses should do to navigate this environment. In a soft market like this, it is critical to keep generating new business. So what exactly is it that we should [...]

There have been a series of announcements lately regarding door and window companies closing. If we look at these situations through the most rigidly capitalist lenses, such closings are probably positive for the industry in the long term. They are representative of the types of activities that we predicted in the process of capitulation that [...]

In the last several weeks, the unwinding financial crisis has been competing with the upcoming birth of my daughter for my full attention. Since the first mention of the $700billion bailout package, we’ve all become a somewhat numb to the magnitude of the problem. Despite my admittedly distracted attention to these issues, several thoughts have [...]

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Some of the most venerable names on Wall Street have, of late, become cautionary tales: Bear Stearns, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers and AIG. I’ve spent my entire career in the financial world and I don’t think anyone would have predicted quite the extent to [...]

In my work with door and window manufacturers, there is a trait that I see commonly among smaller companies that I think has the potential to cause more problems than it does to provide benefits. That is the attempt to achieve a sort of self-sufficiency by bringing any number of ancillary goods and services in-house. [...]

When I was asked by a vinyl window manufacturer recently whether I knew what workers’ compensation classification was in use by other vinyl manufacturers in the industry, I couldn’t imagine the reason for the question. When I learned that the answer might help companies save money on their worker’s compensation insurance, I decided to look [...]

I’m frequently asked how we came to select the door and window industry as a market on which to focus. I think the answer to that question is of great relevance to door and window industry participants. The way that an outsider views one’s industry can sometimes provide a perspective on the forest that you [...]