PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY BRUCE MARS
WHERE TO BEGIN IN
Exploring Your Options in FITNESS FRANCHISING By Marilyn R Imparato
Y
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY LI SUN
ou have made the decision to embark upon exploring franchise options and want to see what is out there in fitness franchising. It can be a daunting process with all the
brands, concepts and variety to choose from. So where should you begin?! I believe you have the choice of two routes to go. You can either trudge through the myriad options alone or you can partner with a consultant with expertise in franchising to help you navigate
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the process. I will touch on the plusses and deltas of both routes to give you fodder to choose which route is best for you. If you decide to explore on your own, you are going to be in control of your time and the amount of time you will invest in your exploration process. This is also a delta. Since this is not your area of expertise, this will unfortunately elongate your learning curve and will not help protect you from what you do not know in the franchising industry. Can you come up to speed on all the nuances in the franchising industry? Yes. Will it take a lot of time to do so? Yes. If you do choose to go it alone, you will need to carve out considerable time for research on each and every one of the opportunities you choose, what your role is, what is required of you, what the competitive landscape is, and many other aspects in operations, technology, finance, and human resources, just to name a few.
