Sabra Young chats with Peter Coe, her father and founder of Taste Unlimited, as the lunch rush begins to taper off
at the company's new location in Chesapeake's Greenbrier area. Coe is passing the business on to Young and her husband, Bill. (Photos by Mike Heffner)

VIRGINIA BEACH - Sabra and Bill Young have added their own flavor to Taste Unlimited, a specialty food retailer and family business.

    With the grand opening of the sixth Taste Unlimited in Greenbrier last week, the Youngs introduced a new look for the stores. From a new color palette to new logos, the look reflects the way Peter Coe, the founder, and his daughter and son-inlaw see their stores: fun and exciting.

    It also represents the change of command.

    Taste Unlimited is part of the first wave of family businesses passing from the baby boomer generation to its successors.

    About 40 percent of family-owned businesses will change ownership in the next five years, according to the MassMutual Financial Group and the Raymond Institute, a foundation that promotes and serves family businesses.

    Fewer than one out of three family-owned businesses survive into the second generation, and about one out of 10 will be viable into the third generation. But the Taste Unlimited family is taking the steps that experts say can help these businesses succeed.

    Peter Coe was in his early 30s when he opened the first Taste Unlimited in 1973 in the Hilltop section of Virginia Beach.

    Sabra and Bill Young, Coe’s daughter and son-in-law, approached him four years ago about joining the business. The Youngs bought 50 percent of the business from Coe’s silent partner six months later. Now, they have taken over the daily operations of the business, which includes six stores and about 100 employees. The company would not release its revenue figures.

    ‘‘We made a pledge that for the first year they wouldn’t make any dramatic changes,’’ Coe said.

    The Youngs agreed. They managed individual stores to start, and worked slowly to where they are today.

    ‘‘This is a concept that has worked for 20 years,’’ said Sabra Young. ‘‘And we wanted to see how it worked and why.’’     As the Youngs took on more duties, Coe moved into the creative end of the business — writing cookbooks, choosing wines and teaching cooking classes.

    ‘‘I’ll never fully retire,’’ Coe said, ‘‘but I’ve made a conscientious decision to turn the business over to Sabra and Bill. It’s so exciting for me to see them have the enthusiasm and energy to take over the day-to-day.’’     A few simple steps can help smooth the transition, said Paul Karofsky, executive director of Northeastern University Center for Family Business in Boston, amembershipbased educational program that also owns www.fambiz.com, a Web site for family business executives and owners.

    It’s a good idea for the younger generation to strike out on its own before joining the family business, he said. The experience gives them the self-confidence that is essential to leadership.

    Similar visions also help the generational shift.

    ‘‘As each generation comes in, it needs to make its own mark,’’ Karofsky said. ‘‘So the younger generation has some emotional investment in the business as well as an economic one.’’     Before getting the entrepreneurial itch, the Youngs scratched around a bit in the corporate world. Sabra Young, 34, spent a few years working for public-relations agencies and an olive manufacturer in New York City. Bill Young, 32, isa graduate of the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Virginia. Before Darden, he was a commercial lending officer for Nations Bank/Bank of America. After graduating, he worked in business development for a roofing manufacturer in New York.

    Coe also worked as a banker before opening Taste Unlimited.

    ‘‘We both similarly recognized that it was a good thing to be a banker,’’ Young said. ‘‘It was an opportunity to learn an awful lot early in my career.’’     Mostly, he had the chance to see what worked and what didn’t work without being fully invested ina business.

    ‘‘Ultimately you are dealing witha transaction and you’re part of it,’’ he said. ‘‘But you’re playing with someone else’s money.’’     The Youngs and Coe agreed on the mission: deliver the highest quality Epicurean experience in the community. They’ll continue to sell wine and specialty foods, and serve prepared foods as well.

    But the Youngs have made their mark on the company while preserving Coe’s original approach to the business. During the past few months, they have introduced new services, such as ‘‘Gifts to Go,’’ pre-packaged gift baskets, and ‘‘Party to Go,’’ a simplified catering service; and new private-line products, such as smoked-salmon cheese spread and blackberry and bananaberry blend jams.

    The most noticeable changes can be seen in the recently opened Greenbrier store, where the Youngs introduced the new look for all Taste Unlimited stores.

    Once the next generation has established itself in the family business, Karofsky said there are three fundamental factors that will aid in its continued success: a strategic plan, regular family meetings and a board of advisers.

    By taking their time with the evolution of the business, the Youngs learned how it grew and how it continued to operate. Then, they developed a plan for the future.

    That is the essence of what Karofsky calls ‘‘strategic planning.’’     ‘‘The strategic plan is more visionary thana business plan,’’ Karofsky said. ‘‘It’s a way of looking at the business and devising a plan based on an analysis of where they are and where they want to go.’’     Sabra Young and Coe typically meet every Monday morning to touch base. They talk anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour depending on the topic.

    ‘‘So much of what we talk about is me picking his brain,’’ she said. ‘‘He has so many great ideas.’’     They spend alot of time talking about products, such as wines he has tasted or recipes she has discovered.

Bill Young occasionally joins them, but mostly keeps up via his wife.

    As for a board of advisers, the Taste Unlimited family has talked about it. ‘‘It’s just not something that has come to fruition yet,’’ Young said.

    Karofsky explaineda board should include people who have experience in the same kind of business. Business owners should avoid picking friends, former employees or paid advisers, such as an accountant or attorney.

    For now, the Youngs are focused on refurbishing the company’s five other stores. The store located in the Bayville section of Virginia Beach is being updated now and should be finished by mid-    March.

    ‘‘In another 20 years, we’re going to have to do this all over again,’’ Sabra Young said, sinking her hands into a bag of coffee beans, something she did as a child in her father’s first store.

    She was talking about changing the face of the business, but her 2-year-old son and 6-month-old daughter may have crossed her mind, too.