"Business for Sale" is Back!

Throughout Inc.'s history, many elements of the editorial mix have proven popular, from Hands On, our smart and timely how-to section, to Norm Brodsky's column "Street Smarts," to the Inc. Case Study and our How I Did It feature.

The August issue marks the return of one of our most popular pages, the "Business for Sale" column, which takes a monthly look at (you guessed it) a company that is currently for sale--providing industry analysis, a look at the price rationale, and the broker's contact information.

I can't say for certain when we first came up with the idea of profiling a company on the block every month, or who came up with the notion. For many years, Business for Sale served as Inc.'s back page, and it was written by Jill Andresky Fraser.

I'm thrilled that Elaine Appleton Grant, a veteran business and technology writer and former senior editor at Inc., is writing the latest iteration of the column (and props to Lou Vega for the eye-catching design). The first installment looks at a 32-lane bowling alley in the Chicago area that is priced at $1.4 million. It's 2005 revenue stood at $863,000. Here's the link to the article. Any takers?

Feel free to let me know what you think of the article--and whether you would buy the business-- by posting below or by e-mailing me at mhofman@inc.com.

Mike Hofman was previously editor of Inc.com and a deputy editor at Inc. magazine, which he joined in 1996. The site was nominated for a National Magazine Award for Digital Media in 2010, and was named the best business website by Folio Magazine. In 2006, Hofman was part of a team of writers nominated for a Webby Award for best business blog. He lives in New York City. @mikehofman