July 2015 franchising usa 3#9

Franchising usa T he ma g a z ine for franchisees

VOL 03, ISSUE 9, july 2015

$5.95 www.franchisingusamagazine.com

why hiring could be

hot this summer special

mobile franchising supplement

one stop tax

living the american dream LATEST NEWS

FINANCIAL ADVICE FROM THE BANKS

TOP LAWYERS’ ADVICE

START YOUR BUSINESS TODAY!

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WWW.COVERALL.COM

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5 Reasons

Why a Coverall Franchised Business Might Be A Good Fit For You. Life is full of opportunities and people start businesses every day. Like so many, you’re probably trying to figure which step to take next. You know you have the drive and the passion to make it happen. But, you’re looking for the right fit. Which is good, because we’re looking for men and women who have the right stuff.

Here are 5 reasons to consider a Coverall Franchised Business*:

1. An In-Demand Service 2. It Doesn’t Take Much to Start 3. No Experience Needed.

4. Start Quick.

5. We’re Here for You.

With Coverall, it can be easy to become your own boss.

Learn more at coverall.com

“After 15 years in business, my wife and I look back on the moment we realized we could do this and laugh to ourselves – we did it!”

Martel Brown, United States Army Veteran Coverall Franchised Business Owner (not pictured in advertisement)

*This offering is made by prospectus only. See Franchise Disclosure Document for details.

This year 2015 marks the 30th anniversary for Coverall North America, Inc., a leading franchised brand in the commercial cleaning industry. Today more than 40,000 customers system-wide are serviced by Coverall Franchised Businesses using the Coverall® Program and Core 4® Process.

Franchising usa T he ma g a z ine for franchisees

FRANCHISING USA VOLUME 3, ISSUE 8, JUNE 2015 president: Colin Bradbury. colin@cgbpublishing.com

Publisher: Vikki Bradbury. vikki@cgbpublishing.com

Advertising Sales: Kimberly Kutnick kimberlyk@cgbpublishing.com

Editorial Department: editor@cgbpublishing.com

Editorial team: Rob Swystun Gina Gill

Production: Diana Cikes usaproduction@cgbpublishing.com

DESIGN: Jejak Graphics. jejak@bigpond.com

COVER IMAGE: One Stop Tax

CGB PUBLISHING Canadian Office: 676 Wain Road, Sidney B.C Canada V8L 5M5 U.S. Office: 800 5th Ave, #101 Seattle, WA 98104-3102 Sales: 847 607 8407 Editorial: 778 426 2446 www.franchisingusamagazine.com Proud member of the IFA:

SUPPLIER FORUM International Franchise Association 1501 K Street, N.W., Suite 350 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 628-8000 Fax: (202) 628-0812 www.franchise.org

Publisher After recently attending the IFE Franchise Expo in New York, it was interesting to see the diverse range of Franchise systems currently seeking Franchisees, which for you the Potential Franchisee is a veritable smorgasbord of opportunities. I always enjoy the enthusiasm and wealth of information available, and with that in mind I know this issue of Franchising USA is packed full of some great advice and concepts.

On the cover we have One Stop Tax and Charles Kinutha who came from a poor background in Kenya and is now living the American Dream which he wants to help others realize just like he did. You can read his story on pages 10-11.

As always we have some great Expert advice, for example: Andy Roe, and why hiring could be hot this summer, Kyle

Zagrodsky, The True Pros and Cons of Being a Franchise Owner, George Knauf with Your growth for 2016 starts now, and how all too often we put off until tomorrow what we should be doing today, Tony Gioia tells us how to run your Franchise like a CEO. This is just a taste of the many experts we have in this issue.

The Feature Supplement this issue is Mobile Franchising and we have GameTruck on the cover, as we look at this fun and exciting Franchise, the driving force behind the mobile Entertainment Franchise. We also have experts such as Chris Conner, John Ferracuti, Frank Repicci and many more offering some sound advice should this be the chosen concept for you.

Finally we have our Veterans in Franchising and this issue we have Pillar to Post Home Inspectors featured on the cover who caters for Veterans, and sit down with Vince Stoakley who found his calling as a franchisee in the Houston Area.

I hope you enjoy this issue, keep the comments coming and don’t forget to check out our website www. franchisingusamagazine to order your digital subscription or get the app so you are updated every month.

Happy Reading and Good Luck Vikki Bradbury Publisher

The information and contents in this publication are believed by the publisher to be true, correct and accurate but no independent investigation has been undertaken. Accordingly the publisher does not represent or warrant that the information and contents are true, correct or accurate and recommends that each reader seek appropriate professional advice, guidance and direction before acting or relying on all information contained herein. Opinions expressed in the articles contained in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. The publication is sold subject to the terms and conditions that it shall not be copied in whole or part, resold, hired out, without the express permission of the publisher.

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Contents On the Cover

26 Why Hiring Could Be Hot This Summer

10 Cover Story

Andy Roe, General Manager, SurePayroll, Inc.

53 Special Mobile Franchising Supplement

70

24

One Stop Tax: Living the American Dream

12

JUly 2015

In Every Issue

Mobile Supplement

06 Franchising News Announcements from the Industry

54 Mobile News

31 Veterans Supplement News and Information for Veterans in Franchising

60 Feature Article

Mobile Franchising 90 A-Z Franchise and Services Directoy

58 Cover Story Game Truck 60 Mobile Feature 64 Drive Your Success

John Ferracuti, Vice President & General Manager,

Bin There Dump That

66 The Four Pillars of the Vending Machine Business Jessica Conflitti, Marketing Consultant & Franchise Specialist

53

68 Spotlight on Service - Spark Mobile Video 70 The Mobile Food Truck Revolution Christopher Conner, President, Franchise Marketing Systems

72 Profile - Oxi Fresh 74 Franchises: The Road is Calling Chris Poelma, President and General Manager

of NCR Small Business and NCR Silver

76 Have Your Say:

Frank Repici, Repicci’s Italian Ice and Gelato Franchising USA

12 Look Who’s Talking, Word of Mouth Marketing Shelly Sekki, President, WorkPlace Impact

14 How to Run Your Franchise Like a CEO Tony Gioia, Chariman & CEO, Togo’s Holdings LLC

76

Expert Advice

18 Your 2016 Growth Starts Now! George Knauf, Senior Franchise Business Advisor, FranChoice

24 5 Tips to Make Your “Unsexy” Franchise Brand a

“Sexy” Investment Opportunity David Bosley, Executive VP, OpenWorks

26 Why Hiring Could Be Hot This Summer Andy Roe, General Manager, SurePayroll, Inc.

48 The True Pros and Cons of Being a Franchise Owner Kyle Zagrodzky, President, OsteoStrong

50 Five Franchises to Consider for Men’s Health Month Jim Judy, Franchise Business Consultant

16

44 Building an Effective Wow! Customer Experience Andre Kay, CEO & Founder, Sociallybuzz

82 The Biggest Benefits of Being a Franchisee?

Rick Coffey, Founder & Owner, Barkefellers

88 What Franchise Tenants Need to Know About

Evaluation Building Types Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield, The Lease Coach

Focus 16 Interface Financial Group 46 Proshred

Profile 28 Minuteman Press

Franchisor In Depth 20 Our Town America 80 Outdoor Living Brands

18

86 Coverall

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what’s new!

Primp and Blow expands to open its newest location in Nebraska

Renowned blow dry and pamper bar, Primp and Blow, recently continued its national franchise expansion with the opening of its newest location in Omaha, Nebraska.

This represents the newest addition to the Primp and Blow family with seven locations across Arizona, Kansas and now Nebraska, with plans to expand through continued franchise growth in Texas and beyond.

“Primp and Blow has already established itself as the premier blow dry and pampering bar in Arizona and the other markets we serve. We love providing the ultimate pampering experience for each and every one of our clients,” said Melodi Harmon, founder of Primp and Blow. “I’m excited for this next step in growing the Primp and Blow brand.”

Primp and Blow is known for its fun, boutique-style atmosphere and full service pampering experience. Clients enjoy a wide

variety of premier pampering services, including blowouts, make up services, hair and eyelash extensions and more, all in a spa-like setting. Primp and Blow also offers exclusive monthly memberships, including reduced blowout rates, product discounts, and special invitations to VIP parties and events.

With a commitment to exceptional customer service and a proven business model, Primp and Blow represents the perfect opportunity for entrepreneurs looking to start their own successful franchise and become part of a multi-billion dollar industry.

For more information visit, www.primpandblow.com/franchise.

JUICE IT UP! OUTRANKS LARGER CHAINS IN FAST CASUAL’S TOP MOVERS & SHAKERS Juice It Up!, a premier raw juice bar and hand-crafted smoothie franchise, has claimed the 54th spot on Fast Casual’s 2015 Top 100 Movers and Shakers list, beating out several larger competitors.

FastCasual.com’s annual list names top restaurant chains, trends and technologies that shape the fast casual segment.

This prestigious ranking follows Juice It Up!’s recent announcement of the brand’s consecutive, month over month net sales growth, resulting in more than 50 percent sales increases over the past 25 months.

“This is a very exciting time of growth and innovation for the brand and being named as a top chain on Fast Casual’s Top 100 Movers and Shakers list is an honor,” said Carol DeNembo, vice president of marketing for Juice It Up! “The recognition validates our shift to a stronger focus on our fresh, raw juice options,

Franchising USA

and we’re proud to say we’ve beat out some of our strongest competition in the smoothie category.”

Receiving more than 900 nominations, Fast Casual’s Top 100 List features brands hand-picked by a panel of industry experts and based on criteria such as growth, social responsibility, innovation and overall contribution.

To learn more please visit: www.juiceitupfranchise.com

Eco-Friendly Franchise Offers Free Dry Cleaning with G-Star RAW Partnership New York City-based franchise The Eco Laundry Company recently announced a groundbreaking partnership with international denim retailer G-Star RAW. As part of the strategic partnership, The Eco Laundry Company is offering free dry cleaning for life on any piece of clothing from G-Star’s RAW for the Oceans collection, a clothing line curated

by Pharrell Williams and made with fabric spun from recycled ocean plastic.

RAW for the Oceans takes plastic trash from the ocean and transforms it into yarn, which is then incorporated into fabric used to create clothing. RAW for the Oceans is an ongoing project between G-Star RAW, Bionic Yarn and Parley for the Oceans — a group of artists, scientists, musicians, and designers dedicated to cleaning up the world’s oceans.

The Eco Laundry Company is a sustainable dry cleaner and laundry franchise where stores run on pure wind energy, and energy-efficient washing machines save hundreds of gallons of water. Only biodegradable soaps and detergents are used, making it a completely nontoxic experience for consumers and the environment.

When it comes to franchise growth, The Eco Laundry Company seeks like-minded entrepreneurs who fully understand and identify with the brand’s mission and philosophy. Franchise opportunities are now available for aspiring owner-operators in the New York metropolitan area.

For more information visit: www.ecolaundrycompany.com

Tennis Pro Michael Chang Opens Second Pieology Pizzeria Location Pieology Pizzeria, where pizza lovers go to create custom pizzas in endless flavor combinations, has opened in La Mirada, California.

This is the second franchised location opened by tennis professional and brother of Pieology founder, Michael Chang along with his wife, Amber.

“My wife and I are proud to be a members of the Pieology family during this very exciting time of growth and innovation, and we’re looking forward to bringing the customized dining experience to our new guests in La Mirada,” said Chang. “I’ve been a believer in my brother’s vision for

Pieology since day one and I’m thrilled to see that the concept is exceeding expectations in all areas, from sales to guest satisfaction. These first two locations are only the beginning of my franchise plans with Pieology!”

A proven favorite with pizza fans, Pieology has 29 locations across Southern California, with plans to open 6 more by summer. The Pieology experience starts with fresh house-made dough that is pressed into 11.5-inch thin pizza crusts.

Guests select from eight signature sauces, and choose from more than 30 fresh ingredients, then are stone oven fired in

Michael Chang at the 2014 US Open of Tennis

less than three minutes with the option to finish with an after-bake “Flavor Blast,” which includes fiery buffalo, pesto and BBQ. www.pieology.com

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what’s new!

Woof Gang Bakery Second Annual Pet Adoption Event

nearly 2,600 total pounds of pet food, $9,800 in goods and veterinary services, and $500 in grooming services, including baths and grooms for newly adopted dogs.

The Event Gives New Forever Homes to Dozens of Rescue Dogs and Cats as well as Donations of pet food, veterinary care, grooming and other goods helped animals in need.

Adoptions resulting from the event included a lovable 150-pound English Mastiff and a Labrador Retriever who had been in foster care and in need of a permanent home for more than a year. At Woof Gang Bakery Jacksonville, funds were raised to provide surgery for a Staffordshire terrier who suffered BB gun injuries. Best of all, the little dog also was adopted that day.

Nearly 70 deserving pets found their “fur-ever” homes during Woof Gang Bakery’s second annual adopt-a-thon event held on May 9, 2015. Another 26 pet adoption applications are currently in progress.

The event, held in collaboration with more than 70 local animal rescue groups, was hosted at 42 Woof Gang Bakery stores across six states.

Throughout the entire year, Woof Gang Bakery strives to help raise awareness for the more than 7 million adoptable dogs and cats across the country. Working with local pet rescue organizations, Woof Gang Bakery aims to assist shelter animals and help them find forever homes.

Local animal rescue organizations also received donations from customers and Woof Gang Bakery. Donations included

For more information or to find the location nearest you, visit www.woofgangbakery.com.

Wienerschnitzel Donates $100K to Match Funds Raised During Hot Dogs for Homeless Tour Inaugural Month-Long Tour Generates $200K for Non-Profit Skate for Change After traveling 8,000 miles, across 21 cities in five states, and handing out more than 50,000 hot dogs, Wienerschnitzel, the world’s largest Hot Dog chain, is proud to announce that it has matched the $100,000 in donations raised during the inaugural Hot Dogs for Homeless Tour.

The $200,000 contribution will benefit tour partner, Skate For Change, a non-profit organization dedicated to

Franchising USA

encouraging youth to give back to the less fortunate in their communities.

Throughout the month of April, a Wienerschnitzel-wrapped RV, aptly named the “Wienerbago,” and the Hot Dogs for Homeless crew, visited shelters and cities across the west coast with heavy homeless populations to lift spirits and provide hot meals, socks and other necessities to those who needed it most. The tour also stopped at 20 high schools along the way,

where the crew addressed close to 50,000 students about creating a positive change in their communities.

“The enthusiasm and selflessness we saw from the students and volunteers was inspiring, and together, we put a smile on the faces of those who needed it most,” said Wienerschnitzel Chief Visionary Officer, J.R. Galardi. “I’m looking forward to getting the team back together next year to do even bigger and better things!” www.wienerschnitzel.com

Always Best Care is one of the nation’s leading providers of non-medical in-home care, assisted living placement services and skilled home health care. The company delivers its services through an international network of more than 200 independently owned and operated franchise territories throughout the United States and Canada.

Ms. Conner’s award and a check for $1,000 were presented at a special dinner and awards ceremony in San Antonio, Texas, site of the fourth Always Best Care International Conference.

Always Best Care Names Quandra Conner of Virginia its “Caregiver of the Year” Quandra Conner of Richmond, Virginia is the winner of the Always Best Care Senior Services coveted 2015 Caregiver of the Year award.

The award recognizes a caregiver who demonstrates an extraordinary commitment to the delivery of superior care to clients and their families.

Primrose Schools honored with national CSR award

Primrose Schools, the national premier preschool franchise, was recently honored as a 2015 Communitas Award recipient.

Communitas Awards are given to

recognize exceptional businesses and leaders for excellence in community

service and corporate social responsibility.

“Caring for seniors is something I love to do everyday,” said Ms. Conner. “It is in my heart. To be recognized for that by Always Best Care is an incredible honor and truly a dream come true.”

Ms. Conner works for franchisee Joan Shifflett of Always Best Care Richmond South in Midlothian, Virginia. “Quandra is an extraordinary caregiver and I am extremely proud of her being named Caregiver of the Year,” said Ms. Shifflett. www.FranchiseWithAlwaysBestCare.com Primrose Schools was recognized for its corporate social responsibility program, Primrose Promise™. Developed under the leadership of Jo Kirchner, President and CEO of Primrose Schools, the program advocates for all children to receive quality early education and care.

Through a partnership with Save the Children®, Primrose schools across the country sponsor more than 290 children living in underserved communities and provided them with books, learning tools and regular communication from children in Primrose classrooms. Furthermore, through the company’s own not-for-profit, The Primrose Children’s Foundation, Primrose schools raised more than $500,000 in 2014 for charities in their local communities.

For more information on the partnership between Primrose Schools and Save the Children, visit www.primroseschools. com/save-the-children.

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cov er sto ry

O ne S top Ta x

Franchisor living the American Dream

wants to help others do same

Working his way up from the type of poverty that others can only imagine, one entrepreneurialminded franchisor wants to help others realize their American dreams, just like he did.

Founder and CEO of One Stop Tax, Dr. Charles Kinuthia, came from a poor background in Kenya where he lived off of less than $10 per month. That didn’t stop Kinuthia from working his way through school and immigrating to the US. “I actually saw an opportunity where I

Franchising USA

could live the American dream,” he said during a recent interview from the One Stop Tax headquarters in Houston.

“When I arrived in the U.S., I started at the bottom doing security and cleaning jobs and worked my way to oil and gas, but then 2007 came and the now-infamous economic recession began”. Like so many others, Kinuthia found himself without a job. What he did have, however, was a head for numbers and an entrepreneurial spirit that helped him survive in his home country on virtually nothing.

He also saw a niche to fill, and that niche was tax preparation where customers are actually treated well.

“I’ve always been a math fanatic ever since I was young and it kept bothering me every time I went to file my taxes that

I received poor treatment as a customer,” he recalled.

Either the tax preparer didn’t know what they were doing, Kinuthia said, or they knew what they were doing, but provided terrible customer service.

He became fascinated with the idea of making tax preparation pleasant instead of a dreadful experience by providing great customer service while also having taxes done by competent tax preparers.

From humble beginnings in a 200 square foot space in Houston, Kinuthia has grown One Stop Tax to one of the fastest growing tax preparation service providers for the general public in the country. In operation for seven years, Kinuthia started franchising the business in 2014.

Ideal Franchisees From retirees, to veterans to stay at home moms, the One Stop Tax CEO has welcomed many different types of people into the business. Despite their difference in backgrounds, though, these people all wanted to invest in a recession-proof business, he said.

“One Stop Tax provides full training of the skills required to run a tax business to ensure franchisees are thoroughly prepared.”

Ideal candidates should be dedicated and success driven, Kinuthia outlined.

Organizational and leadership skills are paramount, as well as a strong passion for business, good moral character and keen business acumen.

Lest it all sounds too serious, though, the CEO also wants franchisees who like to have fun. Tax preparation and accounting skills are not necessary, he noted, but it’s incredibly important to fit into the overall company culture.

That company culture is morality based rather than bureaucratically based, he explained, and ideal franchisees should love to give back to the community, either with their time, their resources, or through participating in volunteer opportunities.

Getting On Board Potential franchisees start with a Q&A conference call session with Kinuthia himself where he finds out about them and they find out about the business.

The second step is to attend a seminar, either in webinar format or they can come in person to one of the company’s live seminars, giving them the opportunity to meet the One Stop Tax team, plus other franchisees.

After the application process is complete, all agreements signed and the franchise fee paid, the company will help franchisees find a location and set up shop as they complete the operations training program.

Then, the new location opens. This all could take as little as 45 days, Kinuthia said.

Training and Support One Stop Tax provides full training of the skills required to run a tax business to ensure franchisees are thoroughly

prepared and knowledgeable about marketing, IT, staffing and everything else that goes into running a tax business.

This includes how to prepare taxes, how to deliver and communicate financial products to customers and advanced training about how to grow and sustain a business, plus leadership training.

Rule approach to customer service; treat

everyone the way you want to be treated.

A common refrain at the company is

that it’s always day one at One Stop Tax, as there is always a lot more to learn

and new ways to serve customers. That, along with their competitive pricing for

The company also provides technical support, marketing support in the way of local and national advertising, plus the aforementioned site selection assistance to help franchisees identify the right location for them.

both franchisees and customers, help set

Expansion

Among the newest developments at One

Currently, the company is looking to expand into what Kinuthia calls prime territory from a strategic point of view.

This includes Ohio, Arizona, New Jersey, Missouri, Kansas and Mississippi.

them apart from the myriad other tax

preparation services. The company also

embraces and drives change, he said, from paperless offices to saving customers time through advanced technology.

Stop Tax is the vendor placement, which is perfect for starting or expanding a tax

franchise. A person can open a complete

tax office inside a national retail chain that the company has exclusive agreements

He’s been studying the marketplace for a while, the CEO said, and the way they are expanding, they want to be in certain geographical areas because of their longterm strategy.

with for the upcoming tax season.

The One Stop Tax Difference

For more information:

Kinuthia called One Stop Tax a customerobsessed organization with a Golden

1 855 408 2937 ext 809 or go to

For Kinuthia, helping like-minded entrepreneurs live their own version of the American dream is the best measure of success for the business.

website: www.onestoptax.com

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ex per t advice

AndrewSekki, Shelly Cagnetta, President, CEO, WorkPlace TransworldImpact Business Advisors

Look Who’s Talking: Marketing in the Workplace Drives Business All franchisees can agree that increasing sales is a top priority. The best way to achieve that goal, however, is another discussion.

There are so many options for promoting a location’s offerings: direct mail, social

Franchising USA

media, digital ads, outdoor and television are just a few. What everyone will agree on is that targeting a captive audience that has disposable income is crucial to increasing sales.

Mouth Marketing Association, word of mouth accounts for 13% of all consumer purchasing—or $6 trillion—and is the most influential type of word of mouth is offline.

So what’s the best way to accomplish that goal? Despite the proliferation of advertising options, there’s one item that continues to rank as a top influencer of buying decisions: Word Of Mouth (WOM). According to the Word of

A new study looking at conversations in the workplace found that offline conversations about brands around the proverbial water cooler are incredibly influential in leading to a decision to buy a product. WorkPlace Impact, the leader

“According to the Word of Mouth Marketing Association, word of mouth accounts for 13% of all consumer purchasing—or $6 trillion—and the most influential type of word of mouth is offline.” in workplace marketing, teamed up with the Keller Fay Group, an award-winning marketing research firm that specializes in word of mouth marketing, to release the “Water Cooler Report.” The study is the first ever to shine a light on conversations about brands that happen at work.

