HK is a team of entrepreneurs who offer relevant, actionable business solutions to small and medium sized businesses looking to effect change.
Herb Kay
Herb Kay is president of HK Turnaround. A serial entrepreneur, Kay is also a The New York Times bestseller business author.
HK Turnaround's consulting practice began after Herb fought for years to keep one of his companies from going bankrupt. Many investor and creditor meetings, a lengthy court battle and one ousted partner later Herb not only rescued his business but walked away with a profit. His experience as an owner of a business in crisis and as a consultant for businesses in similar situations affords him a clear-eyed, experienced and savvy perspective on business turnaround issues.
After serving in the Navy as well as the National Security Agency as a Russian linguist, Herb began the first of his enterprises, a small chain of pet stores in Northern Colorado. From there, he spent a number of years at Northwestern Mutual Life, where he became the company’s leading first year agent. Herb soon gravitated to the investment business, joining Integrated Resources, then the largest independent broker in the country. Herb quickly became one of the company’s most prolific producers, repeatedly placing in the top 5 of 15,000 affiliated representatives.
Over the next few years Herb served as President of Herb Kay, LLC a Tucson, Arizona investment advisory firm, principal of Amigos Investment 1, LLC, a real estate development firm, and as partner and founder of Sonoran Capital Corporation, a lending company. Further, Herb invested in a number of successful ventures and became a recognized expert with his New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, “How to Get Filthy Stinking Rich and Still Have Time for Great Sex, an Entrepreneur’s Guide to Wealth and Happiness”. Herb became an in demand speaker to industry and trade groups, making numerous appearances on CNBC, Fox, and Bloomberg as a financial and business expert. In addition, he became the in-house financial guru on the Family Channel’s Home and Family show, broadcasting live daily from Universal Studios in Hollywood. He followed this with a stint on Great Day America on Pax TV. He also hosted 150 episodes of the syndicated weekly TV show “Get Rich Smart” and wrote a column on business and finance weekly for the Gannett Newspapers.
All the while, Herb was busy starting and running various businesses, including in the real estate space. It was during one of these transactions that Herb became involved in a very difficult business venture involving a partner and a number of investors for a very large real estate development and that eventually inspired HK Turnaround's consulting practice. It was this experience that awakened Herb to an innate talent to handle the most difficult and complex of business issues. Despite the stress and agitation, Herb found that he actually enjoyed the challenge and creativity involved in dealing with the principals, creditors, lenders and investors. Since then, Herb has taken on the role as the “lead blocker” for several turnarounds and has reached successful conclusions for companies in diverse industries.
Herb lives in Tucson.