COVER STORY
Going
Mobile
Bring your business to the customers instead of waiting for them to come to you.
T
By Jill Abrahamsen
he idea of a mobile business is hardly a new concept. Long before Amazon and the Internet, folks received daily visits from on-the-move professionals. There were ice deliveries, milk carting, even house calls from doctors. While times may change, convenience is always in demand. Today, mobile franchises may be the hottest things on wheels. With low overhead and quick startups, these businesses offer affordable buy-ins and high-profit-margin potential. Home services, like landscaping, painting, and window washing, continue to enjoy steady growth in mobile franchising, but now innovative models are coming on the scene from many business sectors. Here, we talk to mobile franchisors who are ruling the road. Take The Shoe Shine Guys, for example, a shoe service on wheels that caters to corporate executives. Then there’s FUN BUS®, where preschool gyms are built inside old school buses and drivers bring the fun to energetic kids everywhere. We also talk to two “Shark Tank” winners. The mother-daughter team behind Wicked Good Cupcakes are hitting the road with their “cupcakes in jars,” while the real-life cousins of Cousins Maine Lobster bring fresh lobster well beyond New England. Considering hitting the road with a mobile business? The out-of-the-box thinkers on the following pages will tell you how they put their wheels in motion. So start your engines and rev up your Google maps—after all, you never know where inspiration might lead.
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FranchiseDictionaryMagazine.com