Why is this important for franchises?

Americans spend about half their time at work on average, are time-starved, and are earning a steady paycheck. Whether it’s picking up breakfast at a quick serve restaurant near work, grabbing lunch at a fast casual eatery at lunchtime, or making a shopping trip to a nearby store on the way home, let’s face it: work is where purchasing decisions are made.

How much are people really talking?

The report shows that among consumers ages 18-60, 12% of all conversations about brands occur “at work.” When looking at full-time employees working MondayFriday, that number doubles to 25%. When people go to a great restaurant or are excited about an outfit they just bought, there’s a good chance they’ll tell their coworkers.

Why are these conversations important?

Sixty-nine percent of all “Workplace Talkers” (the study’s term for people who talk about brands during the workweek) is categorized as “mostly positive”, and 40% of conversations include a strong

recommendation to buy the product.

Almost half (48%) of these brand conversations are highly likely to lead to purchase. If a brand is not part of these conversations, they are missing out on a chance to be recommended positively to others, which leads people to buy.

Which brands are being discussed?

Among Workplace Talkers, 24% engage in WOM about restaurant brands on any given day. The top three restaurant brands discussed at work are McDonald’s, Burger King, and Subway. When Workplace Talkers talk about dining brands, 69% of those discussions are positive. The most-discussed retail brands during the workweek are Walmart, Target, and Amazon.com.

How can franchisees generate word-of-mouth buzz about their brand in the workplace?

Companies like WorkPlace Impact, which has been helping franchisees increase sales and acquire new customers for almost thirty years, can help market your company to consumers at work.

WorkPlace helps dining, retail, and CPG brands insert their marketing messages into workday conversations through various types of programs including traditional print advertisements, product sampling programs, and experiential events. With a network of over one million businesses around the country, WorkPlace

puts your company’s name front and center in the offices you want to target so that you are top of mind when overworked employees take a break to gather around the water cooler.

With over two decades in the direct marketing industry, Shelly Sekki is an accomplished leader who focuses on driving results for WorkPlace Impact’s restaurant, retail and consumer packaged goods clients. Her talent has grown from overseeing the implementation of client programs for hundreds of national brands— Starbucks, Outback Steakhouse, Walmart, and more—to guiding the continuous growth strategy for the company. She accomplishes this through her deep knowledge of the industry and through establishing a culture that is highly regarded among the company’s associates.

For more information on WorkPlace Impact, visit http://www.workplaceimpact.com/.

To download the “Water Cooler Report”, visit www.workplaceimpact.com/watercooler

Shelly Sekki

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ex per t advice

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ex per t advice

Tony Gioia, Chairman & CEO, Togo’s Holdings, LLC

How to

Run Your Franchise

Like a CEO When you open a restaurant franchise, you don’t just “manage” or “run” the place: you become Chief Executive Franchisee.

Franchising USA

The totality of your business – the brand, employees, customers, finances, community and strategy – all rest on your shoulders.

This is no small burden, but it becomes one of the most rewarding experiences, both personally and financially, if you cultivate the mindset of a CEO. This outlook distinguishes the franchisees who thrive from those who don’t.

Thinking like a CEO is both an art and

science. It’s an endeavor to connect the dots between means and ends while synchronizing your short-term and long-term goals. The bedrock of business leadership is what I call “calibration”: the process of continuously learning from all the good, bad and ugly to iterate and improve. By connecting the dots, balancing short-term and long-term, and always calibrating, you can build an enduring business and love what you do.

“In each and every aspect of your business, there are dots to connect and opportunities to calibrate.”

Connecting the Dots Connecting the dots is an inquiry into what you’re doing and how you could be doing it better. It’s examination of means and ends that teaches you how to repeat successes.

When you open a franchise, you inevitably hire a mixed bag of employees. Some crew members will provide outstanding service and meet your brand standards – others will struggle. Connecting the dots here is about finding the pattern. What type of employee performs best and why? Which employees stick around or take off? You rely on a combination of intuition (art) and results (science) to figure this out.

Gradually, you build an image of the ideal employee and learn how to identify it in the hiring process. That image is unique to your franchise – no else can tell you who to hire.

You connect the dots of the customer experience in similar way, with analogous questions. In your franchise, what does great service look like, and how do you know if you’re achieving it?

The more you observe your restaurant with fanatical attention to detail, the better you can answer the question. For example, do your customers look frustrated standing in line? Are they checking their smartphones incessantly and stepping aside to see what’s happening at the front of the line?

Is the restaurant filled with new faces or loyal customers? When your guests look for seating, how do they react to your environment?

When you compare these details (art) against your transactional data and social media conversation (science), you discover what matter to the customer. If they’re

complaining about the long waits and dirty tables on Yelp, it’s time to act.

In each and every aspect of your business, there are dots to connect and opportunities to calibrate. The franchisee who just “runs” a restaurant keeps it running – the Chief Executive Franchisee tries to make it better every day.

Short-Term and Long-Term Thinking Now, tomorrow and this week, you have short-term tasks you must hit to remain in business. Long-term though, you might have aspirations to operate multiple franchises and hire a management team.

Short-term and long-term goals are usually interrelated. For example, let’s say you hope to open multiple restaurants. Your current hiring choices will determine whether or not you have a leadership team capable of managing multiple locations.

You have to start eyeing locations now.

Where do you see dirt being excavated? If it’s the ideal spot, go to the developer and lock a deal before the competition does.

Sometimes, the connection between shortterm and long-term is more subtle. Let’s say a direct competitor is launching in your trade area in two years, and you both specialize in catering. What should you do now?

A smart Chief Executive Franchisee builds a long-term competitive advantage by becoming relevant to local schools, businesses and non-profits. You can host fundraisers, join networking events, sponsor local sports teams, staff a soup kitchen with the team or donate extra food to shelters. In the short-term, you’re giving back to the community. In the long-

term, you’re becoming a local institution rather than a mere restaurant that can be interchanged with others. When the competitors arrives, you’ll be unbreakable.

Gut Check When you open a franchise, it can feel like the restaurant runs you as much as you run it. Step back, observe yourself and refocus on the big picture of where you want the business to go. Look holistically at the good, the bad, and the ugly, and keep calibrating.

If this process is fulfilling, you are meant to be a Chief Executive Franchisee. I know franchisees who, 30 years into the business, have only grown more passionate about their work. They love their role, not just the results they’ve achieved by connecting the dots and balancing shortterm and long-term priorities. It all starts with the CEO mindset.

Tony Gioia is the Chairman and CEO of Togo’s Holdings, LLC. He has more than 30 years of businessbuilding achievements within the grocery, restaurant, packaged foods, and beverage and consumer products industries. Tony’s proven track record of formulating brand development and consumer-focused initiatives has been successful with Fortune 100, highgrowth, turn-around, public, and startup companies. www.togosfranchise.com

Tony Gioia

Franchising USA

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focus

Inter face Fina ncial G roup

Location, Location, L It is not so long ago that the maxim for any franchise organization in terms of success all revolved around location, location, location.

Invariably the franchise organization in question was very much consumeroriented. Passing trade was a major part of the business and brand recognition at street level was crucial.

Franchising USA

It might be argued that we have moved on from those days with literally thousands of franchise offerings now available.

Location, location, location will however still be a crucial location factor for many industry-specific franchises.

To complement this situation we now see many more franchises being created and run on a home-based business basis.

Obviously the great advantages of a homebased operation are centered on cost and ease of use. Franchising has also come a long way from just fast food outlets.

Now franchising embraces in-home care

facilities; automotive service options in a variety of formats; tutoring and business

mentoring; financial services, and the list goes on.

The Interface Financial Group has an

interesting lineage in that it was conceived and created over 40 years ago when

the ‘location, location’ theme was very prevalent in the franchise world. What

made Interface different was that it was styled from inception as a home-based

franchise. To further add to the interest

is the fact that Interface offers a financial

Location

“It is not sufficient for a franchisor to just offer a training program for franchisees, there has to be an ongoing lifeline for franchisees as their franchisor represents their partner in their franchised business.”

service. An area that hitherto had always been ‘office’ based.

represents their partner in their franchised business.

Over the ensuing years Interface has continued to be innovative with their franchise model, both in structure and geographic outreach. This to the point where Interface is now a market leader in their specific service area, and they also operate on a 9-country international basis.

Interface has taken this support requirement to the next level with their IFG 50/50 franchise model. This particular model not only supports all franchisees on a day-to-day basis but it also engages with the franchisees on a day-to-day basis. Surveys show that one of the tasks that most business owners dislike, and the same is said for franchisees, is the day-to-day paperwork of running a business. Interface addressed this by effectively taking the paperwork away from their franchisees and leaving them free to handle the all-important people relationship aspects of the business.

Interface franchisees service the business marketplace with a strictly B2B franchise approach. They provide cash flow acceleration or invoice discounting services to their business clients. They buy from those clients invoices representing products sold and delivered or services rendered, and they turn that invoice into instant cash for the client. This alleviates what is often weeks of waiting for payment for their client and advances their business to a ‘cash-on-delivery’ basis which, in turn, facilitates exponential growth for their client base.

Taking this service and turning it into a successful international franchise has been an ongoing adventure for Interface.

The one thing that they have strived to supply for their franchisees from the outset has been a high degree of support. The Interface mantra might be described as Support, Support, Support.

In any franchise, support will be a key element that franchisees will look for from their franchisor. It is not sufficient for a franchisor to just offer a training program for franchisees, there has to be an ongoing lifeline for franchisees as their franchisor

This reduction in paperwork also enables Interface franchisees to focus on greater business acquisition opportunities, and an opportunity to rapidly expand their client portfolio base.

Interface however did not stop their innovative approach with just the handling of paperwork; they continued to engage with their franchisees in the financing process for buying invoices. When you buy an invoice to accelerate your clients’ cash flow, you have to engage your working capital. Interface has created a formula whereby a franchisee now only has to contribute about one sixth of the capital required in each transaction - thus allowing more business to be handled with the same capital base. This procedure also helps franchisees to quantify and manage risk much more effectively.

Support is a key element of the IFG 50/50

franchise and is in part what perhaps sets Interface apart as a franchisor. In most franchises it is rare to see the franchisor actually engaging with their franchisees in running the business on a day-to-day basis. Interface has successfully achieved this without in any way competing with their franchisees. The 50/50 concept is simply that things are done together, so franchisees can leverage over 40 years of experience with every transaction, and also take advantage of the capital leverage facility that is built into the infrastructure of the franchise for each franchisee.

The Interface Financial Group clearly believes that the success of their franchise relies heavily on Support, Support, Support.

For more information, visit: www.interfacefinancial.com

David Banfield

Franchising USA

focus

Page 17

ex per t advice

George Knauf, Senior Franchise Business Advisor, FranChoice

Growth Starts Now! All too often folks put off until next year what they should be doing right now. Franchising is almost always one of those cases.

“When did Noah build the Ark? Before the rain.” – Nathan Muir, Character in the movie Spy Game When did you need to make a decision on which brand was your perfect franchise to be open right now or early fall? That needed to happen late last year or early spring of 2015.

This is why summer is the perfect time to plan for your future, 2016 is coming together right now! Put off taking very simple measured steps and you are going to be planning for 2017 or beyond.

Franchising USA

“Some of the most costly decisions we see made are based on uninformed preconceptions.

Sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know.

Do your homework, all of it.”

What happens when we put off taking action? Opportunity cost, the revenue you have elected to put in someone else’s bank account.

So let’s talk about your summer game plan a bit If you have been selecting concepts based on brand or your consumer experience you may want to go back to the starting point and build a proper model to target just those companies that match your skills, strengths, likes goals, etc before focusing in on the brand. Contact me personally if you have any questions.

The starting point: We build a model for our candidates so that they come out of the gate looking at the right companies for them and avoiding frustration, wasted time and potential bad decisions. We take that model and compare it to a wide range of companies so that we can distill their matches down to the best of the best and they can do full investigations of two to four opportunities.

Initially the goal is to set what are often uninformed preconceptions aside so that our candidate can get up to speed on franchising as a system and what to look for. We also spend a good deal of time

“You have to be ready to discard the non-fitting parts of your model and redefine how you will fit into a business and how the business will fit you.” confirming what they thought their model was. It often happens that how people think they want to work is different than how they really want to work when it comes down to taking action.

You have to be ready to discard the nonfitting parts of your model and redefine how you will fit into a business and how the business will fit you. There is no benefit to selling yourself or a franchisor on you having a skill or lifestyle desire that you don’t have. You will be much better dialing in a proper model and targeting the right companies than force fitting yourself into a model not built for you.

A word of caution, as you begin contacting franchisors make sure you are contacting them directly and not handing your information to a lead development company that will resell your information.

Lead sellers operate online, on major franchise portals and contact job seekers directly. Our candidates avoid this by getting direct executive introductions that we have verified before they are introduced.

Investigating concepts: Notice that was concepts (plural), not concept (singular). Wherever possible you want to put concepts that fit your model side by side. You will find important points to compare and contrast along the way. Investigating is not buying; investigating is building your knowledge base.

Google, on its own, is not an adequate investigation strategy. How many really successful people do you know that have a lot of time for posting online about their success? You have to contact successful people directly and schedule time to get their input.

Calling your friends and family to see if you should buy a particular franchise is not an investigation strategy. While they care for you they may not know what you need to know to make a great business decision.

Conducting a proper franchise investigation involves some very specific experiences.

Talk to the franchisor, and for more than one phone call. Keep in mind that you will initially be talking to the development team, not the training or support teams that you would spend the next 5-15 years leaning on for the keys to success in that business. Franchise development departments tend to be very professional and focused on education rather than bringing every prospect onboard. You are entering a mutual evaluation, not a sales process if you are talking to top companies.

Go most of the way through the franchisors investigation process before closing the file, there is a lot to learn here even if you decide it is not the right fit!

Some of the most costly decisions we see made are based on uninformed preconceptions. Sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know. Do your homework, all of it.

A good investigation involves talking to the franchisor, their franchisees and possibly a franchise attorney (not many family attorneys have this specialty) to review the franchise documents.

If you have a spouse they WILL be part of making the decision as this is a big family decision. You will not be saving any time by excluding them from the investigation process, you will just have to go through the investigation twice. Involve your spouse from the first call and talk to them

George Knauf

after each step. Compare notes and each of you ask the questions that are important to you, there are no bad questions as you seek to pursue your greater goals.

Making big decisions: Whether you choose to move forward or close the file on a concept, you are making a really big decision. Passing on what may be your perfect match sounds easy and risk free, but is missing an opportunity to hit your goals really risk free? If you are using a franchise consulting firm like us, lean on them for making sure you have done your homework and overcoming fears or anxiety at the end of the process.

Your future is being decided every day. Summer is a great time to look at franchises, the people you need to talk to will be less busy right now. Competitors for the territory you want are at the beach putting off their goals for another year.

2016 starts now, GO! Mr. Knauf is a highly sought after, trusted advisor to many companies; Public, Independent and Franchised, of all sizes and in many markets. His 20 plus years of experience in both startup and mature business operations makes him uniquely qualified to advise individuals that have dreamed of going into business for themselves in order to gain more control, independence, time flexibility and to be able to earn in proportion to their real contribution.

Contact the Franchising USA Expert George’s Hotline 703-424-2980 www.FranGuide.com

Franchising USA

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fr anchiso r in depth

O ur Tow n A mer ica -

B y B r i t t a ny N. J o h n s o n

Technological Progression Makes for Leader of New Mover Marketing Industry

A Pioneer, Our Town America Shows No Sign of Slowing Down After 43 Years Our Town America began the year with a projected goal of adding 20 new franchise units in 2015 and, after just one month, had signed six new franchise agreements – expanding their presence into a half dozen new markets across the United States.

Franchising USA

“I love to see our franchise owners achieving their financial and personal dreams.”

Jr. “This being a part of my family since I was born, I may think of franchising a bit differently than others. The reason we initially went into franchising wasn’t merely to grow – we were doing very well.

It was for the simple reason of helping others have a hand in controlling their own destiny and providing an income and service to their community that they could be proud of.”

The company began franchising in 2005 providing entrepreneurs nationwide with the opportunity to help new movers feel welcomed into their community, as well as help local businesses gain new loyal customers every month.

n

In 2003, Our Town America announced their one-of-a-kind electronic survey, completed by thousands of new movers every year across the country, providing businesses with incalculable feedback on their product/ service.

They familiarized the industry with electronic respondent lists and new mover loyalty programs and introduced social integration giving businesses the opportunity to increase social media page traffic and drive revenue.

o “Our Town America became the only new mover direct mail marketing program to offer postal carrier route targeting.”

Since then, Our Town America has shown no sign of slowing down. Three weeklong new franchise-training classes have taken place since January, positioning the franchise closer to their 20-unit goal.

The commotion surrounding Our Town America, the nation’s first New Mover Direct Mail Marketing franchise, can be

attributed in part to their technological abilities and forward progression – proving repeatedly why they’re still the industry leader.

“It all started 43 years ago with my father’s small family business in Iowa and Nebraska,” says Our Town America President and CEO, Michael Plummer

Our Town America’s cost-friendly marketing program also includes a second follow-up mailer, a unique feature in comparison to similar franchise’s new mover programs. The second mailer is prompted by an automated system – a smartphone/ tablet app called Our Town TruTrak™, available on both the Apple Store and Google Play Store.

Our Town America was the first in their industry to offer response rate tracking by way of 2D barcode, which can be accessed through their app as well.

Separate from their new mover program, Our Town America’s Intuitive Marketing program provides businesses with the ability to target particular demographics

Franchising USA

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fr anchiso r in depth

O ur Tow n A mer ica -

B y B r i t t a ny N. J o h n s o n

“I love to see our franchise owners achieving their financial and personal dreams,” says Plummer. “Witnessing the successes out there in our system is what does my father’s legacy proud and what I’m honored to be able to continue to steward into more communities.”

The business model allows franchisees to work from home and be active members within their communities. Our Town America offers the largest territories in the industry and, with no need for build-outs, storefronts or inventory expenses – the initial required investment has landed them a top spot in the Franchisee Business Review (FBR) Low-Cost Report four years in a row.

Rankings and recognition within the franchising industry also verify Our Town America’s spot as the leader in their industry.

In January 2015, FBR revealed their annual Top 200 Franchises list and, for the tenth consecutive year, Our Town America was ranked a Top 50 Franchise – making them the only Advertising and Sales franchise in the ten-year Hall of Fame.

“Our Town America was the first in their industry to offer response rate tracking by way of 2D barcode, which can be accessed through their app as well.” year round by way of customizable direct

The franchise is also a USPS Every Door

such as: birthdays, grand openings, etc. are

to saturate entire neighborhoods without

mail postcards. Special event mailings supported by this program.

Direct Mail® vendor allowing businesses the need for a mailing list and, again,

attractive. After 43 years of business, one America’s dedication to their franchisees.

franchising@ourtownamerica.com www.ourtownamerica.com/franchise-us/

presenting the ability to target by postal

America became the only new mover

But it’s not only their ever-progressing

postal carrier route targeting. The

growth that make this renowned franchise

technological breakthrough. Our Town

carrier route.

direct mail marketing program to offer

technological abilities and continual

neighborhood, rather than full zip codes, is cutting-edge technology in their industry.

Franchising USA

And, while the franchise is ranked number two in the Under 50 Units category in this year’s Top Franchise report, this year’s new franchises have promoted Our Town America to 57 units – bringing the new mover program to markets in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, New Jersey, Ohio and Tennessee.

Today, Our Town America can be found in 23 total U.S. states and, if their track record and technological capabilities prove just one thing, it’s that this franchise has no plan of regressing from their spot as the the leader of the new mover marketing industry.

In 2014, the franchise unveiled another

option to demographically focus by

At February’s IFA Convention, Our Town America was crowned FBR’s All-time Top Company – a pioneer for the award, which will be presented only once every ten years.

thing that hasn’t changed is Our Town

ex per t advice

David Bosley, Executive VP, OpenWorks

5 tips David Bosley

Here’s a leading statement you’ve probably never heard before - I love boring franchise industries.

That’s right - I love boring, “unsexy,” under-the-radar franchise industries. I love them because in a boring industry, an exciting franchise company, like OpenWorks, can be successful if they possess three pivotal characteristics: 1) a recession proof or resistant business model, 2) products and services customers and/or business owners truly need and 3) a strong presence in an industry poised for growth. And when it comes to selling franchise opportunities, I’ll take those three characteristics any day over a brand with an iconic name or a franchise concept within a “sexy” and “trending” industry.

People frequently try to call my bluff on this topic, but it’s true. As the Executive VP for OpenWorks, the nation’s leading integrated facility services and commercial cleaning franchise, I have the opportunity to award franchise

Franchising USA

to Make Your “Un a “Sexy” Investme opportunities to passionate entrepreneurs who are buying into the brand because they believe in the business model, trust the company’s leaders, and possess the skills required to thrive as an OpenWorks franchise owner. We rarely face the same debilitating prospect-qualifying issue “sexier” brands, like restaurants, gyms and massage clinics, do, because quite simply, there aren’t many prospects who come to us saying “I love cleaning, so I want to launch an OpenWorks location.”

So, yes, I’m writing this article to encourage other franchise development professionals who work for “unsexy” brands that are led by a visionary founder, like OpenWorks’ Eric Roudi, and an excellent executive team to adopt a different perspective - “unsexy” is the new sexy!

Here are the five tips I’d like to share that can help you make your “unsexy” franchise brand a “sexy” investment opportunity for qualified franchise prospects:

1

Showcase your Franchisees as Local Experts

as the local experts on blocking the flu at the office to keep homes and children safe over the winter. We created a press release and a list of tips to protect offices and their employees from the flu and helped our franchisees contact media members to generate local stories on the topic, like this one in the Chicago Crusader.

Work with your team to develop campaigns and storylines like the flu idea that fit your company’s culture and value proposition - the third party endorsements and exposure you receive from the media will truly help your franchisees move the needle.

2

Create a Powerfully Emotional Brand Identity

Just because your company operates within a “boring” industry doesn’t mean your company has to be “boring,” too.

That’s the power of branding - you CAN help your company stand out from the crowd even if the products and services you offer aren’t “sexy.”

You’ll notice a trend with each of these tips - “humanizing” your brand on all levels is key. This starts with your franchisees. At the end of the day, people really do buy from people so it’s important to help your franchisees promote themselves in the local markets they serve.

