Boardroom with a pale-blue agate table and seven chairs, overlooking skyscrapers at sunset

When family and business sit at the same table

I help family businesses move from one generation to the next — without letting conflict within the family tear the business apart.

Request a private inquiry See the approach
More than 108,000 family businesses form the backbone of the Bulgarian economy.
Most of them are still waiting for their generational transition.

According to PwC, around 64% of family businesses in Central and Eastern Europe are still run by their founders.

The hardest asset in any family business is the family itself. That is why I work exclusively with the human and family dynamics behind the business.

Owners, heirs, and their families get support through the hardest transition — without losing either the business or their bond with one another.

Who sits at the table

Every family business has its seven seats, even when some of them look empty. Choose a seat to see what we work with.

The founder

Touch another seat at the table to see its role.

What I work with

Succession risk
What happens to the business if the key person is absent tomorrow — and how well-prepared the transition really is.
Family governance
The boundaries between family and business — written or not — and how decisions get made when interests diverge.
Next-generation readiness
Whether heirs have not only the willingness but also the skills and the support to take on real responsibility.

Who it is for

Private consulting may be the right fit when:

  • you are considering a change in ownership, inheritance, or the business's future;
  • you are preparing the next generation, or thinking through what you want to pass on to your heirs;
  • you are a spouse, son, or daughter in the family business and feel your role has never been clearly named;
  • you have reached a crossroads in a key partnership or business relationship;
  • you are going through a divorce or another personal change affecting ownership, and need a confidential advisor on your side — not a lawyer, but someone who sees the whole picture;
  • you are rethinking your role as founder, owner, or leader;
  • you are bringing in new leadership, or preparing to step back;
  • you are considering a sale, an exit, or another major transition;
  • you feel that the business, the family, and your personal interests are no longer pulling in the same direction;
  • you have reached the level of success you were aiming for, and now find yourself asking what you actually want from here;
  • you sense that something is changing — even if you can't fully name it yet.

These conversations don't have to start with a crisis. The best time is often earlier — while there is still room to think and to choose.

How we work

Two ways of working together, depending on what you need.

Private consulting

For founders, owners, and direct heirs facing a more complex situation or transition — one that calls for broader, deeper private consulting shaped to the real demands of the situation.

EUR 2,500 excl. VAT

Consulting for a specific decision

A focused engagement around one specific decision you need to see clearly — from confusion to clarity.

EUR 1,500 excl. VAT

The work doesn't follow a fixed weekly rhythm. This is a confidential advisory relationship that adapts to the realities of your situation and the questions in front of you at any given moment. After your inquiry, you receive a proposal shaped to your situation — no hourly rates, a single fixed fee for the whole engagement. When needed, you also have direct access to me, outside of scheduled calls.

17 years
of firsthand experience in family entrepreneurship — with portfolios ranging from €500,000 to €140 million.

Why do I see things differently?

Лилия Николова
Founder & Family Business Succession Consultant

By training, I hold a master's degree in accounting and control, so I understand the language of balance sheets, cash flow, and ownership structure. But my real education came from somewhere else.

For nearly two decades, I had a front-row seat to the building of family businesses — and to the collapse of some of them, when unresolved issues within the family took over.

I work with founders and family members to bring clarity to the complex dynamics between family and business, and to create the conditions for a thoughtful transition from one generation to the next.

My approach combines discretion, structured dialogue, systemic tools for mapping family relationships, and a deep understanding of the human relationships at the foundation of family enterprises.

I look beyond the specific question on the table — I see the wider context, recognize recurring patterns, and understand how a change in one part of a family's life ripples into the rest. People around me tend to open up about what's really going on faster than I would expect. That matters to me: I care less about the title, and far more about the person behind the founder, the leader, the spouse, the heir — what truly occupies them, what responsibilities they carry, and what they actually want.

Lessons from Saint-Tropez

For seven years, I lived in the bay of Saint-Tropez. There, I witnessed up close how one respected family ran its business — with vision, respect, and deep integrity.

  • Genuine care for people: knowing every employee and their family by name, investing in teams, and offering real support through life's hardships.
  • Sustainable succession: a gradual, demanding preparation of the heir before the leadership was ever entrusted to them.
  • Balance and fairness: fair treatment among siblings, and a dignified place for relatives by marriage — often through their own venture connected to the family business.

Those years taught me lessons about leadership, integrity, and family relationships that now form the foundation of my work. That is how The Succession Room was born.

The work is confidential. The focus is on the family, the business, and the future.

The process

How an advisory relationship begins.

  1. The inquiry

    If you are considering private consulting, it all starts with a short inquiry — you share what you'd like help with.

  2. The private conversation

    A short, confidential, free, and non-binding call, in which we clarify together what's at stake, and whether and how working together would genuinely help.

  3. The proposal

    If we agree together that working together would add real value, you receive a personal proposal shaped to your situation, with the approach I recommend.

  4. The start

    Once we agree, we begin the work. You get access to my personal calendar to schedule calls, as well as direct access to me whenever it's needed.

Everything shared in the inquiry is confidential and used solely to prepare for our conversation.

Fill in the application form below. I review every application personally, and if I feel the inquiry would be a good fit, I will get back to you within 48 business hours. The private conversation itself is confidential, free, and non-binding.

Share what's going on, what you're considering, and any context you think is relevant. Share as much as feels comfortable.

Private advisory relationships start at EUR 2,500 excl. VAT. If we conclude that working together is the right next step, would this level of investment be a fit for you?

Applications are reviewed in strict confidence. By submitting this form, you agree to the processing of your personal data as described in our Privacy Policy. Your data will be used solely to contact you about your application. For confidential correspondence, you can reach us at info@successionroom.com.

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