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greeNEWit is an energy audit company in Columbia, Maryland. The firm's three founders financed their start-up through loans from friends and family and an aggressive use of credit cards. Now the business is established, showing an exponential growth in revenues in a short time. Founder Josh Notes believes there is a billion dollar market available for the tak-ing in the area of smart grid integration. greeNEWit has been able to obtain limited bank financing but may need more to move into nationwide smart grid integration. Possibilities include additional bank loans, angel investors or venture capital, an equity partner, or perhaps generating additional revenues. A good estimate of firm value is needed in order to correctly price the share value. Josh needs to investigate all sources of financing before choosing the right next step for the firm.

American Solar was a small Virginia start up, providing firms with solar thermal energy though new roofing installations. The firm's owners, John Archibald and Kathryn McGeehan, wanted to sell their solar thermal roofing as cost effective systems, not dependent on tax credits to make them economical as was the case with solar photovoltaic electric (PV electric) generation. Kathryn and John competed for a small niche in an already niche market and were working to prove that their system could stand alone as an energy efficient, cost effective heating system. They were battling the high upfront cost of a solar roof and working to sell the long term energy efficiency that solar thermal roofs provided. Kathryn and John knew that a hotel chain-Hannover Inns-was going out asking for bids from roofing companies to replace their roofs. If they could land this contract, it would be their largest commercial contract to date. They wanted to prepare a quote for replacing the roofs along with a presentation, based on cost savings, that could help take their firm to a higher sales level.

Technology Plus was a Virginia IT firm, servicing information technology systems for businesses and government. The firm had grown through acquisition, expanding its technology solution capabilities, areas of expertise, vendor relationships and client bases. In early 2010, the firm was at a crossroads - how far and how fast to expand, how to incorporate prior acquisitions into current operations, and how to obtain financing for continued high growth, whether organic (financed through current earnings), or through additional acquisitions. Decisions about the future of the firm were complicated because the three owners were unable to agree. CEO Ethan Brennan wanted to continue to grow the firm, but was hampered by the inability of his partners to agree on future financing. Founder Gary Hesse was unwilling to put his personal assets at greater risk and vetoed any risky expansions that might require additional collateral. Ethan found his position frustrating enough to consider bankruptcy, selling his portion of the firm, or selling the entire firm.

The owners of Aquarius Ales, a popular Sixth Street pub in Austin, Texas, received an offer to sell their business to a pair of University of Texas business school graduates for $450,000. Was this a fair offer? If not, what would be an appropriate counter offer? The case looks at the prospect for revenues for the pub in light of declining alcohol consumption among the general population. Aquarius Ales' niche was appealing to those who liked 60s and 70s music, with its name coming from a song in the hit sixties musical "Hair." Although the pub's main product - alcoholic beverages - was a commodity, the pub had the advantage of a desirable location, decrease in the number of competitors and a population of college students who enjoyed "oldies."