Think about the storylines and topics on which your franchisees would qualify as experts. What’s trending in the news?

How could they respond and offer their expertise?

We’ve recently harnessed the power of branding over here at OpenWorks and it’s paid big dividends. In the last year, we have worked with 919 Marketing to execute a full-scale re-branding project and overhaul our brand’s messaging, marketing, and online presence. They helped us conduct consumer research that provided us with a powerful tagline that perfectly describes our unique value proposition as the first commercial cleaning franchise to offer integrated facility services solutions - “Improving Facilities and Pleasing People.”

Here’s an example for OpenWorks.

Earlier this year, we thought of a creative and timely way to showcase our local franchisees as experts - positioning them

Additionally, 919 Marketing has helped us execute a monthly PR and content marketing program that allows us to promote key company announcements,

nsexy” Franchise Brand ent Opportunity highlight major media coverage, and share important tips and insights with our customers and franchise prospects.

“Just because your company operates within a “boring” industry doesn’t mean your company has to be “boring,” too. That’s the power of branding.”

Branding is key to “humanizing” your company and attracting customers and prospects - take it seriously!

3

Do What Your Competitors Won’t

I love this particular point because it allows me to speak about something our franchisees love - we sell for them. Most prospective franchisees don’t believe me when I tell them they will never have to go out and secure business for themselves, but it’s true. We have dedicated sales team members who hit the phones each and every day to ensure each of our franchise owners has a full roster of clients to serve in their market. It’s the perfect combination, actually, as both parties stick to their strengths - our sales team closes new business and our franchisees manage clients relationships.

What can you do for your franchisees and your customers that your competitors can’t or won’t? Figure that out and you’ll give your company a distinct advantage.

4

Create a Niche that Fills a Void

At OpenWorks, we have recently introduced a full-scale service offering, Integrated Facility Services, that allows our franchisees to better serve the business owners and office managers with whom they work. We created the Integrated Facility Services program because we noticed a trend toward consolidation in the facility services industry we serve.

Business owners and office managers want one point of contact through which they can handle all aspects of facility maintenance, including commercial

cleaning, landscaping, plumbing, landscaping, etc. Therefore, we have created relationships with highly reputable specialists in each market we serve to allow our franchise owners to fulfill any facility maintenance request from their clients. It’s a win-win-win for our clients, our franchisees, and our business partners.

What’s missing in your industry? Is there a new trend on which you can capitalize?

Always work hard to adapt and adjust to improve your business!

5

Share your Story with the World

And lastly, don’t be afraid to share your company’s story. Today’s franchise prospects conduct much of their due diligence process online before they pick up the phone and speak with a company representative. Therefore, we work hard each and every day to contribute to the conversation via media outreach, social media engagement, blog posts, press releases, and LinkedIn updates.

Additionally, we have worked tirelessly to share our founder Eric Roudi’s inspirational story of triumph as an Iranian-American and have been fortunate enough to receive coverage from FOX Business News, In Business Magazine, and immpreneur.com. Each of these stories highlights Eric’s improbable path to business ownership after being a teenage Iranian-immigrant stranded in America with no connection to his family

during the Iranian revolution. His story of passion and persistence resonates well with other aspiring entrepreneurs, particularly “immpreneurs,” looking to realize their own entrepreneurial dreams.

So - what’s your company’s story? What can you share about your founder or your business model that makes buying a franchise a powerful investment opportunity for your prospective franchisees? Figure that out and you just might be able to make the “unsexy” sexy!

OpenWorks’ Executive VP David Bosley joined the OpenWorks team in June 2013 as the Division Vice President for the Midwest Region. Since then he has been promoted to Executive Vice President. He is responsible for the business development sales, operations and franchise maturity for OpenWorks.

His expertise includes corporate strategy and leadership, business development, strategic selling and operations.

Prior to joining OpenWorks David spent 10 years in executive leadership roles with Fortune 200 companies that include Enterprise Leasing, AT&T and ADP. David is a member with BOMA and IFMA. David is a graduate of the University of Denver where he accomplished his Bachelors and Masters in Business Administration from the Daniels School of Business. www.openworksweb.com

Franchising USA

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ex per t advice

Andy Roe, General Manager, SurePayroll, Inc.,

Why

Hot T

Andy Roe

Franchising USA

Small businesses did more hiring last summer than any previous summer in a decade, according to the Paychex | IHS Small Business Jobs Index.

as Dallas, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

It was also the third straight summer where we saw an increase in summer hiring.

Last month, we talked about the best ways screen job candidates. That advice may come in handy this summer as you take a look at the performance of your franchise and whether or not an increase in employees could help boost revenues and profitability.

Over the last 12 months, hiring among businesses with less than 50 employees has been trending up in states such as Indiana, Missouri and Virginia, and in cities such

Meanwhile, as we head into the summer months, 84% of small business owners are optimistic about the economy, according to the SurePayroll Small Business Scorecard.

It suggests that the summer of 2015 could be a good time for your franchise to hire.

Maybe it’s because of increased customer demand, or because you want to take a vacation and need more backup.

Hiring Could Be

This Summer

“It suggests that the summer of 2015 could be a good time for your franchise to hire. Maybe it’s because of increased customer demand, or because you want to take a vacation and need more backup.”

For a broader look at how the hiring picture might look in your region of the country, as well as a deeper understanding of the hiring growth we’ve seen since the recession, take a look at our infographic and feel free to give us feedback on your franchise’s hiring plans.

Andy Roe is the General Manager of SurePayroll, Inc., a Paychex Company.

SurePayroll is the trusted provider of easy online payroll services to small businesses nationwide. SurePayroll compiles data from small businesses

nationwide through its Small Business Scorecard optimism survey, and exclusively reflects the trends affecting the nation’s “micro businesses” — those with1-10 employees. You can follow Andy on Twitter @AndrewSRoe. Learn More at: http://blog.surepayroll.com/scorecard/ http://www.paychex.com/jobs-index/getthe-infographic.aspx

Franchising USA

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Franchising USA

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Franchising USA

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Page 31

july 2015

Veterans in Franchising www.franchisingusamagazine.com

the

Veteran Institute for Procurement

Notice, News, Network:

Three N’s Rule

Pillar To Post Home Inspectors Caters to Veterans

Franchising USA

V eterans in F ranchisin g S upplement july 2 0 1 5 Our Veterans in Franchising special supplement has become a regular feature of Franchising USA. To share your story in the next issue, please contact Vikki Bradbury, Publisher Phone: 778 426 2446 Email: vikki@cgbpublishing.com

Contents Cover Story

News & Expert Advice

34 Pillar to Post Home Inspectors

36 Notice, News, Network:

The 3 N’s Rule Conference Attendance Darcella K. Craven, Executive Director,

Focus 38 Bar-B-Clean 40 Blue Moon Estate Sales

Veterans Business Resource Cente

42 National Center for VIP Arming Vets to Win Jim Mingey, Founder & Managing Director,

Veteran Business Services

Franchising USA

Veter ans in Fr anchising

C over S tor y - Pi l l a r To P ost H ome I nspecto rs

PILLAR TO POS

CATERS TO

PILLAR TO POST H INSPECTORS CAT TO VETERANS For two decades, Vince Stoakley

traveling the world as a member o ARMY VETERAN VINCE FINDSSto H retiring from theSTOAKLEY Army in 2012, WITH PILLAR TO POST HOME INSPECT calling that was not just a job, but would let him expand his roots.

F

or two decades, Vince Stoakley was Ă ŐůŽďĞƚƌŽƩĞƌ͕ ƚƌĂǀĞůŝŶŐ ƚŚĞ ǁŽƌůĚ ĂƐ Ă ŵĞŵďĞƌ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ h͘^͘ ƌŵLJ͘ ŌĞƌ ƌĞƟƌŝŶŐ ĨƌŽŵ ƚŚĞ ƌŵLJ ŝŶ ϮϬϭϮ͕ ^ƚŽĂŬůĞLJ ŶĞĞĚĞĚ ƚŽ ĮŶĚ Ă ĐĂůůŝŶŐ ƚŚĂƚ ǁĂƐ ŶŽƚ ũƵƐƚ Ă ũŽď͕ ďƵƚ Ă ĐĂƌĞĞƌ͕ ĂŶĚ ŽŶĞ ƚŚĂƚ ǁŽƵůĚ ůĞƚ Śŝŵ ĞdžƉĂŶĚ ŚŝƐ ƌŽŽƚƐ͘ KŶ :ƵůLJ ϴ͕ ϮϬϭϯ ^ƚŽĂŬůĞLJ ŵĞƚ ƚŚĂƚ ƌĞƋƵŝƌĞŵĞŶƚ ǁŚĞŶ ŚĞ ŽƉĞŶĞĚ ŚŝƐ WŝůůĂƌ dŽ WŽƐƚ ,ŽŵĞ /ŶƐƉĞĐƚŽƌƐ ĨƌĂŶĐŚŝƐĞ ǁŚĞƌĞ ŚĞ ƐĞƌǀĞƐ ƚŚĞ ,ŽƵƐƚŽŶ ĂƌĞĂ ǁŝƚŚ ŚŽŵĞ ŝŶƐƉĞĐƟŽŶ ƐĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ĨŽƌ ƌĞƐŝĚĞŶƟĂů ďƵŝůĚŝŶŐƐ ŽĨ Ăůů ŬŝŶĚƐ͘

Franchising USA

͞DLJ ŵŝůŝƚĂƌLJ ĞdžƉĞƌŝĞŶĐĞ ŚĂƐ ƉƌŽǀŝĚ ǁŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ŝŶƚĞŐƌŝƚLJ ĂŶĚ ŵƵůƟͲƚĂƐŬŝŶ ƚŚĂƚ ŝƐ ƐŽ ĐƌƵĐŝĂů ƚŽ ƌƵŶŶŝŶŐ Ă ƐƵĐĐĞ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ͕͟ ƐĂŝĚ ^ƚŽĂŬůĞLJ͘ ͞/ƚ ǁĂƐ ŝŵ ƚŽ ŵĞ ƚŚĂƚ ĂŶLJ ĨƌĂŶĐŚŝƐĞ / ǁĂƐ ƉĂƌ ƐƉĞĐƚĞĚ ŵLJ ŵŝůŝƚĂƌLJ ďĂĐŬŐƌŽƵŶĚ ĂŶ dŽ WŽƐƚ ,ŽŵĞ /ŶƐƉĞĐƚŽƌƐ ĐůĞĂƌůLJ Ěŝ

/ŶĚĞĞĚ͕ WŝůůĂƌ dŽ WŽƐƚ ,ŽŵĞ /ŶƐƉĞĐ ĐŽŶƐŝƐƚĞŶƚůLJ ƌĂŶŬĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ dŽƉ ϱϬ Ĩ ƐLJƐƚĞŵƐ ĨŽƌ ǀĞƚĞƌĂŶƐ ŝŶ DLJƌŝĂĚ WƵď ƟŽŶƐ ĂŶĚ ŽŶ ŶƵŵĞƌŽƵƐ ǁĞďƐŝƚĞƐ Ă ƉŽƌƚĂůƐ͘

sŝŶĐĞ ǁĂƐ Ă ^ĞƌŐĞĂŶƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ƌŵLJ͕ Ă ƉŽƐŝƟŽŶ ŚĞ ƐĂLJƐ ŵĂĚĞ Śŝŵ ǁĞůůͲƐƵŝƚĞĚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ĞLJŽŶĚ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵƉĂŶLJ͛Ɛ sĞƚ&ƌĂŶ ĂƐƐ WŝůůĂƌ dŽ WŽƐƚ ,ŽŵĞ /ŶƐƉĞĐƚŽƌƐ ĨƌĂŶĐŚŝƐĞĞ ^ƚŽĂŬůĞLJ ĂůƐŽ ƉŽŝŶƚĞĚ ƚŽ WŝůůĂƌ dŽ W ŵŽĚĞů͘ ,ŝƐ ĞŶƚƌĞƉƌĞŶĞƵƌŝĂů ƐƉŝƌŝƚ͕ ĂŶĚ ƐƵƉƉŽƌƚ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ŝŶ ƉůĂĐĞ ĨŽƌ ŶĞǁ Ĩƌ Ă ĚĞƐŝƌĞ ƚŽ ǁŽƌŬ ǁŝƚŚ ŚŝƐ ǁŝĨĞ͕ dŚĂŝũĂ͕ ƐĞĞƐ ĂƐ ŽŶĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ŝŵƉŽƌƚĂŶƚ ŐŽƚ Śŝŵ ĚŽŝŶŐ ƌĞƐĞĂƌĐŚ ŽŶ ƚŚĞ ƉĞƌĨĞĐƚ ƚŚĂƚ ŚĂƐ ĂůůŽǁĞĚ ŚŝƐ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ƚŽ ŶŽ ĨƌĂŶĐŚŝƐĞ ŽƉƉŽƌƚƵŶŝƚLJ ĨŽƌ Śŝŵ͘ tŚĞŶ ĞŶĚƵƌĞ͕ ďƵƚ ƚŚƌŝǀĞ͘ ͞dŚĞ ƐLJƐƚĞŵ ŝŶ ŚĞ ůĂŶĚĞĚ ƵƉŽŶ EŽƌƚŚ ŵĞƌŝĐĂ͛Ɛ ůĂƌŐĞƐƚ Owner Vince and wifeĨŽƌ ŶĞǁ ĨƌĂŶĐŚŝƐĞĞƐ Ăƚ WŝůůĂƌ dŽ WŽƐ Thaija Stoakley ŚŽŵĞ ŝŶƐƉĞĐƟŽŶ ĐŽŵƉĂŶLJ͕ ŚĞ ŬŶĞǁ ƚŚŝƐ ƉĞƌĨĞĐƚ ƐĂĨĞƚLJ ŶĞƚ͖ / ŶĞǀĞƌ ĨĞůƚ ůŝŬĞ ǁĂƐ ŝƚ͘ ĚŽŝŶŐ ŝƚ ĂůŽŶĞ ĂƐ / ŐƌĞǁ ŵLJ ďƵƐŝŶĞ ŵĂĚĞ ƚŚĞ ƚƌĂŶƐŝƟŽŶ ĨƌŽŵ ĂŶ ĂĐƟǀĞ tĞŝŐŚŝŶŐ ƚŚĞŝƌ ŽƉƟŽŶƐ͕ sŝŶĐĞ ĂŶĚ dŚĂŝũĂ ƚĂƌLJ ŵĞŵďĞƌ ƚŽ ďĞŝŶŐ Ă ĨƌĂŶĐŚŝƐĞĞ

ST HOME INSPECTORS

TO VETERANS

ARMY VETERAN VINCE STOAKLEY FINDS HIS CALLING WITH PILLAR TO POST HOME INSPECTORS

was a globetrotter, of the U.S. Army. After oakley needed to find a t a career, and one that On July 8, 2013 Stoakley met that requirement when he opened his Pillar To Post Home Inspectors franchise where he serves the Houston area with home inspection services for residential buildings of all kinds.

Vince was a Sergeant in the Army, a posi­ tion he says made him well-suited to the Pillar To Post Home Inspectors franchisee model. His entrepreneurial spirit, and a desire to work with his wife, Thaija, got him doing research on the perfect franchise opportunity for him. When he landed upon North America’s largest home inspection company, he knew this was it.

Weighing their options, Vince and Thaija were most impressed by Pillar To Post’s commitment to the VetFran program, which provides military veterans with discounts on initial franchise fees.

“My military experience has provided me with the integrity and multi-tasking ability that is so crucial to running a successful business,” said Stoakley. “It was important to me that any franchise I was part of re­ spected my military background and Pillar To Post Home Inspectors clearly did.”

Indeed, Pillar To Post Home Inspectors is

consistently ranked in the Top 50 franchise systems for veterans in Myriad Publica­ tions and on numerous websites and portals.

Beyond the company’s VetFran assistance, Stoakley also pointed to Pillar To Post’s support system in place for new franchi­ sees as one of the most important factors that has allowed his business to not just endure, but thrive. “The system in place for new franchisees at Pillar To Post is the perfect safety net; I never felt like I was doing it alone as I grew my business.

I made the transition from an active mili­ tary member to being a franchisee an easy one,” said Stoakley.

“We try to be both vendor and friend to each customer,” added Stoakley. “We also love giving back to the community; so far, we’ve helped build three homes in the area as part of Habitat For Humanity. We also plan to donate one free home inspection

a month to a service member. We are certain that our unique emphasis on the community will help ensure that our Pillar To Post Home Inspector franchise remains successful and continues to grow.”

About Pillar To Post Home Inspectors Founded in 1994, Pillar To Post Home Inspectors is the largest home inspection company in North America with 450 franchisees, located in 48 states and eight Canadian provinces. Long-term plans include adding 500-600 new franchisees over the next five years. Pillar To Post Home Inspectors has been ranked the No. 1 home inspection franchise in North America by Entrepreneur Magazine.

For more information about Pillar To Post Franchise visit: www.pillartopostfranchise.com or call 877-963-3129

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Veter ans in Fr anchising

Darcella K. Craven, Executive Director, Veterans Business Resource Center

Notice, News, Net

Three N’s Rule Conferen If you have no interest in contracting with the government, then spending your money at a procurement conference may not be the right choice. However, if participating in government contracts is in your company strategy, there are a few questions you need to ask when deciding which conference(s) to budget for and attend. This can be used for all conferences.

Start with Are there any franchise specific conferences you are required to attend as a part of your franchise commitment? This will significantly impact where you spend the rest of your valued resources.

As a small business owner you can be easily overlook the need to attend conferences.

When you are working in your business – making sales calls, ordering parts or managing people – it is easy to get caught up in the daily work needed to make your business run. Small business owners know they should and need to attend conferences as a part of business growth. You most likely attended conferences, seminars and trainings and mastered the art of networking, partner identification and fund raising in order to get your venture off the ground through attending conferences.

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The question we hear most often isn’t “should I attend a conference” but rather “how do I decide what conferences to attend for my company outside of the ones that the franchiser is promoting?” This is a great question because there are so many conferences from which to choose. Just take a quick minute from reading and type “what small business conferences should I attend” and you will see many articles stating the top 14, 8 or 7 conferences for small business in the country. These articles give you a good summary of the pertinent content of each conference, but not a real good understanding of how to choose. The answer is, as it always is when it comes to these types of questions, it depends.

Do you have someone to continue to operate the business while you are away?

If you have a solid management team or dependable employee you have more freedom to choose opportunities that may require up to a week of your time.

Can you operate your business while you are on the road? If you do not have a dependable structure, having a flexible business that can be operated online or outside traditional operating hours will help.

How long can you afford to close the doors if you do not or cannot? Knowing how many days you can operate without a cash flow is a must.

Now that you have these answers, go back to the google search and wander through the many conferences. Choose a few that on the surface you feel are interesting.

Do not think too hard on them. Choose those that from the brief description sound

twork:

nce Attendance Darcella K. Craven

like something you may want to attend.

Choose them because they are being held in a location that you want to see.

Or there is a keynotes speaker that seems fascinating or informative. Now, take that list and let’s run it through the Three N’s Rule: Notice, News, Network checklist.

Notice Will you be noticed by your clients at this conference? Do not assume or guess or wish. This is an important question that impacts your finances. Will the people who will buy from you be in attendance?

You can see this by looking at previous year’s attendee list or digging deeper into the description.

News Do you need to be considered an authority in your industry? Awards and peer recognition can be very important to a small business owner. Is there an opportunity for you to speak where you can show how much you know about the small business you are in or small business operation in general? Often times a conference may have committees that arrange volunteer activities for charities or social hours. Being a part of this committee can help you get your name out in the paper, on the conference website or newsletter and bring in more notice.

Network Does this conference offer me the opportunity to grow professionally or connect you to others? Once you are

“Once you are in business, your need to network does not stop. You should still continue to reach out to your fellow small business owners for support.” in business, your need to network does not stop. You still should continue to reach out to your fellow small business owners for support, look for potential funding sources and business partners.

Keeping yourself educated on the small business world you have joined is a must for growth. Additionally, ensuring that you maintain a healthy mental acuity allows you to make sounder decisions when it comes to the operations of your small business. Conferences that offer professional development, personal development and spiritual development fall under this N. Going back to the franchise requirements, run those conferences through the same test. Do not attend a conference that does not have a clearly defined N for you. If the conference is a requirement, decide which one or more of these N’s you are there to accomplish.

Once you have the hang of how to make these decisions, you may come up with your own test. Here at the Center we also use People – Partners - Politics for outreach decisions. It makes determining how to use your resources easier.

Good luck in the conference outcomes.

If you need assistance, do not hesitate to reach out to our Center. The VBRC Crew stands prepared to assist.

Darcella K Craven has over 20 years of experience in corporate, government, non profit and military organizations.

She is currently the Executive Director of the Veterans Business Resource Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting Honorably Discharged Veterans, National Guard and Reservist and Active Duty personnel and their families with transitioning back into civilian life with starting and expanding businesses.

An Army Veteran, she holds a Masters of Arts in Management from Webster University and is currently pursuing her Doctors of Management focusing on impact of military experience on small business decision making. Darcella has been featured in numerous articles for her transition from the military and the welfare system to an accomplished business woman and is actively involved in many civic organizations.

For more information: Website: www.vetbiz.com

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Veter ans in Fr anchising

Ba r-B-Clea n

Army Veteran Fir

Entrepreneurial Success with Ba More than one million veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will enter the workforce in the next five years.

Rather than attempt to elbow their way into the tight job market, some veterans are pursuing franchising because it mimics the rule-based system they grew accustomed to in the military.

One such veteran is Matthew Sprague, a U.S. Army veteran who has found success in owning four Bar-B-Clean franchises in California’s Los Angeles area.

Before joining the Bar-B-Clean team, Sprague spent nearly five years in the U.S. Army, earning the rank of field artillery sergeant during his service that included one combat tour in Iraq from 2010 until 2011. In 2013, he was honorably discharged and moved to Pasadena, California with his wife, Linda, and two small children. But like most veterans these days, he had a difficult time finding a job that would support his family.

“I was working for Enterprise Rent-A-Car making $10 per hour,” recalls Sprague, noting that even the best promotion would have only raised his hourly pay to $13.50.

“That simply wasn’t going to cut it.”

Matthew Sprague

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It was then that Sprague began exploring his options in franchising.

