#21: Turning A Crisis Into An Opportunity Through A Strategic Acqui-Hire with Hasan Fadlallah, Brand Lounge

Welcome to The Exit Plan, a podcast for business owners interested in learning more about selling their business.

Hasan Fadlallah is the founder & CEO of Brand Lounge, the region’s leading and award–winning branding consultancy. He is also the Co-Founder & Director of Fullmoon Experiments, a socially driven incubator that develops and grows purposeful startups in the region. Embodying the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to improve the Arab world through empowering communities, spreading knowledge and nurturing entrepreneurship and innovation.

In this episode, Hasan shares his background in marketing and advertising where he contributed to legacy brands like Dmbnb, Darcy, Masseus, Benton, and Bowls, later acquired by Become Three. He then founded the started Brand Lounge in 2006 as a strategy-led company focused on brand creation and development. Hasan shares the roller coaster events happened within the development span of the company due to crises. The turning point was on the 2008 financial crisis, which led to a pivot in their business model, where they decided to expand the business area to Saudi Arabia. During the development stage, he incorporate their services to purpose and culture, explaining that there is no point in building a brand that resonates in people's minds if purpose isn’t figured out while culture serves as a byproduct of the strategy.

Hasan mentions that they became a part of a network of almost 24 operations across the globe of around 5000 people. This works by having no equity within the local operations, and no financial arrangement as well, but it's a knowledge transfer and support mechanism as a specialty. He also shares that they focus on two key elements: distinctive philosophy and growth strategy, explaining that their philosophical views are what set them apart. Brand Lounge recently acquired a small talent management firm that specializes in culture from a brand perspective, called People Mina, then integrated as Brand Lounge becoming a culture practice. The acquisition is focused on talent rather than brand names. Hasan also shares that the IP value was determined by client interest and the valuation in the acquisition was determined by considering client willingness to pay for specific IPs. It is also crucial to consider the value of cultural fit and strategic alignment when making deals.

Want to know more about partnership, networking, and how to grow your business? Listen, be inspired, and be literate on how to expand a business.

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:

• The journey to business expansion

• How to deal with crises

• Thriving not only surviving after success of your business

• Building internal components and methodology for brand development

• How does partnership and networking works globally

• The importance of Philosophy and Culture in integrating to business services

• Determining IP valuation

• Learnings and realizations about Hasan’s journey

CONNECT WITH HASAN:

• LinkedIn | www.linkedin.com/in/hasanfadlallah

• Website | www.brandloungeme.com

• Twitter | @hfadlallah

• Instagram | @hfadlallah

THE EXIT PLAN

The Exit Plan is for business owners that are interested in learning more about how to sell their business. Each episode Barnaby Cook interviews someone who has bought or sold a business - either a creative agency, or a production company. The conversation gets under the skin of why they wanted to sell, or were looking to acquire, how the deal was structured, how they agreed upon a valuation and what lessons they learnt along the way.