SYRACUSE — It has been a family business since 1986 — and will remain so for the foreseeable future.

Marny Nesher has acquired CNY Business Review, Inc. (better known as the CNY Business Journal) from her parents, Norman and Joan Poltenson. Nesher also purchased the sister company, BizEventz, Inc., from a family trust.

Nesher, who had been serving as the companies’ COO, is now sole owner and president.

Together, the corporations form The Business Journal News Network (BJNN), which includes business newspapers, a business news and research website, and an events and networking business.

The sale closed on March 6. Norman Poltenson, who previously served as the organization’s publisher, declined to disclose financial terms of the deal with Nesher.

Everybody needs an exit strategy, Poltenson says of the decision to sell the business. 

“The other thing is having built the company over 28 years. I would like to see it continue and continue locally with local management, he says. “I think Marny [Nesher] was eminently qualified and is eminently qualified to run the [organization].” 

Following the transaction, Poltenson is no longer serving as publisher and has transitioned to a full-time position as regional staff writer for BJNN, primarily writing for its three print editions.

Poltenson wants to stay “active and productive,” he adds. 

Nesher is “very happy” to have finalized the deal and to be serving as the company’s owner and president, she says. Nesher is “very excited about having the opportunity to do this and excited that it’s still a family business and hopefully we can create a legacy from this.”

When asked if she has any specific plans for the business in the next few years, Nesher indicated she wants to continue building on the company’s success, including a rebranding effort to inform the public that BJNN offers print and digital products, along with events.

In the transaction, Nesher acquired the companies’ stock, Poltenson says.

Poltenson has been thinking about the succession process for about a decade, he says. The discussions between Poltenson and Nesher on the transfer of ownership lasted “a couple of years,” he says.

Attorney Jeffrey B. Scheer of the Syracuse law firm Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC provided legal counsel on the transaction, while Christopher Didio of the accounting firm Dannible & McKee, LLP of Syracuse offered accounting guidance, according to Poltenson.

About the business
BJNN includes The Central New York Business Journal, The Mohawk Valley Business Journal, The Greater Binghamton Business Journal, and CNYBJ.com.

The Central New York Business Journal is the print edition that publishes weekly. Its sister publications, The Mohawk Valley Business Journal and The Greater Binghamton Business Journal, are print editions covering the Mohawk Valley and Southern Tier regions, respectively, that each publish seven times per year.

In addition to the print editions, the company also maintains a website, CNYBJ.com, on which it posts daily business news from its coverage of a 16-county area of upstate New York. 

It also produces and delivers a Daily News Alert email and a daily CoffeeBreak email to those who have signed up to receive the emails. The Daily News Alert is distributed in the afternoon and includes the daily business news items that posted on CNYBJ.com. 

The CoffeeBreak email includes links to online business news from around New York, along with the nation and world. It also includes links to five opinion articles on business matters. The CoffeeBreak email is sent out on weekday mornings.

BJNN also includes BizEventz, which offers a variety of conferences, seminars, events, and trade shows to provide business people with important information, tips, and advice, as well as networking opportunities. 

BJNN operates in a 2,500-square-foot space at 269 W. Jefferson St. in Syracuse, a former train station on the south end of Armory Square.

The company leases the space from Washington St. Partners. 

Nesher declined to disclose any of the company’s revenue information.

The business currently has 14 employees. It also utilizes freelancers and outside contractors.       

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com