Profile

“SOP (standard operating procedure) is a term well understood by anyone who has served in the armed forces. It refers to a plan, a system, a step-by-step

res Up

ar-B-Clean

“Everyone knows grills get extremely greasy and dirty, but they really hate to clean them…Bar-BClean fulfills that customer demand.”

method for how a particular mission or function will be carried out. Veterans understand the importance of following a plan to successfully execute a mission and capitalize on every opportunity,” Sprague says. “This systematic approach to achieving goals is very similar to the franchising model of doing business and it’s why more and more veterans like myself are taking advantage of franchise opportunities after returning to civilian life.”

Shortly after starting his search for a home-based, low-investment franchise opportunity, Sprague came across BarB-Clean, the only barbecue cleaning franchise in the country. He recognized the tremendous opportunity in a niche market with little or no competition and purchased his first Bar-B-Clean territory in April 2014. He bought three more territories later that year.

Today, Sprague’s Bar-B-Clean franchises

offer residential and commercial customers a convenient, low cost grill cleaning solution. Using a proprietary steam cleaning system that pumps out 310 degree steam vapor at 75 psi, the service – which typically takes between 2 ½ and 3 ½ hours to complete – includes a deep cleaning of the interior and exterior of the grill, as well as a thorough inspection of the burner and ignition systems.

“It’s a dirty job, but somebody’s got to do it. I want to be that somebody,” says Sprague, noting that nearly 90 percent of all U.S. households own a grill or smoker and more than 60 percent of those owners use their grills year round making a periodic cleaning necessary. “Everyone knows grills get extremely greasy and dirty, but they really hate to clean them.

Until now, grill owners haven’t had many places they could turn to have their grills professionally cleaned. Bar-B-Clean fulfills that customer demand.”

With four Bar-B-Clean territories under his belt – serving Pasadena, South San Fernando Valley, San Gabriel Valley and the Burbank/Glendale area – Sprague has cleaned more than 600 grills in the past

12 months, nearly half of which he has cleaned since the beginning of this year alone. He is in the process of purchasing a fifth territory in West Los Angeles, and says he would someday like to own 10 total territories throughout the Los Angeles area.

“Veterans bring a lot of great things to the table,” says Bar-B-Clean founder and CEO Bryan Weinstein, who offers veterans a 30 percent discount off Bar-B-Clean’s $19,500 franchise fee. “Their leadership, teamwork and problem-solving skills are second-to-none in my experience and Matthew is no exception. I anxiously look forward to his future success.”

For other veterans considering the BarB-Clean franchise opportunity, Sprague says he expects they’ll get from it what they put into it. “It’s definitely an up-andcoming business. For someone who wants to work for themselves, it’s a great way to go. Think about it. Everybody that owns a backyard barbecue is a potential client!”

For more information about Bar-BClean and its franchise opportunity, visit www.bar-b-clean.com.

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Veter ans in Fr anchising

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Veter ans in Fr anchising

Blu e M oon Estate Sales

From USMC Reserve Gunnery Sergeant and NYPD Police Officer to

Estate Sales

From USMC Reserve Gunnery Sergeant and NYPD Police Officer to Estate Sales Hard to believe that being a Marine and owning an estate sales franchise have anything in common, but they do. Just ask Marine Corps Reserve veteran Brendan Ryan.

For nearly 23 years, the retired NYPD police officer and father of three children continued with his normal work and family life, ready to support the Marine Corps in combat, humanitarian efforts and national emergencies when called upon. Three of those calls mobilized Ryan for active duty in Iraq – in 2003, 2005 and 2009 – where he served as a USMC Reserve Gunnery Sergeant.

Brendan Ryan

Franchising USA

Profile

“Blue Moon Estate Sales is an outstanding business for veterans because it rewards the characteristics common among men and women in uniform.”

During his time as a reservist, Ryan embraced each and every challenge thrown his way because being a Marine wasn’t just a job – it was a way of life. When he left the service, he promised himself that he would find a new career that echoed the teachings and philosophies of this important chapter in his life.

Ryan retired from the Marine reserves in 2014, one year after retiring from the NYPD, and stayed true to his former pledge when he and his wife, Kristen, purchased a Blue Moon Estate Sales franchise in Charlotte and Union County, North Carolina.

“I couldn’t have chosen a better franchise that matches up so perfectly with my skills and desires,” said Brendan. “Blue Moon Estate Sales is an outstanding business for veterans because it rewards the characteristics common among men and women in uniform: a capacity for hard work and service; respect for authority and the property of others; and an ability and willingness to follow proven systems within an organization to reach specific goals.”

Today, Brendan and his wife are helping hundreds of families with their residential, commercial, and moving liquidation services, providing an organized and professional way to ease the complicated and overwhelming burden of selling a personal estate. From determining a convenient time line to sweeping up after the sale, they do everything. Other services include, but are not limited to: a complimentary and extensive evaluation of the home, appropriate pricing from antiques to everyday items, categorization and staging of the home, marketing, hosting and staffing of the sale.

“Many people find themselves at a crossroads in their lives. They may be downsizing, dealing with the death of a loved one or moving to an elder community. Our goal is to manage their estate sale in a professional and caring manner while using our proven system to get them the most profit,” Brendan added.

Brendan is indeed a perfect fit for Blue Moon Estate Sales. Franchisees are expected to be dedicated to integrity, compassion and professionalism.

According to Blue Moon Estate Sales cofounder Debra Blue, they are also expected to be energetic, caring people who want to help those in need while enjoying the rewards of owning their own business.

“We’re lucky to have Brendan,” Blue adds.

“He’s highly trained, he’s loyal, and he has the integrity that matches our company’s values.”

For more information about Blue Moon Estate Sales, visit www.bluemoonestatesalesusa.com.

For franchising information, visit http:// bluemoonestatesalesfranchising.com.

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Veter ans in Fr anchising

Jim Mingey, Founder Founder& &Managing ManagingDirector, Director,VBS’ VBS

The Veteran Institute for Procurement (VIP) is the country’s first-ever program to train veteran service-disabled and veteran owned small businesses to succeed in the federal contracting market.

The Montgomery County Chamber Community Foundation funds this threeday, 27-hour comprehensive training program with its partners and other VIP Sponsors. The VIP Program is offered at no cost to veteran businesses admitted to VIP. VIP is aimed at veterans who are senior, “C-level” executives of small businesses with about three employees and at least two years in operation. The June 2015 VIP session graduated 50 veteran-owned small businesses, from 12 states, Washington D.C., and a U.S. Island Territory. Veterans Business Services (VBS) was among the proud graduates who were lauded by VIP and received Congressional recognition as well.

VBS has been searching for ways to allow smaller franchise ventures to partner with established government contractors.

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Teaming on contract proposals has been especially helpful for Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB) which can be certified to enhance bid proposals and also be eligible for Set-a-Side contracts. Contract Awards are of course still dependent on quality, experience and price considerations so combining an SDVOSB with a larger experienced contractor can be a winning combination.

VIP is the brainchild of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce Community Foundation President, Barbara Ashe, who is also the VIP National Director. Since the program launched in 2009, VIP has graduated 496 veteranowned businesses from 35 states including Alaska and Hawaii, Washington, D.C., and a U.S. Island Territory. 80% are SDVOSB, 39% 8(a), 51% minority-owned, 13% woman-owned, and 11% are HUB Zone qualified.

VBS has now become part of the exclusive VIP network and plans to leverage that status to enhance training opportunities for its own SDVOSB franchise network.

The VBS Franchise Accelerator will now incorporate a procurement module into its custom training programs which will then allow its SDVOSB clients to accelerate their federal sales and marketing strategies.

“The VBS Franchise Accelerator will now incorporate a procurement module into its custom training programs.”

• A survey of 184 VIP graduates created 2018 jobs and increased their revenue by an average of 49% • within their first year of graduation.

Over 82% said they changed the way they do business after • graduating from VIP; 55% of their employees are former warfighters, including service-disabled;3 of • the 7 SDVOB/VOB winners of the Veteran Affairs T4-$12B Contract are • VIP Graduates; Many teaming agreements for federal contracts have been formed among VIP • graduates; and 1 of the 10 SDVOSB winners of the NIH CIO-SP3 GWAC -$20B contract is VIP • Graduate Longview. Its Prime Contract Spot on PACTS I - earned a $178M contract

VIP 5.0 Graduate Session To expand upon the success of the VIP Program, MCCCF created the VIP 5.0 Graduate Session. This program is designed for the continued education of Veteran Institute Procurement (VIP) graduates. VIP 5.0 offers a full day of training to the VIP alumni and introduces new information and capacity enhancing capabilities.

VBS’ Founder and Managing Director, Jim Mingey, is a decorated Vietnam veteran raised from a proud military background. An entrepreneur for more than 35 years, Jim can relate

on a personal level to the needs of the veteran small businessperson, and possesses the practical knowledge to implement his experience in today’s market. Jim participated in the EBV Program at Purdue University, is a mentor at American Corporate Partners, developed the first approved franchise training program for the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) Program at Veterans Administration, and was instrumental in forming the first equity fund in the United States exclusively for veteran owned small businesses and franchises: The Veterans Opportunity Fund. Jim intends to keep on ‘advocating’ for veterans in franchising.

For more information: Email: jmingey@ VeteransBusinessServices.us Phone: 202.349.0860 Web: www.mcccmd.com/foundation/ veteran-institute-procurement#sthash.

GwJf8pvd.dpuf

James Mingey

“The VIP Program is offered at no cost to veteran businesses admitted to VIP. VIP is aimed at veterans who are senior, “C-level” executives of small businesses with about three employees and at least two years in operation.”

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ex per t advice

Andre Kay, CEO & Founder, Sociallybuzz

BUILDING AN effective

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE Customer loyalty is very hard to gain in an era where countless businesses are offering the same products and services to the same audience.

Customers have lots of choices, and as soon as they find the “supposedly” next best thing, they take their money, family and friends with them. Instead of just building a customer loyalty program, focus on building WOW customer experience and the loyalty will follow.

A WOW customer experience is when

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a business is really great at providing their customers with amazing products and also genuinely provides excellent service. When a customer experiences both components simultaneously and consistently, it activates an emotion that creates loyalty and trust, which turns that customer into a walking word-of-mouth marketer for your business. Now imagine having 100 or 500 customers just like that.

You now start to build a tribe of supporters for your business.

In reality, not all businesses are built like that. Some businesses have awesome products but bad customer service, and other businesses have not-so great products but amazing customer service.

Here are 3 ways to build an effective

WOW Customer Experience:

1

Experiment

Most times it might not be a direct competitor that your customers are cheating on you with. It’s new fads or new business concepts that enter the marketplace instead. This doesn’t mean you need to change your entire menu, product line, or service to compete, but it’s good to experiment with other offerings without comprising your existing business.

For example, if you’re an Italian restaurant and a new Mexican restaurant is attracting your customers, do not start selling Mexican food. However, if your customers are continuously asking about gluten-free options, you can highlight the gluten-free

“Creating a WOW customer experience is not a marketing strategy or tactic. This should be part of your culture and your business’ DNA.” items on your menu or consider adding more gluten-free options for them to choose from.

You should do these things not because they are the “hot thing” to do, but because you really care about making your customers happy and providing them with an enjoyable experience.

2

Tools

It is very important to have the right tools in order to build a great customerservice experience. They will help you to conveniently and efficiently manage your relationships with your customers.

Consider these three tools to use:

FiveStars FiveStars helps small businesses create custom rewards, where any customer can sign up with just his or her phone number.

It takes care of your customer engagement needs with automated campaigns, including incentives to bring back lapsed customers and special rewards on birthdays. In a head-to-head comparison, FiveStars gets nine times more members than other rewards programs. Something that I really love about Fivestars is that business owners control their own rewards and promotion content and own all of the data, including contact information and notes.

A great example of a business that is seeing great results by creating a WOW customer experience and utilizing FiveStars loyalty program is Hwy 55 Burgers, Shakes & Fries. According to a recent feature by Loyalty360, the restaurant’s same-store sales shot up 18% thanks in part to their customer-experience program. They take customer service very serious and this is built in their business’ philosophy of each and every employee, including the founder. When you really care about creating a five-star experience for your customers, it will show.

Sociallybuzz App The SociallyBuzz app is the easiest, simplest and most affordable way for business owners to manage their social media channels and online reputation on one mobile dashboard.

This is important because it helps small business owners manage their relationships with their customers on multiple social media channels. The relationship is what drives a customer to build trust with a business, which in turn repeats business and encourages true word-of-mouth promotions from customers.

This social media manager app also helps small business owners manage their online reputations. A business’ reputation is probably the most important aspect of anything previously listed here because any negative reviews may prevent a customer from visiting a business, or worse, if those reviews receive no responses. Business owners who respond to negative reviews show other customers that they are eager to own up to faults or explain the situation if not.

And, more importantly, they show that they care about customers’ feedback and experiences. With great reviews and an engaged business owner, more customers will come to a business.

SocialToaster SocialToaster helps you engage your fans and makes sharing your content over their social networks easy. I like the context of SocialToaster because it uses gamification to amplify word-of-mouth recommendations from the most trusted source, your customers. Once your social community connects their social media accounts, SocialToaster will activate them to help your business have a larger reach, more influence and higher visibility.

Rewarding your tribe and providing them with the tools and resources to help them share your message is a sure way to create a WOW customer experience.

3

Conversation

Think about this for a second: how do you communicate with your customers? Is it one-way, where you’re always talking about what you offer and what your customers must do for you?

Or is it a two-way conversation in which you listen, engage and create meaningful conversations with your customers?

Conversations with your customers must feel natural and not forced.

Creating a WOW customer experience is not a marketing strategy or tactic. This should be part of your culture and your business’ DNA. Taking this approach will ensure that all your employees will treat your customers the same way as if you, the owner, were talking with them. Having all your employees on the same page creates less confusion and a genuine expectation to create a five-star experience for your customers.

Doing any or all of the above will show your customers that you’re listening and care about their needs.

Andre Kay is CEO and founder of Sociallybuzz, which exists to help businesses grow using social media. By helping them reach relevant customers, build customer loyalty, mange reputation and increase revenue. We protect relationship with their customer, create effective campaigns, manage their social channels and online reputation 24/7. Read the company’s blog (https:// sociallybuzz.wordpress.com/) and follow it on Twitter (https://twitter.com/ SociallyBuzz) and Instagram (https:// instagram.com/Sociallybuzz/)

www.sociallybuzz.com

Andre Kay

Franchising USA

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focus

ProShred

Document shredding pi wants new recruits

The original name in information security is looking for the right franchisees.

“We were the very first people to put a paper shredder on a truck in 1986 and go to businesses and shred our client’s papers at their door.”

They’ve shredded stolen products, fake products, defective products and even expired food products like chocolate bars.

With major markets open in the United States, ProShred CEO Jeff Hasham said, this is the right time for entrepreneurs to come on board with the company that pioneered the on-site information destruction service and knows it best.

“Anything that can go through a shredder safely, we’ll shred,” Hasham stated.

“We were the very first people to put a paper shredder on a truck in 1986 and go to businesses and shred our client’s papers at their door,” Hasham explained during a recent interview at the company’s headquarters in Toronto.

Having started franchising in the US in 2003, the company currently has 27 locations in the US of which 21 are franchises. Those 27 locations service 30 markets in the country.

From those days of just shredding paper, the company has come a long way, moving up to hard drives and even products.

Franchising USA

Once the materials have been shredded, the company recycles what it can and the franchisees have an incremental revenue stream from recycling.

But, with some major markets still available in the US, the company is putting out a call for qualified franchisees.

Although ProShred does have franchises

coast to coast in the US, many of those are concentrated on the east coast where they are in every major city. Where the company doesn’t have a presence is in places like Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

Examples of some major markets that are still open are Los Angeles, which has multiple territories available, San Antonio and Austin, Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, St. Louis and Minneapolis.

The Right People Hasham said ProShred is looking for people who have had success in corporate America or as an entrepreneur.

Franchisees should have experience building teams, supporting products and building businesses. The people the company is looking for should have strong

ioneer attention to detail, good leadership and management skills, good people skills, ask a lot of questions and be inquisitive and creative.

Typically, he said, you find these skills in people who are C-suite executives in corporate America or who are natural entrepreneurs.

The Need for Security While a lot of companies sell on happiness, the ProShred CEO said, his company sells on fear and providing peace of mind to solve that fear.

That fear is that confidential materials — which can even include such innocuous things as scribbled sticky notes — can have massive consequences if it is compromised.

Being secure with confidential information is good corporate practice and takes away a company’s liability concerns, which they have to be cognizant of more than ever before because of government legislation.

“The government is telling companies: ‘Thou must protect information in a proper manner and when it is no longer needed, it needs to be destroyed in a proper manner’,” Hasham said.

As incineration isn’t considered a proper manner due to environmental concerns, that leaves shredding as the most obvious

choice for information destruction.

ProShred performs both commercial and residential shredding. The company concentrates on small and medium market businesses, which often includes homebased businesses. To facilitate the growing residential market, a lot of franchises also have a drop off facility.

“People have a lot of paper stored in their basements,” Hasham observed.

The ProShred Difference What makes ProShred different than its competitors, is that it shreds at the client’s site, Hasham noted. And, it also backs up its work with quality processes. It is the only company in its space that is ISO 9001 certified.

On top of that, it is also a franchise company, meaning it is locally owned, but nationally supported.

Franchisees work with small and medium sized enterprises on their security measures and when one considers the superior quality when matched with a wonderful franchisee, it’s difficult for other companies to compete with ProShred, the CEO said.

Making Wonderful Franchisees Prior to even buying a franchise, potential franchisees spend two days in a location working with a mentor franchisee.

When they’ve signed the franchise agreement, they then spend two weeks in Toronto attending ProShred University, which takes them through everything they’ll need to know from a theoretical and practical view to managing a business.

From their pre-opening schedule to managing growth, franchisees learn everything about running a ProShred business. After that is a week of training in a mentor location or one of the training centers in either New York or Syracuse.

There is also a week of opening training done with a franchise business consultant who further trains the franchisee and their sales and service teams and goes along on sales and service calls.

Typically, six to eight weeks after a franchise opening, the business consultants come back to follow up on any weak areas. Typically, six months after that, they’ll come back again and work on any weak areas.

There are also two training courses every year. The first is a sales training course for training sales people, which can either be taken by the franchisee or their employees.

The second is a compliance training program, which is offered every year at the annual conference. All new franchisees are required to attend for the first three years and then once every three years.

ProShred also offers marketing support on both the local and national levels.

For entrepreneurs who are looking to get involved with an established name, the pioneering ProShred offers a great choice. www.proshred.com

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Andrew Kyle Zagrodzky, Cagnetta, President, CEO, Transworld OsteoStrong Business Advisors

the true of No career is perfect, but among all the choices, there are always a handful that will be more ideal for every individual.

Lots of people are drawn to the idea of franchising, which offers the independence and freedom of owning your own business as well as the partnership and support that come with being part of a large, stable corporate family. However, franchising isn’t for everyone, which is why the best franchises take their time to thoroughly vet every potential franchisee.

The most successful franchisees tend to have certain personality traits and management styles; they also know how and when to delegate and take charge. All potential entrepreneurs have to have lots of drive, but it’s hard for many to decide whether franchising is the proper path to channel their energy and investment.

If you’ve been considering a move into the franchise world, these pros and cons may provide some extra clarity. Below are some traits of franchise life, but each can be considered either a pro or con depending on who you are and what you want out of your business.

Franchising USA

Training Pro Regardless of past experience, good franchises give every new franchisee plenty of training that details everything a business owner needs to know about operating a franchise unit. This includes opening procedures, daily operation techniques, software use, and sales and marketing strategies that have already been proved at other locations. New franchisees don’t have to stumble through the process; they are not only trained, they also have a strong backup network who will help from day one to years down the road.

Con If you like going through new experiences on your own and learning as you go, you may find the structure of franchise training and onboarding limiting. If you constantly like to push the envelope and try new ideas, franchising may not be a good fit, since franchise training teaches proven methods for that particular brand.

Firm Infrastructure Pro Everything a franchisee gets to learn in training, from daily operations to sales strategies, is part of the franchise package.

When you build a business on your own,

those kinds of choices have to be made one by one, and each one can feel like a doozy. Mistakes are not only painful, but they’re often costly as well, raising the stakes of every choice you must make.

From what to look for in a new hire to which point of sale system is best, being part of a franchise cuts a lot of the decision headaches out of owning a business for the first time.

Con Some entrepreneurs like having total control over their venture. They relish in the autonomy of trying new things, relying on intuition, testing the waters, and pushing the envelope. If you want to make every decision from the ground up, a franchise’s firm infrastructure may feel too restrictive.

Franchises Have Built Brand Reputations Pro Joining a franchise means your business automatically becomes identified with the franchise as a whole. If people love this brand, they’ll be looking forward to your business opening as soon as the sign goes up, but if they’ve had a bad experience, it’s your job to entice them in the door and win them over. If your franchise has already been successful, and chances are

Being A Franchise Owner it has or else you wouldn’t have given it a second look, maintaining a positive reputation falls on your shoulders, too. It’s all about being part of the team.

“The product or service a franchise sells is consistent across the board, which means you don’t have to spend sleepless nights concocting ideas for the next special or promotion.”

Con If your business flails, it could affect your fellow franchisees, just as your unit might experience a dip if one of your fellow units should flop. Everyone wins when a brand is strong, but if even one unit starts to struggle, it’s everyone’s job to offer support and help turn things around.

Branding and collateral is decided for you Pro Fonts, logos, and colors tell every brand’s story in a big way. New business owners often struggle with the best way to build a brand, especially when they’re also consumed with running a business.

Franchisees don’t have to spend time wondering how to best tell their brand story or working with marketing and public relations firms to handcraft their brand—this has all been done already at a corporate level, leaving franchisees free to run and manage their unit. Franchisees don’t have to agonize over what color to paint the walls or which business cards to choose because it’s been taken care of, and what’s in place has been proven at other locations.

Con If total control over art, decorations, and logo is a paramount part of what you will

love about owning a business, franchising may not be your thing.

Franchise product offerings are stable Pro Joining a franchise takes a lot of the guesswork out of owning a business. The product or service a franchise sells is consistent across the board, which means you don’t have to spend sleepless nights concocting ideas for the next special or promotion. Franchising is about building a large system of cohesive stores that offer customers the same reliable environment, product, and experience regardless of which location they visit.

