I feel there is a problem with big businesses buying smaller companies...

[CannonStreak]

Especially the business of big companies. Let me tell you all why...

You see, people should have a right to exercise their dreams, as well as have the right to try and become big. People want to be known, and make an impact and grow with their businesses, However, the thing is this: Many, if not all businesses and companies start off as small, and work their way from there. It should be simple enough, but technically, many of the bigger companies are buying out the smaller companies, which in the long run, prevent them from becoming big on their own. To me, it is quite said. A person selling their company to a bigger company may make a good amount of money, but that money won't last. That money will be spent, and then what will you have achieved? There is no substitute for hard work, after all.

Plus, there is the factoring in balance into all this. What I mean is: the bigger businesses will eventually go out of business one way or another, and there are replacements to be made. If these companies do go out of business eventually, after buying many of the companies that try to go big, what good is buying those companies instead of letting them grow to be big enough to "replace them", if you know what I mean? I mean, without giving smaller companies a chance to grow big, who's gonna take over where the bigger companies left off when they go out of business? It is like a child eventually growing up and taking care of their parents when they grow old, and I fear there may not be enough small companies that will be able to do that if they are bought out by bigger companies. The lack of replacements will lead to problems in society. That is why I think the power of businesses needs to change, because I fear that with bigger companies buying smaller companies happening too often nowadays, and while I do believe it actually won't change anytime soon, I do not think this is going to be a healthy behavior for our society later on. Not to mention, people need to realize that they should achieve their dreams, not sell their company to a bigger one, and try to grow big on their own, so not only will they be successful, but they will be able to take over from other big companies should they end up shutting down. Selling a small company to a big one is not going to grant lasting money.

But yeah, I do see that with many big companies buying out smaller companies nowadays, this could eventually be a problem, for reasons I just described. Nothing lasts forever after all, and there is no point in trying to delay the inevitable.

So, what do you all think of this?

 

[MikeHuston]

Mod EDIT: Advertisement Removed

 

[Kriven]

I think... corporate mergers should be outlawed. If a company is at risk of going out of business, then it should. Its intellectual property should enter the public domain. Sell the physical properties to the highest bidder I guess, use the proceeds to fund a minimum of one year's wages/salary for the workers who end up out of a job, and that company now ceases to exist. Companies should simply not be permitted to swallow one another, to become the sort of multi-headed hydra that a corporation like Disney has become.

 

[osby]

Especially the business of big companies. Let me tell you all why...

You see, people should have a right to exercise their dreams, as well as have the right to try and become big. People want to be known, and make an impact and grow with their businesses, However, the thing is this: Many, if not all businesses and companies start off as small, and work their way from there. It should be simple enough, but technically, many of the bigger companies are buying out the smaller companies, which in the long run, prevent them from becoming big on their own. To me, it is quite said. A person selling their company to a bigger company may make a good amount of money, but that money won't last. That money will be spent, and then what will you have achieved? There is no substitute for hard work, after all.

Plus, there is the factoring in balance into all this. What I mean is: the bigger businesses will eventually go out of business one way or another, and there are replacements to be made. If these companies do go out of business eventually, after buying many of the companies that try to go big, what good is buying those companies instead of letting them grow to be big enough to "replace them", if you know what I mean? I mean, without giving smaller companies a chance to grow big, who's gonna take over where the bigger companies left off when they go out of business? It is like a child eventually growing up and taking care of their parents when they grow old, and I fear there may not be enough small companies that will be able to do that if they are bought out by bigger companies. The lack of replacements will lead to problems in society. That is why I think the power of businesses needs to change, because I fear that with bigger companies buying smaller companies happening too often nowadays, and while I do believe it actually won't change anytime soon, I do not think this is going to be a healthy behavior for our society later on. Not to mention, people need to realize that they should achieve their dreams, not sell their company to a bigger one, and try to grow big on their own, so not only will they be successful, but they will be able to take over from other big companies should they end up shutting down. Selling a small company to a big one is not going to grant lasting money.

But yeah, I do see that with many big companies buying out smaller companies nowadays, this could eventually be a problem, for reasons I just described. Nothing lasts forever after all, and there is no point in trying to delay the inevitable.

So, what do you all think of this?

I agree with your overall point to a degree (big companies constantly buying the smaller ones is ultimately harmful) but the thing is the scenario you're proposing isn't realistic. In capitalism, there's no life cycle of small businesses growing and taking over the big ones without a catalyst - usually in the form of market demand shifting from one type of product to another and the previously big companies failing to supply that demand.

Now, companies fail for all kinds of reasons but bigger ones are usually more resilient to factors that affect everyone, either due to higher capital or access to government subsidiaries due to being "too big to fail". Some small-scale organizations like co-ops are proven to have more resilience against economic stagnance but they rarely focus on growth in the first place. And that's the thing: not all companies can grow at the same time (since there are limited sources, buying power of customers, etc.) so if one business is growing, the others have to downsize.

So, what you're seeing is as few companies grow, the others cease to be independent entities. Monopolizing, in other words. However, I don't think new companies replacing the previous giants to become the new monopolizing conglomerates in the answer. That's just keeping the same problem under another name.

You're right that allowing companies to grow without supervision gives them too much sway in the economy that global economic crises should make us wary of but I disagree that we should encourage small companies to follow the leaders' example. Ideally, there should be more incentives for small-scale companies to be content with their size and not risk getting bought. Our aim should be degrowth if we're rightfully skeptical of big businesses dominating their industries.

On a side note

A person selling their company to a bigger company may make a good amount of money, but that money won't last. That money will be spent, and then what will you have achieved?

That sort of money is usually used as investment or capital for a new business but if a single person gets all the money and it's a good deal, they can just retire. But that is assuming that the smaller company initiated the buyout and they weren't screwed over.

Keep in mind that a lot of small businesses are sold because they are bankrupt or experiencing other difficulties, hence simply don't have much choice.