Our Team

Born and raised in Michigan, Ben received his B.A. in accounting from Michigan State University. After serving in the Navy Ben moved to Tampa, Florida where he joined a national CPA firm, received his CPA certification and founded his own CPA firm in 1974. Before relocating to Colorado in 1993, Ben also became a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and expanded his financial services operation, while at the same time organizing or managing a number of other businesses in the wireless cable television, direct mail, residential land development and construction, limousine service and manufacturing, video game distribution, property management and citrus growing industries. Ben has extensive experience in contract negotiations, mergers & acquisitions, retirement planning, income tax litigation issues and real-world based small business financial planning.

In 1994 Ben started his career as a business intermediary in Fort Collins, establishing his own business brokerage firm in March, 1997. He was affiliated with the Sunbelt Business Brokers franchise from 1998 to 2006. During his business brokerage career he has been responsible for over 200 successful business ownership transfers.

Ben has earned industry designations as an Accredited Business Intermediary (ABI) from the American Business Brokers Association, an Accredited Merger & Acquisition Advisor (AM&AA) from the Association of Professional Merger & Acquisition Advisors and is a former Certified Business Intermediary (CBI) from the International Business Brokers Association. He is a member of the Board of Directors and past Secretary of the Colorado Association of Business Intermediaries (CABI) and a long time member of the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB), having served on their Leadership Council. Ben has also been active in state and local politics as well as many local business and civic organizations including an appointment to the Larimer County Rural Land Use Advisory Board. Ben is active in his church, enjoys hunting, hiking and snowshoeing in the mountain backcountry. He is happily married to Nancy Foreman-Mahrle and has one son, Matt, who lives in Las Vegas.

He started advising small and medium business in 1999 in new product/venture capital development and expanded into planning, exit planning and business brokerage, forming his own firm, Sunbelt Business Brokers of Denver, in 2001.

He is a member of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA) Denver Chamber of Commerce Gold member Advisor on two Advisory Boards associated with engineering and manufacturing for the State of Colorado. Additionally, he has held the designation of Certified Business Intermediary (CBI) through the IBBA.

Experiences and Education include advanced degrees in Physics and Engineering as well as extensive coursework in business and technology and experiences in:

• Consulting Engineering (Energy sectors)
• Sales Leadership, Business Development, Marketing and Project Management experience in
  • heavy equipment (locomotive and mining)
  • high tech (fiber optic, data and internet of things)
  • global manufacturing
  • venture capital, Merger & Acquisition, and global joint venture programs
• Project Management Experience
  • global manufacturing
  • venture capital, Merger & Acquisition, and global joint venture programs
• Professor of Engineering with a focus on the intersection of technology and business

• engineering economics,
• innovation, product design and manufacturing
• teaching & training
• Leadership Experiences as a Vice President at multiple global companies (including managing P&Ls in excess of a $430M)

John’s experience in business, technology, education and as a business owner and a business broker enable him to provide clients with a unique perspective as they work through the process of planning, exit planning and successfully transferring business ownership.

When not assisting clients, John enjoys his family, interests at the intersection of technology and business, education, biking, hiking, skiing, diving and teaching sailing.

Business owners and business buyers are, by nature, entrepreneurial. As such, they often have a go-it-alone orientation. Buying or selling a business requires just the opposite. An experienced team will simplify the process and help you avoid making very costly mistakes. Working with your lawyer and accountant, I look forward to assisting you in this important transaction.

Memberships:

• Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce
• Fort Collins Board of Realtors
• No. Colorado Assoc. of Commercial Realtors
• Colorado Assoc. of Business Intermediaries
• Colorado Assoc. of Realtors
• International Business Brokers Assoc.