Kyle Zagrodzky is president of OsteoStrong, the health and wellness system that boosts bone and muscle strength in less than 10 minutes a week using scientifically proven osteogenic loading concepts. OsteoStrong introduced a new era in modern fitness and aging prevention two years ago and has since helped thousands of clients between ages eight and 92 improve strength, balance, endurance, and bone density. In 2014, the brand signed commitments with nine regional developers to launch 500 new locations across America. www.osteostrong.com

Con However, if you love inventing schemes to sell or upgrade products, a stable product offering may feel like a downside.

Extremely creative people may find the rules and boundaries of franchising too limiting. Deviating from the menu, service, or product offering will unbalance a franchise brand, especially if a new idea fails and affects the whole brand’s reputation.

Kyle Zagrodzky

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Jim Judy, Franchise Business Consultant

Five Franchises to Consider for

Men’s Health Month Franchising USA

When most people think of June, they think of the beginning of summer, the end of the school year, wedding season and of course, the celebration of Father’s Day. However, June was also Men’s Health Month, and any man entrenched in middle age can assure you that the older you get, the more you think about your health.

Men’s Health Month focused on heightening awareness of preventable health problems and promoting early detection, but it’s also a great opportunity for men everywhere to take stock of their personal well being and make the necessary changes to lead a happy, healthy life.

Franchise consultants specialize in change.

The kind of change that comes when a longtime executive in corporate America decides they’re ready to go out on their own and become an entrepreneur. With more than 3,000 franchise opportunities available today, there are plenty to choose from in the field of men’s health.

If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur with a life goal of running a business that helps men be their best, consider these five popular franchises:

Title Boxing Club For people looking to add some punch to their workouts, Title Boxing Club offers total body boxing and kickboxing workouts they say help people burn up to

1,000 calories per hour. Listed ninth on Entrepreneur’s Top New Franchise List of 2014, Title Boxing Club now boasts more than 400 locations nationwide.

Franchisees are expected to be focused on fitness, not fighting. For the entrepreneur looking to take strong business acumen into the fitness world, Title Boxing Club is a knockout!

Cycle Bar The first (and only) indoor cycling franchise, Cycle Bar works to create the ultimate indoor cycling experience by powering up each class with high-energy music, video graphics and rider specific performance data in their high-tech Cycle Theatre. Cycle Bar looks for franchisees that want to take a hands-on approach to franchise management while also playing an active role in their community.

Menchies Frozen Yogurt Without a doubt, Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt features plenty of rich offerings to turn a healthy treat into decadent delight. Frozen yogurt cuts the fat of regular ice cream in half, and Menchie’s product line boasts gluten-free, vegan and no high fructose corn syrup options along with natural toppings like spices, fruits and nuts.

Frozen yogurt is a thriving, $8 billion industry, and Menchie’s is the largest selfserve yogurt franchise in the world.

Hand and Stone Hand and Stone Massage and Facial Spa encourages men to consider massage as a healthy lifestyle choice. Why? According to the Mayo Clinic, “studies … demonstrate that {massage} is an effective treatment for reducing stress, pain and muscle tension.” The health and personal care market is booming; the sector features the second highest number of franchises in Entrepreneur’s 36th Annual Franchise 500. While the growth in this sector is terrific, most of the day spa market is still

“Men’s Health Month focused on heightening awareness of preventable health problems and promoting early detection.”

Jim Judy

fragmented with very few national names, giving Hand and Stone a great advantage in brand recognition.

18/8 Fine Men’s Salon After a workout, a healthy treat and a great massage, a little bit of high-quality grooming is perfect to make a healthy man look as good as he feels. 18/8 Fine Men’s Salon (interestingly named after the combination of 18% chromium and 8% nickel to give stainless steel its better look and performance) is looking to fill a void in the personal care market by offering the perfect salon for men. They boast professional staff members that are highly educated in men’s styles, trends and grooming products, along with the requisite salon services previously only marketed to women. 18/8 is perfect for people who have experience leading small teams with a focus on providing service and hospitality.

Franchise business consultant Jim Judy has spent the past 20 years in the franchise industry, gaining insightful knowledge and a keen eye for opportunity. His passion is developing relationships with current and hopeful entrepreneurs to assist them on their journey to franchise business ownership. Jim leverages his experience, success and close relationships in the franchise industry to provide valuable consultation free of charge to entrepreneurs looking to explore the benefits of a franchise.

To learn more: Call: 919-233-3534 or Email: jjudy@franchoice.com

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CHECK OUT THE NEW FRANCHISE.org!

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Better searchability responsive design easier to navigate franchise comparison tool

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FranchisingFeature spo m o brts ile & fitnesss

jjuunly e 2015

gametruck

America’s premiere mobile entertainment franchise

the mobile

food truck

revolution

Drive Your Success Franchising USA

m o b i l e fr a nch isi ng

what’s new!

Apex Fun Run increases funding for US schools with unique school fundraising model

As federal, state and local governments continue to slash school funding budgets and overworked parents and administrators struggle to raise important funds that help with the most basic of needs inside the classroom—Arizona based franchise, Apex Fun Run has increased funding for schools across the United States over 100% year over year using their unique school fund-raising model.

This mobile franchise model is on pace to raise over 6 million dollars for schools across 16 states for the 2014/2015 fiscal year.

With over 56 franchisees in 16 states this company is reshaping the school fundraiser model. Gone are the days of hawking cookie dough and wrapping paper—Apex Fun Run earns on average $23,000 per school per Fun Run event held.

The concept is simple, Apex Fun Run franchisees collaborate with school PTO/As and faculty, and produce a meaningful

and “hassle-free” school fun run that is financially successful and builds leadership and fitness values in the students who participate.

Between a pep rally, teacher competitions and awareness building over two weeks, the momentum will culminate with the Fun Run on the last day of Apex’s time at each school. Kids run laps on a special course set up by Apex and friends, parents and family donate per lap.

“It’s a win-win for schools,” said Apex Fun Run Vice President of Franchise Development, Jeremy Barnhart. “We handle the heavy lifting, worry about all the details and the schools are the ones who get the money they so desperately need.” www.apexfunrun.com/franchising-with-apex

Coverall Celebrates 30 Years of Clean Throughout 2015, Coverall North America, Inc. is celebrating 30 Years of Clean, a major milestone that marks the company’s 30th anniversary.

Started as a three-person company headquartered in San Diego, Calif. in 1985, the company is now a leading global brand in the commercial cleaning franchising industry. Over the years, Coverall’s passion and mission have remained consistent: To promote economic growth and independence for a diverse group of business owners by providing franchised business ownership opportunities. Today, the Coverall® System supports more than 8,000 Franchised Business Owners in 90 markets through local Coverall Support Centers in the United States and worldwide.

In 1989, the company launched the trade

Franchising USA

name Coverall Cleaning Concepts®, and in 1999 relocated its headquarters to South Florida. Coverall then introduced its proprietary cleaning program and rebranded in 2008 as Coverall HealthBased Cleaning System® with an emphasis on helping reduce the spread of illness-causing germs in commercial and healthcare environments.

“Our franchisees’ dedication to healthy cleaning sets the bar higher and differentiates the Coverall brand from the rest of the industry,” said Ascolese.

“Coverall provides local business support and an elevated level of professional training to franchisees through our Support Centers in every market. It’s a unique model that is focused solely on supporting their businesses.” www.coverall.com.

New WOW 1 DAY PAINTING franchise partner brings military precision to business Mike Sandness is a 20-year veteran of the Air National Guard and one of the newest franchise owners in the WOW 1 DAY PAINTING fleet.

The owner of the new Minneapolis franchise, Sandness’ military background fits well with the business’s model that promises customers completed paint jobs in one day, without sacrificing quality.

Following his retirement, Sandness began looking into different franchising opportunities and was impressed by WOW 1 DAY PAINTING. “The branding drew me in. I had done some market research into the painting industry and learned that it is very fragmented. I knew the exceptional branding and customer service offered by the company was something different,” says Sandness.

Sandness was a Master Sergeant at the Air National Guard and attributes many of his business skills to his military experience.

From building rapport with his crew to ensuring jobs are executed on time, Sandness uses his military background daily to deliver

exceptional service to his customers in Minneapolis.

The Minneapolis franchise is one of five new franchises recently added to the system. WOW 1 DAY PAINTING is actively searching for new franchisees in major markets across Canada and the United States. www.wow1day.com/franchise/.

Global Garage Flooring® & Design Opens Up Two New Franchises in Dallas & Detroit to an exclusive offering of top of the line powder coated wood cabinetry.

These openings add to the current locations in New Jersey, Colorado, Minnesota, San Antonio and Vancouver, BC. “With franchisees in these new locations, we will continue to offer only the best products available,” says CEO, Lance Jensen.

“Our products have been installed on thousands of applications throughout North America, and have been extensively tested to certify their outstanding performance.”

Global Garage Flooring® and Design, one of the premier garage refinishing and coating companies in North America, has announced the opening of two new mobile franchises in Dallas, Texas, and Detroit, Michigan.

Through its network of dealers and franchisees, Global Garage Flooring® and Design offers complete garage remodeling solutions, ranging from: custom industrial concrete floor coatings

Global Garage Flooring® & Design also specializes in inlays, cabinets and storage solutions and their systems can also be used for restaurants, kitchens, mud rooms, basements, commercial bathrooms, airport hangers, walkways, patios, warehouses, parking garages, pool surrounds, shopping centers, galleries, and much more.

Global Garage Flooring® & Design is currently seeking to expand its national network of Global Garage® Franchisees with individuals who are ready to succeed on their own terms. www.globalgarageflooring.com

Franchising USA

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what’s new!

You Move Me’s new online booking system improves job leads for franchisees Customers enter a set of pre-defined criteria such as their address,

square footage of their home and number of rooms, and You Move Me’s online booking system returns an instant, accurate quote

for the move. Almost immediately after the launch of the online

booking engine in late 2014, there was a tremendous upswing in

the number of jobs booked. A 288% increase in jobs booked was noted when comparing Q1 2015 and Q1 2014.

“The booking engine allows franchise partners to more efficiently manage operations so they can better serve their customers, and

effectively grow their business,” says Brian Scudamore, Founder and CEO, You Move Me. You Move Me, the third brand in serial entrepreneur Brian Scudamore’s group of home-service franchises, is pioneering a new standard in customer service in the moving industry.

You Move Me is a high-tech take on the traditional family

movers’ model, using an innovative online booking engine to streamline the job-booking process.

The You Move Me business model takes advantage of sister company 1-800-GOT-JUNK?’s existing infrastructure—a

framework honed and perfected by Scudamore over more than

two decades. The online system is even used to provide customers with specialty hot beverages the morning of their move.

www.youmoveme.com/ca/franchising/the-opportunity.

Lifestyle and Fashion Brand, BookATailor, Launches #SmartTailor Car Services Nationwide BookATailor, an innovative pioneer in custom bespoke menswear, is now launching the #SmartTailor service - a new way for men to shop and get shirts and suits with an exact fit (with little work).

Here’s how the process works: • The #SmartTailor car will frequent around major cities, where men can easily flag down the car (like a cab), get their measurements taken and have a custom suit/shirt delivered to their doorstep.

Franchising USA

• A BookATailor driver/styling genius

takes an 18 point measurement through a tablet and builds the customer a bespoke profile that is stored on file. Next, the

customer then chooses what fabrics he

wants, and goes through styling options of his selection. Then, once the order is

placed, the customer receives his bespoke clothing in under four weeks.

• The car service will also act as an

“Uber,” where people can call the car

service and have a driver come to their

home or place of office within minutes.

With being vertically integrated, BookATailor cuts out the middleman, which allows for them to offer the highest quality at the most affordable prices, which lie far below those of competitors.

Two custom shirts retail for $99, four custom shirts retail for $179, one custom suit retail for $450, and one custom suit and two custom shirts retail for $499. www.bookatailor.com

START YOUR BUSINESS TODAY!

800.537.3371

WWW.COVERALL.COM

®

5 Reasons

Why a Coverall Franchised Business Might Be A Good Fit For You. Life is full of opportunities and people start businesses every day. Like so many, you’re probably trying to figure which step to take next. You know you have the drive and the passion to make it happen. But, you’re looking for the right fit. Which is good, because we’re looking for men and women who have the right stuff.

Here are 5 reasons to consider a Coverall Franchised Business*:

1. An In-Demand Service 2. It Doesn’t Take Much to Start 3. No Experience Needed.

4. Start Quick.

5. We’re Here for You.

With Coverall, it can be easy to become your own boss.

Learn more at coverall.com

“After 15 years in business, my wife and I look back on the moment we realized we could do this and laugh to ourselves – we did it!”

Martel Brown, United States Army Veteran Coverall Franchised Business Owner (not pictured in advertisement)

*This offering is made by prospectus only. See Franchise Disclosure Document for details.

This year 2015 marks the 30th anniversary for Coverall North America, Inc., a leading franchised brand in the commercial cleaning industry. Today more than 40,000 customers system-wide are serviced by Coverall Franchised Businesses using the Coverall® Program and Core 4® Process.

mobi l e fr anchising

C over S tor y - gamet ruck

GameTruck!

The driving force behind America’s premiere mobile entertainment franchise

Founder and CEO Scott Novis, and President David Bauer are on mission to set a new standard for an already unique franchise business.

GameTruck is a mobile entertainment franchise focused on delivering a one of a kind experience for customers. GameTruck rigs are rolling gaming mega centers with enough TVs and gaming consoles to host an event of up to 20 participants. The concept is centered on the idea of bringing people together through social video game play.

“You play with the people you love most and want to spend time with, family and friends, not strangers or by yourself. We feel that this experience creates lasting

Franchising USA

memories . Video games are just the tools we use to craft this experience.

Here at GameTruck we call it Delivering Excitement.” – Scott Novis, Founder and CEO Simply put, GameTruck is the largest in the mobile gaming franchise world.

Scott and David are the driving force in competing against themselves and improving what is already widely considered the premium experience in this industry. They have both focused on helping and developing franchisees in new markets, but also have taken a hard look at the health of the current franchisees and how to improve the opportunity on both sides.

New franchise owners are benefiting from a large reduction in cost to manufacture the best in class GameTruck trailer, making the quick start up even more reasonable. They’ve also developed smarter and more efficient franchise

recruitment strategies to make sure GameTruck is partnering with the perfect franchisees for this concept.

“This is a people business. More than the games and fun, the person to person interaction of a GameTruck party is what sets us apart from the rest. That is why finding the right people that share our vision, our enthusiasm, and our passion for serving others is vitally important to the ongoing success of GameTruck” – David Bauer, President Current GameTruck franchise owners right now are involved with a gamechanging partnership with Nintendo of America for a marketing program called Summer of Splatoon. Aligning itself with one of the most iconic brands in video games, GameTruck has benefited from the increased awareness of helping to launch Nintendo’s new multiplayer game Splatoon. Additionally, GameTruck has set up new programs with Batteries Plus and

“This is a people business. More than the games and fun, the person to person interaction of a GameTruck party is what sets us apart from the rest.”

ADP to give their franchise owners better deals and more tools to help them run lean.

Scott and David have also launched a new SEO optimized website GameTruck.com, coupled with a revamped national sales team, to help current franchise owners book more parties. And once a party is booked, everything is managed through an easy to use online booking system.

in Los Angeles for the E3 video game conference. At E3, the biggest companies and game makers show off the latest and greatest in technology and new games.

Being front and center at these events, experiencing everything first hand helps GameTruck stay on top of the industry and make sure they have the latest and greatest of equipment for their franchisees.

“GameTruck franchise owners can work from anywhere, not tethered to an office, so having a centralized booking system helps franchise owners keep on schedule no matter where they are. GameTruck does not have a “delivery window”, we show up when and where you scheduled your party on time, every time.” – David Bauer, President

“You don’t have to be a ‘gamer’ to be a franchise owner of GameTruck. Many of our franchisees just like working with people and rely heavily on us to make sure we keep up with the industry and have the best innovations for every GameTruck party. E3 is a wonderful event for companies to showcase what’s coming out next. Being in attendance not only helps GameTruck get that information early but gives us the opportunity to experience it in person.” – Scott Novis, Founder and CEO

Scott and David also spend a great deal of time on the road finding new innovations for GameTruck or building stronger relationships with franchise owners. Just last month the GameTruck team was

The team also logs some serious frequent flyer miles doing in market visits with

franchise owners. Most franchise systems choose a designee for this taxing task of going to each individual unit. GameTruck franchise owners get unprecedented access to the two individuals most responsible for the future direction of the company. Even when not in market, Scott and David are always just a call away to step in and help drive success for their owners.

GameTruck today has 70+ franchises in 35 states, and has experienced 6 consecutive years of growth. Most would already call that a success, to Scott Novis and David Bauer of GameTruck, “We are just getting started.”

To learn more about the GameTruck franchise opportunity visit www.GameTruckfranchising.com.

To find the closest GameTruck franchise near you, visit GameTruck.com and book a party today.

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Mobile franchising

e r u t Fea

Over the last decade Mobile Franchising has grown into a new type of business that includes a variety of products and services. Services that were once assumed stationary are now taking flight and moving from client to client to cover a bigger area of consumers.

Mobile business reaches above and beyond the pizza delivery truck and has adjusted to the immediacy of consumers and time constraints of businesses.

People are busy and live in two income families, time is precious and mobile businesses help people save time. The demand of the economy is convenience and mobile companies provide easy solutions that do not waste people’s energy and help them enjoy life.

Franchisees who are interested in taking the wheel and being directly involved in their investment would be interested in mobile business. Though it usually caters to the client’s demands, it creates a lot of flexibility for the owner.

Not everyone is interested in working in a specifically laid out office, mobile

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business allows people the freedom of the road, while also learning a new skill in their area of passion. This type of franchise not only works with clients directly but can also be extended into the field of business to business, helping gain more profit, while also retaining reliable clients.

Lawn Care services Though everyone loves keeping up with the Jones’, they do not want it to take any effort. Lawn care and gardening services takes a green thumb and a lot of time and experience. People want to have great curb appeal but they aren’t interested in doing it themselves.

With an aging population, lawn care is in high demand. As people age, maintaining their gardening can become difficult but still remains a necessary house chore.

Younger generations are busy and do not have the time.

There has been a constant increase in lawn care demands over the last decade.

According to a study performed by the National Gardening Association in 2006, homeowners spent $44 billion on professional landscape services. Dual income families with a larger amount of disposable income are more willing to have someone else provide a service and allow them to enjoy time away from work more leisurely.

This industry can also be used business to business. In fact some franchises already have recognition with top brands,

creating an immediate and recognizable client base from store opening.

Mobile Gaming and Party Services Why not have a party come to you?

Nowadays parents don’t have time to plan their kid’s parties but they do have income to help support one. Again, faced with time constraints, we want others to take care of everything for us.

People want a truly unique and different experience and they are competing with other local parties.

Franchises have seized this opportunities and recognized a profitable opening.

Franchises offer entertainment to guests in a low-stress environment. Hosts get to enjoy the experience with their guests, rather than rush around trying to keep everyone happy.

Businesses offer packages that cover all of the needs to throw a party with an extra entertainment factor. Whether it’s face painting and a clown for a classic party feel or blow up castles and video games- this industry explores a lot of means to keep the party planning easy, creative and extremely fun.

Again, this is an opportunity to reach clients at a cooperate level. Christmas parties, graduations, community events are all business opportunities. The services are not limited to preschool parties, but rather a huge client base.

A lot of franchises offer an assortment

“The freedom and diversity you will gain by hitting the road and visiting your clients could be the change of scenery you are looking for.�

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of rentals for people to throw their own entertainment, while also providing a full package of service.

There are parties that offer day spas, space theme, reptile displays for a zoo theme event, sports and bouncy castles- the list is actually endless. Whatever peaks a kid’s interest is available to parents and parents can book for a more adult evening, if they prefer.

Takeout and Delivery Restaurants Restaurants that offer takeout and delivery service are the original mobile service. It was one of the first businesses to remove its product from the premises and bring it to the door of the consumer, opening a window into a new service.

This type of franchise can include catering, which helps open the doors to a wider range of events and costumers.

However, this type of service is sometimes limited to groups of people in order to be the most beneficial and profitable.

With families working five days a week and sometimes parents having different schedules, delivery offers a guaranteed meal and a quick solution to the dreaded “what’s for supper?” question on everyone’s mind. According to the National Restaurant Association’s 2009 Industry Fact sheet, 69 per cent of adults stated take-out and delivery makes it easier for them to manage their day-today lives.

It’s a tried and true business method that has become a familiar habit in American society. In fact in 2013, 24 per cent of families admitted to ordering delivery or take-out two to three times a week.

Only two per cent stated they do not order delivery at all.

Some franchises are fully functioning restaurants that offer either delivery or takeout or both, while some businesses only offer mobile services without a stationed location for sit down meals. Like most mobile franchises, a great initiative to this type of service is a low startup fee. There is no building or construction involved, creating a smaller purchase price.

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“For the most part cleaning franchises are mobile companies. They travel from house to house or office to office” Cleaning Franchises For the most part cleaning franchises are mobile companies. They travel from house to house or office to office. Well-known companies that work business to business have established a great clientele with other well-known brands that adds value to a franchise and a committed source of revenue. A lot of the time, cleaning companies have established contracts with other businesses before opening, guaranteeing a huge customer base.

Some companies work in specific specialties, such as carpet cleaning or textile cleaning, while most companies usually offer an overall experience with different options. This type of business usually has a low start up fee and gives the franchisee a lot of work- life balance and flexibility. This type of service is usually scheduled and can work around the owner’s lifestyle and not be reliant on the customer’s immediate needs.

Pest Control This service obviously has to be done site on scene and it is one of the mobile services that would require specific training and understanding of systems to properly execute the service to the best quality. However, training is simple and most Pest Control franchises are wellestablished and readily available to the franchisees.

Pest Control companies’ revenue have increased over the last five years, due to

prevalence and awareness of bed bugs.

More and more people are requiring pest control services simply because the bed bug epidemic has become a public health concern. Business is booming from hotel requests in particular, creating a greater customer base for franchises.

Concerns about bed bugs have lead to specific regulations that forces companies to seek extermination services in order to remain open. Pest control isn’t all about bed bugs, but they offer a variety of services and different infestations create different demands.

With $2 billion in revenue that is continuously increasing, it’s safe to say that while other suffer from bed bugs, the industry is truly benefitting.

