fran·chis·ing \ fran-chī-z-ing \verb
1. The right to sell a company’s goods or services in a particular area 2. Covering the bases with Paul Segreto
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Franchisors want to know that potential franchisees are a good fit
ecently, a group of people inquired about a franchise opportunity with a fast-growing, emerging brand my firm had been representing for the past year. The candidates were financially qualified for several locations. We had multiple calls, including an FDD review, and on every call the group’s focus was on location and getting started ASAP. Despite their aggressive nature, we kept them on course and guided them through the process. During Discovery Day, they met the brand’s founders for the first time. Here’s where things went south. The five candidates kept themselves busy talking to each other. They spent their time scribbling notes, running numbers, talking about location, all amongst themselves. They made no effort to speak with the founders, ask them questions, or interact at all. They merely told the founders how they should change this or revise that—and how they’d like to do so when they opened their business. Seeing how quickly this meeting was going off course, we tried to create interaction 32
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between the parties. The founders worked hard to engage with the candidates, asking questions, trying to determine if there was a fit. When a founder asked the group, “Why this brand? What do you like about it?” The response was cool: “We know we can make money and when we do, we’ll commit to other locations.” A day later, the group had signed a letter of intent on a location, procured a cashier’s check for the franchise fee, and they were ready to sign the franchise agreement that very day. The franchisors, however, weren’t interested. They didn’t believe these individuals would follow the processes and procedures the founders had meticulously developed and invested in for more than eight years. The founders knew their system was working quite well, as evidenced by high customer satisfaction and great unit economics including excellent profit margins. Long story short: They rejected the candidates. This scenario isn’t uncommon—in fact, it’s unfolding more and more as franchisors are focusing on finding the right candidates
