Johan De Baets

The through-line

Everything Johan De Baets says circles back to one idea: the end of a business should be designed with the same care as its beginning, and almost nobody does it. He built a single restaurant, Du Progres, in Gent for decades and deliberately refused to multiply it, but refusing growth never excused him from thinking about the finish. "Het is niet omdat ik niet wil groeien dat ik niet moet denken aan mijn exit" [2]. His own blind spot was frank: after thirty years behind the same door he was happy with what he had and wanted no second or third location, "maar hoe dat moet stoppen, daar heb ik geen flauw benul van" [2].

The shift, over the two years the material spans, is from that admission to the completed act. He went from a man who had never once discussed an exit strategy with his own partner [1] to one who sold the business in stages to his right-hand man, keeping it alive rather than shuttering it at retirement [1]. The lesson he draws from that arc is a warning about timing: "Op het moment dat je wilt verkopen is het in feite te laat" [1]. Preparation should begin five to seven years before the actual exit if it is to be done properly, for the owner and for the staff [2].

On planning the exit before you need one

The failure he keeps naming is one of ignorance rather than laziness: 90% of restaurant owners simply do not know their business can be transferred with continuity, which is why so many good horeca businesses close at retirement instead of changing hands [1]. Entrepreneurs obsess over growth and have no idea how to stop [2]. The second failure is one of leverage. A business sale is something "ge doet dat maar één keer in uw leven, die transactie" [2], conducted against counterparties who do it routinely, so without preparation and expert help you risk being taken advantage of after a lifetime of work [2]. He is equally clear that training only works when it makes you do the exercises rather than consume the content, otherwise the booklet gathers dust at home and nothing is implemented [2]. His own reaction to that penny dropping was blunt: "Dit is wat ik nu nodig had in mijn leven om te groeien" [2].

On excellence instead of a second location

He ran one restaurant for 24 years and chose depth over footprint, and the arithmetic vindicated him: of roughly 20 to 25 businesses on the Korenmarkt, his was one of only two that survived across the decades while the rest turned over every few years [1]. The principle underneath it is absolute rather than strategic. "Als je iets doet, kun je het beter 100% doen. Ik heb dat van mijn team ook gevraagd, ik heb dat ook altijd zelf gedaan" [1]. Alongside that sits a patience he does not romanticise: "Ik heb altijd de lange termijn gedacht, ook al deed dat van binnen een beetje pijn soms" [1].

On the first date, and the day he closed the terrace

Service is a one-shot proposition in his telling. "Elke klant die binnenkomt is een beetje als de first date: ge hebt één kans om die mensen te overweldigen" [1]. That belief has a price attached, and he paid it: with three key staff sick on a busy Saturday, he closed a 50-seat terrace and gave up thousands in turnover rather than serve badly, on the reasoning that reputation outlives one day's revenue [1]. The same logic explains a personnel cost of 42%, unusually high and accepted on purpose, so that every customer was served by permanent staff who knew the business inside out [1]. Consistency was engineered as well as staffed: recipes were standardised on a kitchen computer system so taste and cost per dish were always identical and always known [1].

On buying the family business rather than being given it

He is against the gift. Paying a fair price for the family business prevents the conflicts that surface later, often triggered by in-laws, and it produces a stronger personal commitment because you had to work to pay it off [1]. The same instinct governs how he tied in the successor. Selling shares binds a key employee far better than a raise does: a pay rise stops being felt after about four months, whereas share ownership means taking a bank loan and feeling that commitment, and sharing in the upside if the business flourishes [1]. Selling in stages to his right-hand man is that principle applied to his own succession, and it is what secured continuity instead of a closing sign [1].

On banks, and building the dossier yourself

Two large banks turned him down within minutes on horeca share-transfer financing [1]. His response is the practical core of his advice: ask them what they need, then build it. With his accountant he produced a financial plan and combined a Belfius loan with a PMV guarantee to get the deal done [1].

On the switch that never turns off

The load he describes is mental rather than physical. As owner the switch is always on, to the point of composing menus in his head at his son's birthday party [1]. Only after the full exit did that constant background hum disappear, and the mental space it left was something he had not anticipated [1].

Takeaways

• Start preparing a sale five to seven years out; by the time you want to sell, "het is in feite te laat" [1][2].
• Wanting to stay small is not an exemption from exit planning: no growth ambition still needs a stopping plan [2].
• Sell shares rather than hand out raises to bind a key person; a raise fades in four months, a bank loan and equity do not [1].
• Buy the family business at a fair price instead of accepting it as a gift, to head off later family conflict and to deepen your own commitment [1].
• Sacrifice turnover to protect service: closing a 50-seat terrace on a busy Saturday beat serving badly [1].
• Accept a high personnel cost, 42% in his case, so permanent staff who know the business serve every customer, and standardise recipes so taste and cost per dish never vary [1].
• When banks refuse, ask what they require and assemble the dossier with your accountant; a Belfius loan plus a PMV guarantee closed the gap [1].
• Choose training that forces you to do the exercises, or the material never gets implemented [2].