Though Mobile franchises make franchisees dependent on their employees, if owners are not interested in being behind the wheel it can lead to a very flexible lifestyle. With the majority of franchises offer low fees, it’s an interesting concept for first-time entrepreneurs.

People have control over their success and can grow their business with expansion and seeking out more and more clients.

This is a small window into the world of mobile, people have very busy lifestyles with a lot of demands and they expect more and more services to come to them.

It’s a busy world and it’s always on the move, why not invest in the lifestyle with a moving franchise?

About the author: After receiving an English Degree, followed by a Journalism Diploma, Gina became a freelance journalist in 2008.

She has worked as a reporter and in communications, focusing on social media. She currently works as a community information officer with Epilepsy Society, while pursuing her writing career at the same time.

Look out for our next special feature:

Children’s Product and Services Franchising USA

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John Ferracuti, Vice President & General Manager, Bin There Dump That

Drive Your Success:

Why A Mobile Franchise May Be a Great Move For Your Career Are you interested in taking your career in a new direction but don’t want to end up in a similar place?

Are you a business leader who has grown tired of inter-office politics, expensive overhead costs and being stuck in a rut – or worse, in a cubicle? Then a mobile franchise opportunity may be perfect for you and your future.

What Is A Mobile Franchise?

Mobile franchise operators literally bring their products or services to their clients instead of the other way around. Their vehicles are their storefronts and their showrooms, and everyone in their territory is a potential customer, not just people who stroll by their buildings.

Still not sure what a mobile franchise is?

Then think back to when you were a kid and the ice cream truck would come down your block – that was probably your first interaction with a mobile franchise.

“Think back to when you were a kid and the ice cream truck would come down your block – that was probably your first interaction with a mobile franchise.”

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“Mobile franchise operators literally bring their products or services to their clients instead of the other way around.”

Since then, mobile businesses have diversified and evolved. Today, they take many different forms and offer many different services. For example, there are trucks that move furniture, cars that deliver food, vans that provide pet grooming and trailers that host video gaming sessions (or workout sessions, if you prefer). There are even wagons that host weddings.

What Are The Benefits of Mobile Franchises?

Clearly, mobile franchises have become ubiquitous and numerous. Fortunately, they can also make you quite prosperous. That’s because they combine all the advantages of franchising — a proven business model, a built-in support network, established name recognition, territorial flexibility and enhanced purchasing power — with tremendous flexibility and substantially reduced expenses.

Compared with traditional brick-andmortar franchises, mobile franchises offer the following benefits:

Lower startup and overhead costs One of the most expensive initial and ongoing components of any business is real estate. For retail and food franchises, real estate can prove especially costly as they need to be located in malls, shopping centers and other areas with heavy traffic – and heavy rents. If you also include the costs of renovating and maintaining a brick-and-mortar location, the price of real estate can prove astronomical.

Greater flexibility When you’re a mobile franchise operator, every day is different. You won’t spend week after week staring at the same walls

or locked in the same conference room — you can get out of the office!

It’s important to spend time with customers, establish a presence in your community and otherwise allocate your time as you see fit.

Added customer convenience Mobile franchises shift the burden of traveling from the customer to the owner, something that appeals to many people.

In fact, for those who are unable to leave their homes – the elderly, the disabled, etc.

– doing business with a mobile franchise isn’t just a preference, it’s a necessity. As a result, you can tap into under-served demographics and expand your customer base.

Vehicles Most mobile franchises are centered on at least one vehicle and its ability to act as a rolling storefront. These cars, vans or trucks not only deliver services to the customer efficiently, but also positively represent the company to the customer or other potential clients. As a mobile Franchisee, you must ensure your vehicle (or Vehicles) is reliable and able to properly represent the franchise business. As such, proper maintenance and timely vehicle upgrades are essential.

A franchisee needs to factor this into the business operating costs.

John Ferracuti

field, the receipt of a drivers record is not only helpful, but essential in choosing the correct candidate for the job. Mobile franchisees must be diligent in collecting and updating records for every employee who operates a company vehicle as infractions such as speeding and traffic tickets will contribute to the franchiees insurance costs. As a mobile Franchisee, insurance costs will always be your responsibility, so it is important to employ drivers with good records.

As you now know, there are many mobile franchise options, and there are many great reasons for investing in a mobile franchise. However, it is important to select the one that’s right for you. With the vast array of franchise business options available today, along with the variety of market span, it is essential that mobile franchise business owners understand and address the challenges they face. There are a number of highly successful mobile franchise businesses operating all over the world and their success is a testament to the franchisors and franchisee’s ability to address challenges and maintain profitable locations.

Another inherent challenge faced by mobile franchisees is effective management of employees who are offsite on a regular basis. The nature of a mobile franchise necessitates having employees on the road, so the importance of training them to properly represent you and your brand is paramount.

John Ferracuti is vice president and general manager of Bin There Dump That. With more than 20 years’ experience in the franchise industry — as an award-winning franchise operator, successful franchisee recruiting executive, marketing support manager and executive of a successful franchise organization — he offers insight into both sides of the industry: franchisor and franchise operator.

When hiring employees to work in the

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Hiring

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Jessica Conflitti, Marketing Consultant & Franchise Specialist

The 4 Pillars of the

Vending Machine Business Who do you want to be? What do you want to do? And, when are you planning on making it a reality?

You’re reading this, so it’s fair to assume that you’re at least considering the possibility of franchising, or starting your own business.

“Perhaps you realized [it was time for a change] after another long commute home or maybe when you missed yet another of your child’s music recitals or hockey games because of a late business meeting.

Did you reach your fork in the road when you woke up this morning, looked in the mirror and said, “Is this it? Do I have to go to work today?”

It’s possible to spend your whole life stuck on a train called corporate America, or a train called blue collar, or maybe one called American dream.

You keep thinking about how you’ll escape one day, how amazing it will be to break free from some preconceived notion of “who you’re supposed to be…” You think about what it would feel like to take back control of your life, gain financial independence, create a future for your family, and make a positive impact on the world.

It’s a nice fantasy Think for a moment…does this sound familiar? If not, what is your fantasy?

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Has something happened that was not of your own choosing but occurred through a corporate downsizing, demotion or some other restructuring? Suddenly you’ve been thrust out of your career and are now wondering, “What now?”

Stephen Hogan, a highly regarded business consultant, describes it beautifully – the quintessential moment in the life of every business owner. The point when we realize that not everything is as it should be. When we think: “If only I had more control over my life, more flexibility, and a higher income potential. Then I’d be happy. If only I owned my own business I’d be happy. That’s it…I’ll start my own business, but what kind?”

Your internal monologue may have sounded a bit different, but nevertheless

here we are. Perhaps you’ve done a little homework, and you think the $42 billiondollar vending industry might be the right fit for you. Maybe vending sparked your interest because you heard it has less overhead, no rent or electricity bills, or more flexibility than other industries.

Perhaps you like the idea of a permanent escape from the office where you can interact with your neighbors, and make an impact on your community.

Before you can make a decision you need to know more about the business to see if it aligns with who you are, and what you want. You need an answer to this question: what is the vending machine business exactly?

The 4 Pillars of the Vending Machine Business:

Pillar 1: Equipment There are almost unlimited options available when it comes to choosing vending machine equipment, Some of the most popular vending options to date include: credit card readers, LCD screens, healthier options, and micro markets.

This leads us to one of the biggest questions in the vending world. What comes first, the vending machine or the location?

It’s a controversial question. But, when it comes down to it, the ultimate goal of your business is to maximize profits. The truth: locations are interested in finding

“If you think stocking your machines is your only job, think again. You’re in the relationship business, and the best vending relationships are full service.”

“Vending machines with just candy bars and chips are quickly becoming a thing of the past.

Vending companies now offer a larger variety of food options, from breakfast to dessert.”

You should now have a better understanding of the four main aspects of the vending machine business. That being said, it’s important to note that launching and operating a successful vending business isn’t easy, by any means.

Before you order any machines on Ebay, or sign any franchise documents, take some time to weigh all of the options. More importantly, make sure all of the options line up with your specific business goals. full service solutions. That will almost always be the big picture goal for them – and by extension, this should also be your big picture goal. By securing a location prior to buying a machine, you might have a better chance of being able to fill that location’s needs and desires.

Pillar 2: Location Too often, new entrepreneurs don’t quite understand what it takes to start a business.

The vending business is no exception. If you don’t have a comprehensive strategy or support system, your ability to land the best places to put your vending machines, with high foot traffic and exclusive contracts, can be nearly impossible.

If you’re looking to secure the highest quality locations that will maximize your ROI, you will need to become proficient in the art of lead generation, engagement, and nurture, and you will also have to provide top-notch ongoing support.

Pillar 3: Products As previously mentioned, many locations choose a vending supplier that offers the right options for their students, employees or patrons. Vending machines with just candy bars and chips are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Vending companies now offer a larger variety of food options, from breakfast to dessert.

Without the right products at competitive prices, a machine in a great location can be an absolute dud.

There are a lot of product sourcing options, but when it comes down to it, what you choose to vend should depend on what the location needs. It’s important to consider demographic, foot traffic, and consumer age. Make sure you’re constantly analyzing the product movement inside your machines so you can see which products do well, and which ones don’t.

When in doubt, do a tasting event, or ask the location to do a survey. Your customers will thank you, and so will your bank account.

Pillar 4: Ongoing Service If you think stocking your machines is your only job, think again. You’re in the relationship business, and the best vending relationships are full service. This includes repairs, technical service, automatic reorders and customer specific product options.

* This article was adapted from ‘How to Start a Vending Machine Business: The Complete Guide.’

Jessica wrote her first novel, a historical fiction romance, at age 10. However she soon discovered that she had a lot more to learn about the subject before she could be considered an authority.

Since then, her flirting abilities haven’t improved, but she thinks her writing ability has considerably. After earning an undergraduate degree from the University of Southern California, she found herself in a franchise sales role at H.U.M.A.N. Healthy Vending in Culver City CA. Long story short, she fell in love with the franchise world, and she feels honored to be able to help prospective business owners discover if the vending business is right for them.

One of the most important things you can do is set expectation with a location before signing the deal. This builds trust between you and the location. In all social/ professional scenarios, people relax when they understand what to expect.

Once you’ve set this expectation, you need to exceed it – follow-through and do it better than they could have even imagined.

This, of course, builds trust, and continues the cycle. In other words, this will help you to make a lifelong relationship with your location, and it can also help you get location referrals too.

Jessica Conflitti

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Spa r k M obile V ideo

b y D i a n a C i ke s Fr a n c h i s i n g U S A

The Mobile Digital Marketing A

Driving your message home and beyond with Spark Mobile Video With mobile marketing, businesses can now stay in step with their customers in an evermoving and increasingly fast-paced world.

But what if you could go a step further and drive your brand messaging straight to your potential customers, in real time and in the physical locations they visit or pass by throughout their day?

This is what sparked the idea of taking mobile marketing to the next level for a local advertising business. Started in 2002, Spark Mobile Video designed and built a truck that was equipped with digital signage to promote its own brand while traveling along the Alabama Gulf Coast.

“That first truck caught a lot of attention

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on the road,” said Robert Tarabella, founder and Managing Partner. “We soon started getting a lot of calls from people asking if they could buy their own advertising trucks, so we quickly geared up to manufacture the trucks for other business owners.”

The business soon grew and evolved alongside the need in the marketplace for creative, eye-catching promotional strategies. Spark Mobile Video now offers several different models of mobile digital signage and mobile video billboard trucks in markets worldwide.

The Mobile Digital Marketing Advantage As commercial trucks, Spark’s promotional vehicles can be used for various practical purposes, but their key advantage lies in the power of digital technology.

“With digital signage, people can’t help but notice the bright LED video screens as our trucks drive down the street,” said Tarabella.

Spark’s mobile digital signage helps various forms of business – from retail brands and restaurants to law or chiropractic practices – deliver distinctive digital marketing campaigns in real time and across locations.

Billboard advertisements that used to change every few weeks or months can now be changed every few minutes with digital signage, giving businesses greater flexibility and control over messaging than with traditional forms of advertising. Once all graphics or videos are uploaded onto the system, the messaging on screen can easily be changed.

This ability to control how often and how long particular messages appear on screen is particularly effective for businesses that

Advantage:

“It’s a mobile society. Everybody is in their cars or on the move, and we can bring their message directly to where their customers are likely to be.”

change product offerings throughout the day.

“If you have a food business, you can have the display on breakfast foods in the morning, and then change it to your lunch specials in the afternoon,” explained Tarabella. “It allows you to easily change your advertising to match the changing needs of your customers.”

With a Spark truck, the added ability to literally “drive” your message to consumers makes it easier to target areas where your customer base is most dense.

This provides a cost effective, strategic way to build your brand across the marketplace.

“It’s a mobile society”, said Tarabella.

“Everybody is in their cars or on the move, and we can bring a brand’s message directly to where their customers are likely to be.”

The Spark Effect Spark has found their method of mobile advertising to be highly effective for its customers, even in the most challenging times. Tarabella recalled how a jewelry store owner purchased one of the trucks right in the midst of the economic recession in 2009.

“The owner came back to let us know they had their best sales ever, right in the worst time of the recession. They had been in business for over 20 years, and the only change they made that year was to purchase one of our trucks and leave it parked outside the store and drive it around town a bit.”

The Franchisee Financial Advantage With affordable monthly payments that average $2,000 per month, or a turn-key price that ranges from $75,000 - $125,000, the return on investment often exceeds the initial purchasing cost through the added brand visibility that comes with operating a Spark Mobile Video truck.

For franchisees, the cost of investment can also be shared through a cooperative marketing fund, whereby franchisees collectively share both the cost and increased market visibility for the brand.

“We offer financing for any business owner, but franchisees often make use of a cooperative marketing fund to invest in one of our trucks,” said Tarabella. “They can split the cost of the investment, which qualifies as a legitimate reimbursable expense for most franchisee marketing funds.”

The future of mobile digital advertising is bright Mobile digital marketing is here to stay and continues to evolve, and Spark is motivated to stay on the creative digital

edge by keeping up with technology trends and consumer needs.

Earlier this year, Spark rolled out its remote operating feature, which allows customers to make changes to the content on the screen remotely. “Now our customers don’t even need to be in the truck to change their advertising messaging,” explained Tarabella.

“It’s great fun to be involved in this business because we continuously make changes and we’re excited to offer new options each year.”

For more information on Spark Mobile Video, contact info@sparkmobilevideo. com or call 251-279-0007 (Toll free 844SPARK-44) www.sparkmobilevideo.com

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Christopher Conner, President, Franchise Marketing Systems

The food truck business has become all the rage in recent years. With more and more consumers demanding high quality products and convenient access to products or services, what better example than mobile restaurants that bring the dining experience right to the customer?

Chris Conner

Franchising USA

Food trucks have popped up across the U.S. in markets from Los Angeles to New York and everywhere in between. The concept of food trucks has been around for years, even decades with roach coaches and less “evolved� versions of the mobile food service operations we see today. What has happened today in the food service business is the introduction of truly talented individuals and experienced food service professionals who have completely bought into the food truck industry and supported its growth.

“The Food Truck industry has become the place for innovative, creative thinking in the food service market and a showplace for truly unique approaches to the food business.”

Concepts have come together with deep menu offerings, high quality food items and amazing branding. The Food Truck industry has become the place for innovative, creative thinking in the food service market and a showplace for truly unique approaches to the food business.

The growth in the food truck business has grown by leaps and bounds over the past few years - in 2011, the NRA named the food truck industry a top trend in the “What’s Hot in 2011” market evaluation.

Good food trucks will serve between 150 and 350 customers in a two hour time period. They offer the customer speed, efficiency and really good food - the combination is essential when there is no fixed location for customers to gravitate to.

Moreover, research by the National Restaurant Association indicates that 83% of consumers want quick service eateries and healthier eating options, 70% want a cuisine that’s not easily duplicated in home kitchens, and 62% says that they’re looking for establishments that are “environmentally friendly”. Food Trucks answer all of these for consumers with the new, advanced food trucks on today’s market. Regulations permitting food trucks to operate in different cities and states are loosening each year and with the growing popularity, the Food Truck Revolution is in full effect.

With this growth in market potential and ever-increasing popularity has come the increased number of food truck franchises available on the market. Food Truck franchises first appeared in 2008 with several new brands staking their claim to their particular food segment. Mexican, Japanese, Frozen Yogurt and other food trends all had their original food truck brand. Today, there are several food truck

franchises in each of the food industry segments.

What do Food Truck franchises bring to the market and offer a potential franchise investor? In some cases, they can offer an established brand. The food truck business really does have benefits when it comes to reputation and pre-existing relationships. Many of the venues and locations where the Food Truck could be placed are based on a brand’s value to that event or venue. People have to approve Food Trucks and with a franchised brand, there is typically some value in place that franchisees could leverage with their new franchised business.

and a Food Truck franchise can also offer the economies of scale by grouping franchisees who market together under a unified brand name. This puts not only the industry on the map, but more importantly the brand of your food truck.

The mobile food industry also allows aspiring entrepreneurs to conduct sufficient market research before investing in an actual location. With this market research, they often come out with some key tips on staying afloat in this industry, including: offering something unique, finding a niche and executing it, and utilizing social media to the best of one’s ability. Again, social media is a key component as you can engage with your following/customers, address issues in real time, and try your best to correct them as soon as possible.

Food Truck franchises should also be able to offer systems and process that allow for the simple and efficient production of the food. Because you are operating with a lot less “real estate” in a mobile kitchen, the operation really needs to be structured well to allow for fast and efficient service.

Food Trucks need to make their money in short, fast bursts. People come in waves and if you can’t maximize that revenue potential in the short window of opportunity, your food truck franchise won’t be profitable. Food truck franchises can offer both the systems and procedures to manage this unique scenario in addition to the manufacturers and processes to appropriately build and design the food trucks themselves.

Christopher Conner is the President of Franchise Marketing Systems. Mr. Conner has spent the last decade in the franchise industry working with several hundred different franchise systems in management, franchise sales and franchise development work.

His experience ranges across all fields of franchise expertise with a focus in franchise marketing and franchise sales, but includes work in franchise strategic planning, franchise research and franchise operations consulting.

Christopher has worked with multiple international franchise and licensed organizations throughout the United States, Middle East, India and Europe.

He has an MBA in Finance and Marketin g from DePaul University in Chicago and a Bachelors Degree from Miami of Ohio.

The Food Truck industry is still growing

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“Regulations permitting food trucks to operate in different cities and states are loosening each year and with the growing popularity, the Food Truck Revolution is in full effect.”

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O x i Fresh

Franchisor taps into

entrepreneurial spirit to start Oxi Fresh For one Denver franchisor, business ownership seemed destined, as entrepreneurial spirit clearly runs in the family.

Jonathan Barnett, founder and CEO of Oxi Fresh Carpet Cleaning, started his business and started franchising it in 2006.

But, Oxi Fresh wasn’t Barnett’s first business. That would’ve been the fireworks

stands he set up. When his grandfather — a born businessman — passed away, he left his grandchildren, including Barnett, $10,000 each.

Rather than spending the money on something frivolous, Barnett drove from his home state of Oklahoma to Kansas and bought $4,000 worth of fireworks, rented a trailer, and hauled them all back.

This idea didn’t sit well with his mother, he explained during a recent interview from the Oxi Fresh headquarters in Denver. Her reaction to seeing $4,000 worth of fireworks stacked inside the

garage was to start kicking them down the driveway, Barnett recalled.

However, she eventually came around when Barnett and a friend set up a fireworks stand and sold those fireworks for $20,000.

The next year, Barnett set up two fireworks stands, learning the importance of delegation in the process. He moved to Colorado to attend college and by that point had four fireworks stands. He eventually sold the fireworks business.

While in college earning a Master’s degree, he had various jobs, one of which was carpet cleaning. With this job, Barnett saw a business that was easy to start and had much room for improvement over the current models being used. With several ideas on how he could make a carpet cleaning business better, Barnett took some of his student loan money and jumped in, starting Oxi Fresh.

The Oxi Fresh Difference One of the things he noticed from working as a carpet cleaner during college is that his employers would constantly have to be answering their phones while doing jobs, which annoyed their clients.

That’s why Oxi Fresh has a dedicated Scheduling Center that answers all phone calls and sets up appointments for its

“Our philosophy is that we want our franchisees to be working on their business instead of stuck in their business.”

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“Every home, hotel and other type of building either has carpet, hardwood, tile or upholstery and Oxi Fresh cleans all that, plus it performs odor removal, meaning it will never have a shortage of customers.”

franchisees. Back when the business started, this Scheduling Center consisted of classmates from college, a bank of cordless phones in his basement and a bunch of Excel spreadsheets. Now, thanks to Oxi Fresh’s dedication to using new technology, the company has its own dedicated scheduling software, online booking and franchisees can check their schedules from their phones.

Another difference with Oxi Fresh is rather than using 40 gallons of water to clean a carpet, Oxi Fresh is able to use just two gallons of water, which makes a huge difference in drying time.

“The carpet dries in less than an hour,” Barnett said.

Customers love that their carpets dry quickly so they don’t have to walk around with wet socks, the CEO said. Hotels can get carpets cleaned and then rent those rooms out the same day.

On the franchising side, it’s the Scheduling Center and the company’s adoption of technology that really stands out as advantages for joining the company.

“Sometimes you end up majoring in the minors instead of majoring in the majors,” Barnett said. “Our philosophy is, we want our franchisees to be working on their business instead of stuck in their business.”

By having a Scheduling Center that answers all calls, franchisees can work on building relationships with customers rather than answering the phone themselves. They also don’t have to worry about answering the phone during their down time.

And the Scheduling Center doesn’t just set up appointments, it collects email addresses and offers text messaging service to customers.

Oxi Fresh also takes a flat royalty fee versus taking a percentage of sales from its franchisees.

The company now has over 20 environmentally friendly products in its line for its 150 franchisees to use. Those franchisees have nearly 300 units spread throughout 45 states and Canada.

But there are still 1,200 locations available throughout the United States, and units can be run remotely, Barnett said, thanks to Oxi Fresh’s Scheduling Center and turnkey marketing. The company plans to add 50 new franchisees in each of the next five years.

“We’ve got availability all over,” the Oxi Fresh CEO said.

Steady Customers Every home, hotel and other type of building either has carpet, hardwood, tile

or upholstery and Oxi Fresh cleans all that, plus it performs odor removal, meaning it will never have a shortage of customers.

