Jeff Berman, Berman Fink Van Horn P.C. and Brian Olson, Café Intermezzo (ProfitSense with Bill McDermott, Episode 15)
Host Bill McDermott welcomes Jeff Berman to discuss merger & acquisition activity in the pandemic, and Café Intermezzo Founder Brian Olson shares his passion for the European-style coffee houses he has developed in Atlanta and Nashville. “ProfitSense with Bill McDermott” is produced and broadcast by the North Fulton Studio of Business RadioX® in Alpharetta.
Jeff Berman, Managing Partner, Berman Fink Van Horn P.C.
Jeff Berman has practiced law in Atlanta for more than 30 years and genuinely enjoys being a lawyer. He works with clients who are creating and growing innovative companies. Throughout his legal career, he has had the opportunity to work with exceptionally successful business owners on a wide range of legal and business issues that directly affect the business owner and his or her business.
Jeff heads Berman Fink Van Horn’s corporate and business practice. In addition to day-to-day business matters, his practice includes mergers and acquisitions for middle-market companies, employment agreements, succession, and estate planning for business owners, commercial real estate, and contracts and agreements of all kinds. Jeff partners with clients to make their businesses run smoothly, make processes easier, avoid surprises and, ultimately, help them and their business grow and succeed. He believes that if your business moves fast and runs lean, you need an advisor who can do the same and be an integral part of your business.
Jeff has been a shareholder at Berman Fink Van Horn since January 1997 and managing partner since 2004. He was admitted to the Georgia Bar in 1982. He is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, the American Bar Association, the Lawyers Club of Atlanta, the Corporate Lawyer Network, and the Business Law Section of the State Bar of Georgia.
He is First Vice-Chair of the Jewish HomeLife Board of Directors and serves as Chair of the Business and Strategic Planning Committee.
Jeff is a Georgia native. After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1979, he obtained his law degree from Emory University School of Law in 1982. He is married to Kimberly Richardson Berman and they have two children. They are enthusiastic international travelers, with France, Southeast Asia, and Jamaica being among their favorite destinations. Jeff is an avid reader and a collector of first editions of award-winning mystery and science fiction novels. He also enjoys biking, boating, and scuba diving.
Brian Olson, Founder/President, Café Intermezzo
Café Intermezzo began in the mind of Brian Olson in 1971 as he first visited his maternal heritage homeland of Germany. First landing in Berlin, his cousin took him to a konditorei, which is a German term for an elegant European café/coffeehouse. A seed was planted for a dream to grow of one day opening his own European coffeehouse in America.
As a respite in a person’s day, a place to stop, to relax, to think…as an “intermission ” between all of the activities and responsibilities, Olson believed that the Kaffeehaus would provide a distinct and wonderful refuge in the ever-expanding world of fast-food and environments designed to expedite takeout beverages and foods. The European coffeehouse represents the antithesis of food and drink in a hurry. Here the music, the aromas, the art, the sheer nature of the Café all represent the essence of the coffeehouse experience.
Today, Café Intermezzo has five locations in the southeast. Learn more at the company website.
About “ProfitSense” and Your Host, Bill McDermott
“ProfitSense with Bill McDermott” dives in to the stories behind some of Atlanta’s successful businesses and business owners and the professionals that advise them. This show helps local business leaders get the word out about the important work they’re doing to serve their market, their community and their profession. The Show is presented by McDermott Financial Solutions. McDermott Financial helps business owners improve cash flow and profitability, find financing, break through barriers to expansion and financially prepare to exit their business. The show archive can be found at profitsenseradio.com.
Bill McDermott is the Founder and CEO of McDermott Financial Solutions. When business owners want to increase their profitability, they don’t have the expertise to know where to start or what to do. Bill leverages his knowledge and relationships from 32 years as a banker to identify the hurdles getting in the way and create a plan to deliver profitability they never thought possible.
Bill currently serves as Treasurer for the Atlanta Executive Forum and has held previous positions as a board member for the Kennesaw State University Entrepreneurship Center and Gwinnett Habitat for Humanity and Treasurer for CEO NetWeavers. Bill is a graduate of Wake Forest University and he and his wife, Martha have called Atlanta home for over 40 years. Outside of work, Bill enjoys golf, traveling, and gardening.
Connect with Bill on LinkedIn and Twitter and follow McDermott Financial Solutions on LinkedIn.