It’s a wild ride but worth it, says franchise owner

Starting and owning your own business is full of opportunities and pitfalls. Raising a family at the same time takes planning and perseverence. The rewards, however, are worth it.

“Business ownership is for the crazy at heart. You’ve got to be a little bit nuts to do it,” said Allie Canaday, owner of the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Auntie Anne’s pretzel store franchises at the Outlets at Traverse Mountain in Lehi. “The highs are high and the lows are low, but it is well worth it to invest in yourself and your future, because that’s ultimately what we’re doing. We’re in control of our success.”

Canaday earned her first opportunity to own her own business through a business program at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, Missouri. As part of the program, the best students were offered a chance to start their own business through a franchise.

She first went to Omaha, Nebraska, to operate her first Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. She and her husband Matt — who is co-owner of their two franchises — were dating at the time, and she asked him to accompany her and help manage the store.

After several months, Steven L. Craig, owner of the Outlets at Traverse Mountain and a benefactor of the Missouri school, offered Canday the opportunity to open a store in his new Lehi outlet mall, which was under construction.

Canaday was just 23 years old when she and Matt moved to Utah to open their new Lehi Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory store. A couple of years later, Craig helped them begin the process of obtaining their Auntie Anne’s franchise.

“The mall was doing really well and there was limited food in the mall, and we knew it was a limited time before someone jumped on the opportunity, and so we thought, why not us?” Allie said.

The couple have since married and now have three children. They have also started running an Auntie Anne’s pretzel truck in addition to their brick-andmortar store.

“I like the franchise structure of looking for a tried-and-true brand that has a culture of not only a great product, but integrity, that puts the franchisee first,” Canaday said.

Franchises are a good option for someone looking to start their own business, she said. Those interested in this kind of opportunity should, however, be sure to find a company that provides ongoing support such as conventions, regular onsite visits and product innovations.

She also recommended talking with current franchisees to get their perspective. “That’s the best thing you could possibly do,” she said, because franchise owners will be honest about the day-to-day challenges they face.

When first starting out in your new business, she suggested spending at least the first year handling the details of the business yourself. “In my experience, I learned so much in the beginning from being hands-on,” she said.

Now she has managers that deal with the daily details, but since she has done their job, she better understands their challenges and concerns. “I know what to expect from them because I know what I did myself,” she said.

The hardest part of running a business, Canaday said, is managing people. “I think that’s something a lot of people overlook in the beginning,” she said. “It needs to be part of your decision-making.” For example, if managing people is not an owner’s strength, they could seek out a partner who does have excellent management skills.

Canaday said she’s always thinking about business — it’s part of her nature now after more than 10 years as a franchise owner. However, she consciously tries to get her work done during the day so she can focus on her family more fully in the evening.

Balancing running your own business and raising a family is hard, “but it’s possible if you know how to set boundaries,” she said. It’s important for she and her husband to plan date nights that don’t involve business as nearly all of their conversations are about their businesses.

“My husband and I have both hit our breaking points at certain turns of owning businesses together, but right now we’re in a good place,” she said, “but there’s definitely peaks and valleys that we ride.”