To serve those customers, Oxi Fresh has a comprehensive training program for franchisees that is virtually ongoing.

Once per month, the company holds commercial training so franchisees can learn how to get more business. They can also get ongoing training on how to get more residential work through payper-click initiatives and other internet marketing.

All of this has added up to Oxi Fresh being recognized as one of the best franchises to join, according to Franchise Business Review’s annual Franchisee Satisfaction Awards.

With his own entrepreneurial spirit, the Oxi Fresh CEO is helping other entrepreneurs reach their business ownership goals, virtually reinventing the carpet cleaning business in the process. www.oxifresh.com

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Chris Poelma, President & General Manager, NCR Small Business and NCR Silver

Franchises:

The road is calling Three Ways Mobile Technology Can Take Your Franchise from Store to Sidewalk

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Major brands such as java purveyor Starbucks and clothing designer Cynthia Rowley have taken their goods from four walls to four wheels.

Even TGI Friday’s has taken its casual dining experience to the streets.

Their customers can’t get enough of it.

The food truck movement in particular has caught on. The $650 million industry is anticipated to grow to $2.7 billion within the next five years, according to the National League of Cities.

Part of the reason for its success — and the success of mobile franchises in general — is the convenience mobility provides to customers and business owners.

Mobility enables businesses to expand their presence throughout communities, allowing them to be everywhere their customers are. Operating a business on wheels can also keep overhead low and profits high.

Advancements in cloud-based software in particular provide business owners with the same capabilities they would have if operating from a traditional brick and mortar. Sometimes, even more.

Interested in exploring mobility? There are a few powerful ways technology can help take your franchise from store to sidewalk.

1

Roll Out Offerings in New Markets

A mobile franchise opens up your customer base and allows you to explore new offerings. With mobile applications that serve as total solutions, entrepreneurs can easily track sales, inventory, employee hours and more from the cloud — using one device.

“Mobility enables businesses to expand their presence throughout communities, allowing them to be everywhere their customers are.”

While typically found in shopping malls throughout the country, for example, Great American Cookies franchisees have implemented a mobile POS platform to provide their famous all-fresh, neverfrozen cookies via offsite catering.

continue growing, reaching $142 billion in volume in 2019. What better way to handle the demand for mobile payments at your franchise than a mobile POS solution designed to integrate with major players like Apple Pay, PayPal and BitPay?

Adding mobility to your business means you’re no longer tied down to a counter.

You can now cost-effectively manage dayto-day operations while venturing out to different locations … and garnering new customers.

3

For small businesses looking to grow into franchises, this is especially important.

With mobile technology, entrepreneurs such as Barbara Densley and Sloane Solanto are able to raise awareness about their Virginia-based artisan market, The Creative Wedge, and reach patrons by taking their store on the road to street festivals and farmer’s markets.

2

Brake for Alternative Payments

A commonality between Great American Cookies Company and The Creative Wedge is their reliance on mobile POS technology to operate inside their stores and beyond. Adopting a mobile POS platform allows franchises the opportunity to do the most essential thing for their business—ring up sales.

Market Your Business Wherever You Go

Mobile technology allows franchises tremendous flexibility from a sales perspective and allows for easy implementation and maintenance of email marketing, loyalty, rewards and social media campaigns. A total solution with mobile operability can empower you to post your pop up shops’ whereabouts on Twitter, send text alerts to frequent shoppers, and issue an email “thank you” following a purchase.

Consumers are more time-starved than ever. Mobile businesses satisfy their need for quick and personalized transactions.

As mobile businesses increase in popularity, franchisors and franchisees who are considering making the move from store to sidewalk need technology that’s just as mobile as they aspire to be.

Chris Poelma is GM and president of NCR Small Business and NCR Silver. http://www.ncrsilver.com/

For many establishments, especially retailers or quick-service restaurateurs, moving from an older POS solution to a mobile POS is the first step toward modernization and creating a more seamless experience for customers.

Actually, it’s the best option for serving customers who use payment alternatives to cash or plastic.

The rise of Apple Pay last year made mobile pay options mainstream. Forrester expects U.S.-based mobile payments to

Chris Poelma

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thriving on a modern concept HOW A CENTURY-OLD COMPANY HAS EMBRACED AND THRIVED IN THE MODERN, MOBILE FRANCHISING CONCEPT Dominic Francesco Repicci, Founder of Repicci’s Italian Ice & Gelato.

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H ave Your Say - Repicci’s

ONE HUNDRED YEAR HISTORY When my grandfather Dominic Francesco Repicci emigrated in 1911 from Messina, Italy to settle in southern Philadelphia, he must have been amazed by the Market Street Subway-Elevated, which had just opened in 1905 - 1908 to provide the city’s first rapid transit line (2015, Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia).

In fact, most Philadelphians were still adjusting to the new electric trolley which replaced horse-drawn street cars in 1897 (I still remember placing coins on the

trolley tracks in front of my grandparent’s row house on South 11th Street as a child).

Along with his heritage, Dominic brought with him to the New World his family’s Old World recipe for Italian Ice. At first, Dominic shared our family’s delicious traditional treat with friends and neighbors in South Philadelphia, but it wasn’t long before he found himself busily working to meet an overwhelming demand for the Italian dessert.

And that was the birth of Repicci’s Italian Ice and Gelato, our century-old company that has embraced and thrived in the 21st century’s mobile franchising concept with 48 current franchisees.

MEET FRANK REPICI My name is Frank Repici. You may notice I’m missing a “c” in my last name. My grandfather later decided to drop that consonant after immigrating to the United States to sound more American. But one thing he never changed was his time-tested recipe for his specialty desserts.

My father enlisted during World War II and was stationed at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia. Afterwards, he settled in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which is where I was raised. But four states and more than 700 miles couldn’t keep my father from visiting his hometown of Philadelphia, taking me with him to visit my grandfather at least every other year. That’s how I fell in love with Italian ice, and decided to bring the product back home with me to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1998.

Frank Repici and his grandson’s class field trip

Franchising USA

I assumed the role of CEO and decided to open a manufacturing plant, which initially supplied concessions for the Chattanooga parks, recreation facilities

and surrounding distributors who requested to join the excitement generated by this product, which was new to the South.

But the popularity of Repicci’s Italian Ice has continued to grow rapidly throughout the Southeast and across the United States.

FROM TENTS AND TRAILERS TO TRUCKS In 2005, FDR Enterprises Inc. launched Repicci’s Franchise Group, LLC, sellingevent-based franchises, our first venture into the modern franchise area of mobile franchising.

Early trailblazers got their start using seasonal tents at spring and summertime events. But I wanted to find a way to make Repicci’s a full-time and year-round revenue opportunity for our franchisees.

In 2010, we decided to add mobile trailers to our franchising model, making it easier and more efficient for franchisees to attend events located further apart.

This expanded their territory sizes and increased their revenue potential, but the value of mobile vehicles became apparent.

OUR NEW FOOD TRUCK MODEL In 2012, we built out our first “Mobile Ice Cream Shop” food truck for my territory in Birmingham, Alabama. As the franchisor, I wanted to put my 30-plus years in sales and marketing to work by testing this new concept on my own business to prove its effectiveness and viability before introducing it to other franchisees.

It has been an enormous success, with business growing exponentially over the last two years. In fact, the challenge now is a handling all the opportunities that are coming our way.

Among all the typical venues such as fairs, festival and sporting events, we now have the ability to do short-term events such as corporate catering, wedding receptions, birthday parties and more. We serve as a vendor at all types of events, most recently for the Steel City Jazz Festival, the Hangout Music Festival to the SEC Baseball Tournament at the Hoover Met as well as being a fixture at Barber Motor

Sports for events like the Indy Car Race of Alabama.

Our food truck enables us to set up outside businesses that invite us to offer refreshments to their employees during the workday or become part of the “going-out” scene by frequenting popular downtown corners.

EFFICIENCY IS KEY Especially at events, efficiency with POS is key, because it reduces the “waiting in line time” for customers.

In early 2015, my business partner and fellow Repicci’s franchisee, Cam Crawford, my franchising sales consultant, John Fogleman and I agreed to incorporate Mercedes Sprinter food trucks to our franchise model. We wanted a quality food truck to match the quality of the Repicci’s products.

The Sprinter is fully self-contained, equipped with a washing station and cold plate freezer system which maintains proper sub-zero temperatures for storing Italian Ice and gelato inside the food truck, so our products are ready-to-serve, just like a mobile ice cream shop, but with healthier and higher quality products than most.

By choosing a food truck with a floor-plan designed to accommodate up to three employees comfortably, selling and service efficiency is increased dramatically. One of our favorite features is the state-of-theart POS with video display at all work stations, which means no yelling orders back and forth. There will be three active Repicci’s trucks by the middle of July.

ENGAGING WITH CUSTOMERS IS ESSENTIAL While our goal is minimizing the customer’s line time, we decided to turn it into a part of the Repicci’s experience and an opportunity to engage with them.

Our new food trucks will have a 46inch, state-of-the-art, flat screen display where franchisees will have streaming information from our Facebook and Twitter accounts, encouraging the use of hashtags.

In addition, we have contracted with Avid Mobile, a SMS-marketing service that

A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY 1897 Electric trolley cars replaced horsedrawn street cars in Philadelphia.

1905 - 1908 Market Street Subway-Elevated opened, offering Philadelphia its first rapid transit line.

1911 Dominic Francesco Repicci immigrated from Messina, Italy to Philly.

1958 - 1998 Frank visits his grandfather Dominic every other year in Philadelphia, seeing firsthand the traditional method of creating Italian Ice.

1998 Frank opened an Italian Ice manufacturing plant in Tennessee, which initially supplied concessions for the Chattanooga parks and recreation facilities.

2005 Franchising began, starting out as seasonal tents that would pop up at spring and summertime events.

2010 Branded, mobile trailers added to franchising model.

2012 CEO Frank Repici adds first food truck to his own franchise as a Beta test.

2015 Mercedes Sprinter food trucks with colorful marketing wraps added to Repicci’s franchising model.

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H ave Your Say - Repicci’s

BEST PRACTICES FOR MOBILE FRANCHISING WITH FOOD TRUCKS • By making set-up and breakdown easier for your franchisees, they will see more effective sales, more efficient use of their time and a greater ability to pursue sales events and opportunities.

“Often, mobile franchising involves outdoor venues. Because of this, you may need to rotate your products seasonally to ensure appeal for your brand is present throughout the year.” allows customers to text keywords to short codes displayed on the video monitors to receive coupons, location alerts and more.

This also creates a database of customers to whom franchisees can send alerts throughout the year.

With the help of flash drives, the franchisee can even create custom color menu templates to display for each event they attend.

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES While the amount of possible selling venues seems endless during the spring and summer, it is challenging to maintain volumes during the colder months.

As a franchisor, we are working to meet these challenges by expanding our menu of Real Italian products to include hot beverages and an authentic, hot Italian Sandwich, (details about which are being withheld until introduction). Hot chocolate and freshly-brewed Italian coffee are already on the menu in some Repicci’s locations, and other products are in the developmental stage.

4TH OF JULY WITH REPICCI’S We also strive to promote products and flavors seasonally and have two special combinations we are offering this summer.

Our most popular combination of Italian ice is the “All American,” which has a generous scoop of Blue Raspberry, Cherry

Franchising USA

and Lemon. One of the most popular gelati combinations is our Caramel Apple, a delightful combination of Sea Salt Caramel Gelato & Green Apple Italian Ice - Magnifico!

And you can bet we will celebrate Independence Day of our great nation with pride. My Repicci’s of Birmingham has five 4th of July events scheduled, and our franchisees nationwide have a total of more than 50 events on the books.

THE FUTURE OF FOOD TRUCK FRANCHISING We will continue to discover new challenges to overcome as we continue unrolling (pun intended) our food truck model. Just as Dominic Francesco Repicci learned to adapt to a new continent with all the changes of the Industrial Revolution at the turn of the 20th century, Repicci’s is adapting to a new marketing structure based on wheels.

Our company has embraced food truck incorporation as the latest evolution, allowing Repicci’s to take our time-tested products to customers wherever they are. To ensure that we continue to keep our finger on the pulse of the food truck scene, Frank is an officer and on the board of the Greater Birmingham Street Food Coalition. http://ownarepiccis.com/

• If you decide to choose a food truck model, we recommend making sure it is “self-contained.”

This means it should have the ability to store your products at the proper temperature, have a cleaning station, gray water storage, and all the proper health licensing.

• Whether it’s a tent, trailer or truck, remember that it can double as a marketing piece. Be sure to consider wraps that have bright colors, eye-catching product images, and, of course, your company’s name and logo. We’ve gone so far as to include our new consumer and franchise leads website urls in our new food truck wrap design.

• Design your POS to minimize customer wait time. Then, use the wait time to engage and connect with customers. We do this through social media, SMS marketing and an interactive, state-of-the-art video display.

• Often, mobile franchising involves outdoor venues. Because of this, you may need to rotate your products seasonally to ensure appeal for your brand is present throughout the year. We are adding Italian roasted coffee, hot chocolate and a hot Italian sandwich to keep sales volumes up during colder months.

AD-Bragging-Flyer-For-PRINT.pdf 1 29/06/2015 4:53:02 PM AD-Bragging-Flyer-For-PRINT.pdf 1 29/06/2015 4:53:02 PM AD-Bragging-Flyer-For-PRINT.pdf 1 29/06/2015 4:53:02 PMPM AD-Bragging-Flyer-For-PRINT.pdf 1 29/06/2015 4:53:02

fr anchiso r in depth

O u tdoor L iv ing B ra nds

Missed appointment leads to

life changing opportunity for Raleigh franchisee Sometimes a life changing opportunity comes along completely by accident. That’s exactly what happened to Renew Crew franchisee Chris Miller.

While living in Phoenix, AZ, Miller planned on attending a real estate presentation, as he was getting ready to sell his house. However, Miller wrote down the incorrect date of the presentation and when he arrived at the location, it turned out the real estate presentation had happened the day before. But, there was a presentation by franchise brokerage FranNet going on that day and since he was there and interested in franchising, Miller thought he might as well watch it.

He purchased his Renew Crew franchise at the end of 2010 and officially started operations in 2012.

“If I hadn’t listened to that presentation that day who knows what I’d be doing right now,” Miller said during a recent interview from his home in Raleigh where he runs his Renew Crew franchise.

Chris Miller

After 15 years as a project manager in the mining industry on both the consulting side and the ownership side and traveling extensively while managing large projects in Colorado and South America, Miller got tired of never being home.

“Going from a nice, healthy, fat paycheck to starting from scratch again is not an easy decision… but looking back, it was the right decision.”

Franchising USA

“I just got kind of burned out on the travel,” he recalled.

He also grew tired of working for a major company and its obligatory bureaucracy, plus working with people who didn’t share the same values as him.

That all changed with the FranNet presentation where he was introduced to Renew Crew representatives. From the time he attended the FranNet presentation until he bought his business was about a year and he put a lot of thought into that decision.

“Going from a nice, healthy, fat paycheck to starting from scratch again is not an easy decision,” he stated. “It’s not an easy decision, not a comfortable decision, but looking back, it was the right decision.”

Fortunately for Miller, his engineering background all but forced him to take everything into consideration. He didn’t just perform his due diligence, he performed well beyond due diligence by running all the numbers he could think of to figure. In addition to that, he also took it upon himself to tour the territories that Renew Crew suggested for him to discover for himself which one was the best.

On his own dime and his own time, Miler toured Austin; Raleigh; Charlotte; Brentwood, TN; Knoxville, TN; Nashville, Atlanta and other cities to ascertain if he could make a Renew Crew franchise fly in those places.

“Company representatives take periodic trips to see how things are going so they can help franchisees to get better. They’ll make suggestions and recommendations.”

After analyzing all the data, Raleigh seemed like the best option and Miller moved from Phoenix to start his business.

Training Miller explained that Renew Crew, which is part of the Outdoor Living Brands family, brings new franchisees to the headquarters in Springfield, MO for a week of training. The Renew Crew team took him out to a franchise location to learn the proper techniques of cleaning and staining a deck. Plus, he also learned accounting practices, IT and everything else he needed to know about running a business.

And while he was doing that, the company outfitted an entire van with wrapped advertising and everything he would need to launch, including an inventory and supplies package. Miler said the fact that Renew Crew has its own branded products attracted him to the company.

Right after he received his new van, he drove from Springfield to Raleigh and jumped into the business, just himself at first.

“I might be doing a deck in the morning and then doing an estimate in the afternoon when I started,” he recalled.

Eventually, he hired another guy and then it grew from there. Now he has 16 employees including one who handles estimates. Miller himself is still involved a bit in the day-to-day operation, but he wants to completely remove himself from that and concentrate on relationship building. Miller said he wants to get involved with properties that have multiple decks rather than just homes that have a single deck so he wants to start building relationships with the various property managers of housing complexes around the city.

Helping him out with this is Renew Crew’s dedicated marketing department that is always available for franchisees when they need it. Company representatives take periodic trips to see how things are going so they can help franchisees to get better. They’ll make suggestions and recommendations, Miller said, and if they like something he’s doing, they’ll suggest it to other franchisees.

And Miller must be doing something right. Through a lot of hard work, he experienced in the vicinity of 400% growth between the first and second year and last yearRenew Crew of the Piedmont Triangle grew 55%. Chris’s continued growth has propelled him into the top tier of the Renew Crew franchise system..

Like Chris Miller, the Renew Crew system continues to grow each year with year over year sales growth of 16% reported in 2014.

For Miller, an accident may have gotten him into franchising, but clearly it’s no accident that he’s succeeded.

Chris was awarded the Presidents Award for Excellence at the Annual Meeting in 2014 and 2015 as well as 1st Place Excellence in Sales award.at the 2015 Annual Meeting in Orlando FL. www.outdoorlivingbrands.com/

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ex per t advice

Rick Coffey, Founder & Owner, Barkefellers

The Biggest Benefit Of Being a Franchisee?

Avoiding Mistakes When you think of high-risk ventures, images of skydiving or Wall Street trading floors may come to mind, but starting a new business probably does not.

However, one-third of new business ventures close within two years, and half within five years.

There are a number of factors that contribute to this steep rate of failure. Entrepreneurs

may have passion and expertise, but lack the economic or marketing know-how to gauge

Franchising USA

whether there is demand for their business.

Or they may hew so closely to their initial vision that they do not listen as closely as they should to their customers. Sometimes it just boils down to poor budgeting and accounting. One of the biggest benefits of being a franchisee is avoiding all of the mistakes that the original entrepreneur, and independent entrepreneurs everywhere, commonly make.

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ex per t advice

Rick Coffey, Founder & Owner, Barkefellers

“One of the biggest benefits of being a franchisee is avoiding all of the mistakes that the original entrepreneur, and independent entrepreneurs everywhere, commonly make.”

To start, running a franchise enables you to inherit a business that has already proved market demand. Many independent entrepreneurs just can’t get over the “product-market fit” hurdle. They may open up a boutique clothing store only to find that their potential customers prefer to shop online, or open a pan-Asian restaurant whose concept falls flat with the community. With a franchise, consumers have already demonstrated their interest and approval in whatever the product or service is. The original entrepreneur already took the time to create and refine a formula that works.

In addition to the idea itself, franchisees also inherit infrastructure. The company’s founders spent the time and money to establish well-functioning systems in the early days. For example, when I started Barkefellers, I spent a lot of money hiring consultants to put systems in place and learn a number of operational tasks. As a result, all my franchisees don’t have to go through that arduous and expensive process, they simply go through training.

This principle extends beyond operations.

Across the board, franchisees are able to learn from someone who has already faced challenges and walked away with the lessons learned, instead of having to face all the challenges themselves. They won’t stumble by buying the wrong equipment or failing to comply with regulations or implementing a flawed onboarding process.

The biggest challenge that I faced building Barkefellers has always been exposure and getting customers in the door. However, now that the company has built a strong brand and reputation, and now that we have three prime locations, the barriers are

Franchising USA

not so high. This makes life easier for both the franchisee, and the franchisor.

On the franchisor end, there are many benefits as well. The opportunity to see a business you built grow and extend beyond your immediate reach is unique and thrilling. The business becomes bigger than you and the potential seems endless.

Of course along with this growth comes financial success and the satisfaction of seeing your imprint made on the world. A franchise network also enables you to offer a better experience for your customers.

Or in the case of Barkefellers, for pets and their owners, not only can they access more locations, but the locations themselves are well-resourced, wellstaffed, and have a weight of experience behind them to ensure all pets are well taken care of.

These benefits all put the franchisor, as a successful local business owner, with many chances to give back to the community. Each year, Barkefellers hosts an annual holiday donation drive for local Indianapolis rescue groups and shelters.

Additionally, we sponsor the Indy Mutt Strut, which is the Humane Society of Indianapolis’ biggest annual fundraising event.

Ultimately, my only regret about building Barkefellers is that I did not do it sooner.

I was 60 years old when I entered the business, following 35 years of experience with an industrial cleaning company I built with my father. Every business, and even every franchise, is unique; and every entrepreneur, whether they are the first or the hundredth franchise owner, has an opportunity to leave their mark. The main difference is franchisees get to skip over the difficult, stressful, uncertain early

Rick Coffey

days, avoid critical mistakes, and cut right to the good stuff -- running a successful business.

Rick Coffey, Founder and Owner of Barkefellers, is a successful entrepreneur with over 35 years of demonstrated achievement in Sales, Sales Management and Business Development. Prior to founding Barkefellers, Rick was a teacher/coach at New Harmony High School. Rick later served as Vice President/Owner of Action Equipment Sales, Inc. - a commercial cleaning equipment sales organization which he co-founded with his father in 1975 and operated along with his brothers until starting Barkefellers in 2009. Rick is a graduate of University of Evansville and a proud member of their 1971 National Championship Men’s Basketball Team and was elected to University of Evansville Hall of Fame. He is the father of 4 children, Amanda, Kyle, Jordan, and Krista. Jordan and Krista serve as Vice Presidents at all Barkefellers locations. Rick is married to Christi Coffey, who serves as the interior decorator for Barkefellers Corporate stores and is a Multi-Million Dollar Producer for the Tucker Real Estate company. www.barkefellers.com

erface Financial Group

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The interface financial group

777 7 77

GREAT REASONS

The Interface Financial Group

An ‘in-demand’ Financial Service Low Capital Start-up

40+ year-old Organization

We work with you on every transaction

GREAT REASONS

Home-based

You set the timetable (think Bankers’ hours) No cold calling/telemarketing/advertising

An ‘in-demand’ Financial Service

Training GREAT REASONS

Support

Support

Support

7 GREAT REASONS

Low Capital Start-up 40+ year-old Organization

R.O.I.

