Page 261 - James Caan - The Real Deal

Chapter 26

What Now? (2002–2003)

‘ What the hell had I done? And, more importantly, what the

hell was I going to do now? ’

he final negotiations with Advent had taken place over
T the phone while I was spending some time at the apartment
in Cannes with Aisha and the girls. The deal was taking a while
to finalise because Advent wanted things like non-competition
clauses inserted into the agreement that would prevent me from
opening an office across the street from Alexander Mann and
poaching all the best staff. I didn’t think it was strictly necessary:
why would I do anything to harm the company I loved? Besides, I
was leaving because I wanted to do something new. It took so long
to finalise that by the time I got back to London all the excitement
I had felt had been negotiated away. Going back into the office
would have been a backward step, so I simply called Jan, my PA,
and asked her to pack up my things and arrange for them to be
sent to the house. Apart from Jan, I didn’t speak to anyone else in
the company.
My friends at YPO – several of whom had also sold companies
they’d founded – told me that the best way to handle the situation
was to make a clean break. It was better for those who still worked

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