Cool. You did not have a team which did not have the same vision as you (esp since they are qualified and should ideally understand what you are aiming for)!

When you takeover, you end up getting some like that & be rebellious on such topics. Good that you have cleaned it up and can look forward to your way of working. The new ones who come in will follow your culture.

People who don’t understand your line of business will want to comment & question your actions. Don’t bother about them, it’s your business & it’s your responsibility to grow it.

All the best!

Holiday period bonus - please stick to your current mode.

If you think you want to roll out performance based bonuses, then issue them at a different timeframe (not along with the year end / holidays time bonus).

Looks like he knows what others are being paid because of his partner, who is your office manager.

So, he wants to demand more. Maybe he wants to ask 28 so that you will negotiate and close at 24. if he asked 24, you might go only upto 20.

Is he is trying to take advantage of you or the situation, then just dump him & his partner if required! You have a business to run!!

Start on your own. You must have gained all the necessary skills to procure the needed stuff without the franchise owners by now.

What services? Is the domain really scalable further from what it is as of now? Will profits go up linearly or exponentially if you grow? What risks? Can competition eat your business?

Do a SWOT analysis to understand first along with its business model and forecasts. That should help you visualise the company better in terms of its value.

If what you have written is true, you are being used well. Your b beverages business owners are just some lucky bastards to rake in the profits at your expense.

It’s time for some frank talking. 3x might not be the number. It can be even more than that considering that you run the complete show like an owner. Ask for the salary they would take if they were to come and run the shop full time.

Lead by example. If you slouch, they would too.

Have clear guidelines and policies in place.

Be firm from day 1 with work.

Collect feedback from them on how to change for the better / improve from time to time.

Have some fun time too, but have a clear demarcation between work time and fun time.

Have some kind of rewards & recognition in place.