Support

We work with you on every transaction Home-based You set the timetable (think Bankers’ hours) No cold calling/telemarketing/advertising

Training Support 1-800-387-0860, ext. 2Support ifg@interfacefinancial.com www.interfacefinancial.com 7 GREAT REASONS Support

Support

Training

Support 1-800-387-0860, ext 2

R.O.I.ifg@interfACEFINANCIAL.COM Support WWW.INTERFACEFINANCIAL.COM Franchising USA

focus

C overall

Coverall CEO Talks about

Trends in Service Franchising

Rick has seen his fair share of trends after 3 years with Coverall and decades at other service franchise companies. We interviewed Rick recently at the company’s headquarters in Deerfield Beach, FL. For more details of this interview, visit www. coverall.com.

One of the biggest trends in franchising is the type of support franchise owners expect from franchisors.

Today’s franchisees are coming in with more confidence than in the past, and they’re looking for more than just to run a business.

Rick, congratulations to Coverall on its 30th year in business.

You’ve said that franchisees today are looking for different types of support than in the past. What’s changed?

That’s according to Rick Ascolese, CEO of Coverall North America, Inc. a leading franchisor of commercial cleaning businesses. “Our owners are in the people business as well as the commercial cleaning business, so it’s all about relationships and trust,” said Rick. “Franchise relationships need to be collaborative.”

Owners today have professional aspirations—they want to grow the businesses they own—and they want to develop professional relationships to

Franchising USA

do that. But, they also want personal relationships. This is their day-to-day business, and they get a greater sense of fulfillment when they are able to develop strong personal relationships and a sense that they are part of something bigger – a community of independent business owners operating under the Coverall brand. And sure, it’s Coverall’s brand and processes, but in each case it’s the franchise owner’s business, and their goals and their lives that are important.

How has Coverall adapted to their changing business needs?

As the franchisor we have to be there in their local market, supporting them and being present to respond to their business needs. Local support is important. You can’t build personal relationships from a distance. We have Coverall Support Centers in every market that exist for one reason: to support the owners of local Coverall branded franchised businesses— the franchisees. That’s something we’re dedicated to do for our franchisees. Local training, customer support, business and technical consultants, and sales reps who are constantly bringing on new customers that are offered to franchisees. It’s a local community made up of franchise owners and the Coverall people who support them.

Did you say Coverall sales reps find new customers for franchisees?

Yes. Not every business owner is comfortable selling their own accounts, so if they want, we can help them. That’s a big advantage to our owners. Across the country we have more than 200 salespeople to help drive and support customer sales – customers that can then be offered to our franchisees.

What are some traits you see in your top franchisees?

People become Coverall Franchised Business Owners because they want a business they can be proud of, and provide a much-needed service that impacts their customers in a positive way, every day.

They start from all different walks of

2014 Coverall Franchised Business Owners of the Year, Adam Schoenfeld and Sebastian Pica (pictured in middle), accept the 2014 IFA Franchisee of the Year award in Washington D.C.

“Today’s franchisees are coming in with more confidence than in the past, and they’re looking for more than just to run a business.” life. Some are making a change in life or transitioning from the military or another industry. Some are just starting out in their first career. Some are hard-charging entrepreneurs looking to build a large business with lots of employees. They have differing levels of education, and different goals for their businesses. But what they all have in common is a desire to take control of their lives and their futures, and they want to make a difference in the world, all through the operation of their own business.

Tell me about your Franchised Businesses of the Year.

Each year we honor the top Franchised Business from across the entire Coverall System in 3 categories: Small, Medium and Large Business. I encourage you to read about them on our website. The owners of these Franchised Businesses are entrepreneurs who have taken the Coverall brand and processes and built a business that proudly and professionally serves its community and customers. They are role models for the entire System. And, they are real people with real life stories. I’m constantly inspired by them. They are following their dreams.

What’s unique about the Coverall franchised business opportunity?

It comes down to this – you bring the drive, and we can help you with the rest.

You can find your own customers, or we can help. You can arrange your own financing, or we can help with that, too.

Coverall will handle billing and collecting payments from your customers – that’s just one of the many business support services the Coverall System offers. We’ll train you, support you locally and nationally, and do everything possible to help you reach your business goals. www.coverall.com

Rick Ascolese, CEO of Coverall North America, Inc.

Franchising USA

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ex per t advice

Jeff Grandfield & Dale Willerton, The Lease Coach

What Franchise Tenants N

Evaluating Various As we explain in our new book, Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies, not all buildings or properties are created equally.

The more you can think like your customer, the more likely you are to choose the right location for your business.

Although the fundamentals of negotiating leases remain the same, each property has unique aspects you must factor in.

Retail strip plazas. A retail strip plaza may exist with or without anchor tenants.

Anchor tenants are large, well-known, heavily-trafficked businesses (such as many franchises). Unanchored strip plazas are those consisting of small, mom-andpop types stores. Sometimes, strip plazas are clustered together. Neighborhood plazas typically have a well-rounded mix of tenants, but it’s not uncommon to see just four or five tenants in a small strip plaza. Larger landlords typically own the larger plazas, with or without local management.

“Your physical location within the airport mall or food court is just as important there as in any other property.�

Franchising USA

Need to Know About

s Building Types Typical unit sizes in strip plazas are around 1,200 square feet, depending on the property depth, Franchise retail tenants in a strip plaza want at least 18 to 20 feet of frontage (width). If the property is 60 feet deep, then a unit with 20 feet of frontage would measure 1,200 square feet.

Enclosed shopping malls. There are several different kinds of shopping malls.

Neighborhood shopping malls may have 100 or more tenants and a couple of major anchors, including a grocery store. A regional shopping center may have 200 or more stores with four or more anchor department stores, plus a movie theatre.

There are a few super regional malls across North America that stand out from the rest of the pack – Mall of America (in Minnesota) and West Edmonton Mall (in Alberta) are a couple of good examples.

Most of the tenants in a shopping mall are national and regional chains and franchisees. Independent tenants are much less common because the landlord wants to lease space to high-volume tenants who will not only pay the base rent, but also a percentage rent on top of that. Due to the additional amenities and maintenance that come with an enclosed shopping mall, the Operating Costs of such malls are typically higher that retail strip plazas.

Shopping center franchise tenants are required to report their monthly sales to the landlord. The landlord can then calculate the average annual sales for any specific category. Franchise tenants should

“Due to the additional amenities and maintenance that come with an enclosed shopping mall, the Operating Costs of such malls are typically higher that retail strip plazas.” note that with more popular malls and higher than average sales can both drive up commercial rental rates charged.

Stand-alone buildings and pad sites. A stand-alone building can be situated on a single parcel of real estate or located on a multi-tenant piece of land. Leasing opportunities exist for stand-alone buildings on these pad sites where the landlord has designate certain pad areas for stand-alone tenants. Many quick service franchise restaurants (or QSRs) and even fine dining restaurants are built on pad sites. They may be leasing the land or pad site and/or the building itself.

Airport space. With our busy speaking schedules, we are on the road a lot and we are very accustomed to spending money at airport malls and restaurants. Franchise and specialty tenants, especially those in the food service or restaurant industry, are often interested in space for lease at airports. Mind you, airports can be an extremely difficult opportunity to crack for a franchise tenant – especially in larger airports. As a word of warning, however, just because an airport appears to have a captive audience of shoppers or diners

doesn’t mean these locations are licensed to print money. Your physical location within the airport mall or food court is just as important there as in any other property.

We remember one franchise tenant telling us that his first quick service restaurant (QSR) failed in his airport location. So be cautious in locations where it’s difficult to control your destiny; no amount of advertising will make anyone drive to the airport to shop or dine unless they are flying somewhere.

For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Do’s & Don’ts for Franchise Tenants, please e-mail your request to DaleWillerton@ TheLeaseCoach.com.

Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield The Lease Coach are Commercial Lease Consultants who work exclusively for tenants. Dale and Jeff are professional speakers and co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (Wiley, 2013). Got a leasing question? Need help with your new lease or renewal? Call 1-800-738-9202, e-mail DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com or visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com.

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7-Eleven Franchising with the world’s #1 convenience store is easier than you think.

It also might be the smartest business move you’ve ever made.

It’s turnkey – we provide the store, land and equipment.

Start-up is fast (3-6 months). You get extensive training and support from 7-Eleven pros.

As a 7-Eleven Franchisee, you’ll be partnering with a brand known and loved around the world. We’re consistently ranked as a top-five franchisor with more than 54,200 stores worldwide.

Our field consultants and operations teams offer a wealth of support and information. Leveraged vendor relationships mean national buying power.

World-famous brand. World-class opportunity.

Take a second and learn why franchising with 7-Eleven could be the career changer you’ve

9Round 9Round is a 30 minute circuit training workout that incorporates boxing, kickboxing, dumb bells, kettle bells, jump ropes, and a whole lot more.

Phone: 1-800-782-0711 Fax: 972-828-5017 Website: Franchise.7-Eleven.com Email: Franchise.Inquiries@7-11.com

chance of getting bored. The best part is there is a trainer included each and every time to motivate and encourage. With over 200 locations open in 38 states and five countries, 9Round will be coming to your community soon.

This program solves the four problems in the fitness industry. There are no scheduled class times - a client can work out at any time; each session is only 30 minutes and is full body.

Franchise opportunities are available worldwide.

The workouts change daily so there is no

Website: www.9round.com

All About Loving Care, Inc.

The clients we service range from those newborns to the elderly and with conditions ranging from Autism to Alzheimer’s.

All About Loving Care, Inc. is designed to assist people maintain an independent lifestyle.

We provide the means for all our clients to remain in the privacy of their own home.

We believe in treating each client with respect, compassion, and dignity, and strive to meet each client’s physical, emotional, and financial needs.

We offer non-medical home care for those in need of assistance with their day-to-day activities.

Phone: 864-962-4601 or email: jeff. mathews@9round.com

We are a non medical home care agency specializing in Senior care. Our services include but are not limited to 24 hour care, hospice care, personal care, respite care, meal planning and preparation.

Phone: (877) 822-0211 Fax: (310) 301-0004 Website: www.allaboutlovingcare.us

Beef Jerky Outlet

• Freedom from major contracts

With 1000% growth over the past 20 months The Beef Jerky Outlet franchise system is simple in comparison to other popular retail franchise concepts. We offer an easyto-follow business model with little or no competition in the specialized market of beef jerky sales.

• Personalized interaction with the hands-on owners of the overall outlet franchise

• Contact with one centralized, knowledgeable product team

• Continuous, ongoing support

The Beef Jerky Outlet franchisees enjoy: • High quality product with extended shelf life • Low outlet franchise operating costs • Inventory that sells quickly, offering no need for warehouse storage • A business with only a small amount of payroll and other general retail paperwork

• Higher than average sales per transaction

Big O Tires®

• Leading name-brand recognition.

BIG O Is Your BIG Opportunity.

With more than 50 years in the tire and automotive maintenance industry, Big O Tires® is proud to be a worldclass leader. As we continue to thrive in an ever-expanding market, we invite you to be a part of the exciting opportunities as a member of the Big O Tires® family.

Big O Tires® is proud to be one of the most progressive tire and automotive service franchises in the nation. When you join our family, we supply you with a powerful set of tools to help bring your business to the front of the pack: This website and any request for information or forms are not a franchise offering or an offer to sell a franchise.

Franchising USA

Been looking for. Your earning potential is as big as you want to make it. We offer a gross profit split, which means your success is as important to us as it is to you.

Many of our best retail franchise opportunities are now available and we are searching for qualified individuals to become part of our growing, dynamic jerky franchise team.

Please visit www.beefjerkyoutlet.com and fill out the request for more information form.

• Experienced franchise system.

• Competitive marketing strategies.

• Dynamic and perpetuating consumer engagement • Comprehensive start-up training.

• Sales guidance from a network of retail experts.

• Multiple warehouses stocked to meet inventory demands.

• National and regional meetings/conventions.

• Access to exclusive marketing resources.

• On-site visits and strong support from Franchise Business Consultants.

Contact us today! www.bigofranchise.com

Bin There Dump That Bin There Dump That is a mini disposal container system and we’re FRANCHISING IN YOUR AREA! This is a franchise business that can be up and running quickly. We invite you to imagine yourself operating your own successful mini disposal business, providing cost effective solutions to customers who appreciate your service.

The time is right for Bin There Dump That. We are a low-tech business whose systems are recognizable and repeatable.

We offer services that are systematic. The process is easy to teach and easy to learn. In no time you will be answering customer’s requests for bins and building a strong, robust client base.

Come and get your piece of this SIMPLE TO OPERATE business that has a reasonable entry cost, offers exclusive

Cardinale Enterprises Cardinale Enterprises is a leading real estate investment and development company that has built a solid reputation in the New York and New Jersey commercial real estate marketplace.

For more than 25 years, our company has

Coverall® Founded in 1985, Coverall offers motivated entrepreneurs the right to independently own and operate commercial cleaning franchised businesses using the Coverall® brand and system.

In 2008, the company launched its Coverall HealthBased Cleaning System® Program with an emphasis on helping to improve the cleanliness, health and wellness of facilities.

This unique Program combines environmentally friendly and innovative cleaning technologies and tools, hospital-grade disinfectants, professional training programs, customer support and

Fastsigns® Now more than ever, businesses look to FASTSIGNS for innovative ways to connect with customers in a highly competitive marketplace. Our high standards for quality and customer service have made FASTSIGNS the most recognized brand in the industry, driving significantly more traffic to the web than any other sign company.

We also lead in these important areas: • #1 Ranked Sign Franchise in Entrepreneur Magazine Franchise 500 three years in a row • Franchise Business Review FBR50 Franchisee Satisfaction Award 2006-2015 • Franchise Research Institute World Class Franchise 2011-2015 ®

Filta Enviromental Kitchen Solutions The Filta Franchise is described as a mobile vacuum-based fryer management company. Serving 5,000 customers a week on average from 130 Filta Franchise Owners and hundreds of Service Technicians all over the United States.

Micro-filtration of oil and fryer management may not be a franchise you’ve considered yet. However, first consider the demand from customers. Filta’s customers save a great deal of money in oil costs, less accidents and labor in their operation. FiltaFry, a core service of the company, claims to save customers up to 50% in their oil usage.

Second, consider reports which now show food service industry sales to exceed $683 billion in the US alone.

territories, full training, marketing materials, lead programs and offers you over 100 years of experienced franchisor support!

Enjoy the benefits of non-competitive relationships with other Bin There Dump That dealer/owners across North America. Share in a pool of knowledge that will assist you in maintaining competitive market advantages.

Learn key success factors from the pioneers of the mini roll off container systems. Create an organization designed to maximize productivity while controlling costs.

Contact: John Ferracuti Phone: 905-823-8550 Email: john@BinThereDumpThat.com Website: www.BinThereDumpThat.com

established a track record of excellence by developing, marketing, managing and investing in retail properties and mixed-use developments throughout the Northeast.

Phone: 732-747-7846 or Email: Leasing@cardainaleenterprises.com You can also visit our website: www.CardinaleEnterprises.com

communication, and a passion for healthy cleaning to do one thing – remove the maximum amount of dirt and germs as efficiently as possible.

Today, the Coverall® Program, implemented by independently owned and operated Franchised Businesses, is the first choice of offices, medical offices and healthcare facilities, ambulatory surgery centers, schools, daycares, retail businesses, restaurants, manufacturing plants, auto dealerships, religious centers, fitness centers and other businesses This offering is made by prospectus only. See Franchise Disclosure Document for details.

Website: www.coverall.com

• Franchise Research Institute #1 Rated Sign & Graphics Franchise 2014-2015 • CFA Franchisees’ Choice Designation 2004-2015 • FASTSIGNS is one of only a handful of franchises approved for $21 million in SBA financing for approved franchise candidates FASTSIGNS has over 400 markets approved for development in the US and Canada and is also seeking Master or Area Developer expansion in markets worldwide.

For more information: Phone: 1-214-346-5679 Email: mark.jameson@fastsigns.com Or visit our Website: www.fastsigns.com

Both points make it clear to see the unique position Filta has and how it’s directly keyed into the growth of the food service industry.

For a Filta Franchise Owner, this means an in-demand value based service, which everyone can agree is the cornerstone of any successful business. Not to mention, offering a service which prevents workplace accidents is just good for you, your business and your customers.

Want to learn more about becoming a Filta Franchise Owner?

Address: 7075 Kingspointe Pkwy #1 Orlando, FL 32819 Phone: 407-996-5550 Fax: 407-996-5551 Website: www.filta.com Email: ablake@filta.com Please send leads to franchiseleads1@filta.com Contact: Adam Blake, VP of Franchise Development

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Franchise Dynamics, LLC Franchise Dynamics is a full-service franchise sales outsourcing firm. We provide our clients with world class consulting, training, lead qualification services and full service franchise sales, building the next generation of leading franchisors around the globe.

Franchise Dynamics provides a full suite of services on an ongoing basis, allowing our clients to focus on their operations and marketing.

We provide start to finish franchise development for our clients. We recommend and manage lead generation marketing, distribution of marketing

Franchise Foundry Franchise Foundry is truly a business accelerator with specific focus on franchising.

The Foundry team has years of experience building businesses and understands the unique challenges that emerging franchisors face.

Contact: Robert Stidham Email: info@franchisedynamics.net Website: www.franchisedynamics.net

growth initiatives and form proactive interdependent relationships at all levels.

• To assist early-stage and mature franchise brands (USA & International) that have not yet achieved levels of success per stakeholder expectations with customized change management programs developed and launched within a re-incubation process.

• To ensure success of franchise start-ups through development and execution of comprehensive strategies and deployment of key business support resources.

• To focus primarily on franchise brands in various industry segments including children’s products & services, home products & services, consumer products & services, B2B professional services, commercial services, home-based businesses and unique food concepts.

• To create positive cultures, implement franchise best practices, build solid foundation for strong unit-economics, introduce effective technologies, develop & launch practical

Website: www.FranchiseFoundry.com or Email: Deb@FranchiseFoundry.com Phone: (832) 838-4822

FRANFUND

Our team of funding experts are here to work with you to create a customized capitalization solution for your specific situation, including obtain a pre-qualification so that you can conduct your franchise investigation with confidence.

Our Mission

FranFund provides a comprehensive set of funding solutions for your new or expanding business including business loans, securities backed financing and our proven capitalization solution, the FranPlan™.

The FranPlan™ allows you to use an existing retirement account to fund your new business debt, tax and penalty free.

GameTruck Founded in 2006, GameTruck is the first and most recognized mobile gaming and entertainment franchise in the United States. GameTruck today has 70+ franchise locations throughout United States, servicing 35 states. Taking advantage of the massive video game industry, GameTruck brings a one of a kind experience right to

Phone: 817-730-4500 Fax: 817-546-1291 Website: www.franfund.com Email: info@franfund.com Contact: taseiber@franfund.com

service to customers and franchise owners alike.

During that time GameTruck has been recognized in Entrepreneur.com’s Franchise 500 list and also their top home based and new franchise lists.

GameTruck’s mission is to Deliver Excitement to its customers and franchisees.

Reach out today to learn more about franchising with GameTruck!

Contact: Ryan, Sr. Franchise Development Manager

customers’ doorsteps. Due to this demand, GameTruck has experience 6 consecutive years of growth and continues to offer best in class

Phone: 480-303-7212 Email: ryan@gametruck.com Website: gametruckfranchising.com

honkamp krueger

Our depth and level of franchising expertise along with our track record for providing independent and objective franchise advisory/consulting services clearly differentiates HK from all other franchise advisors across the country.

Honkamp Krueger & Co., P.C. is a Top 100 CPA and business consulting firm and the eight-fastestgrowing CPA firm in the U.S. (Accounting Today, 2015) Specializing in franchise services, HK offers 40-plus forward-thinking, innovative solutions to franchise organizations in all 50 states.

In addition to our tax, accounting and consulting services, HK offers total hire-to-retire solutions through our human capital management affiliate, HKP. Through our HK Financial Services affiliate, HK offers world-class wealth management solutions.

Franchising USA

materials, disclosure documents and manage all leads through the franchise sales process. The Franchise Dynamics team on each project looks, feels and operates like a member of the franchisors’ internal organization, working with marketing, operations and executives and staff to coordinate activities. Our fulfillment model is shared risk; unlike other competitor companies, we never take a portion of either royalty or equity from our client companies.

When you partner with HK for your franchising needs, you will always have easy access to one of our owners who will walk in your shoes with you and who has a unique perspective on being an entrepreneur and business grower.

Phone: 888.556.0123 www.honkamp.com

International Franchise Professionals Group

IFPG to power their business. All of these individuals understand the value of being associated with IFPG.

The International Franchise Professionals Group (also known as IFPG) is a membership based organization that has over 700 members. Our members consist of Franchisors, Franchisor Brokers, Lenders, and other Franchise Professionals that help potential candidates in the process of buying a franchise.

The IFPG is a strictly membership based organization that does not participate in any referral fees from our franchisor members or our brokers, thereby allowing all of our members to work freely together.

Our long-term success is predicated on retaining our members and providing all the tools needed to help you sell more franchises, and close more deals.

Hundreds of nationally recognized franchise companies have chosen the IFPG and its members to represent their brand; hundreds of experienced franchise consultants and brokers have chosen the

If you’re a franchisor, franchisor broker, or another profession that serves the franchising industry call us today at (888) 977-IFPG to learn about membership opportunities.

Income Store

Generating” websites for individuals, groups and funds. They refer to the individuals, groups and funds as “Site Partners”.

Income Store takes the real estate agent model to another level. Not only does Income Store find revenue generating websites, they buy, manage, market and further monetize the website for their Site Partners.

Income Store uses the term Site Partner because they have skin in the game. Instead of getting paid an upfront fee, like a real estate agent, Income Store receives a revenue share on each site purchased.

Income Store is unique on many levels.

Phone: 877-627-1213 Website: www.Incomestore.com Email: mengstrom@incomestore.com Contact: Mike Engstrom

We are an Inc 500/5000 company as of 2013 and over 5 years of business growth.

What if a store carried income items that produced $500 / month to $20,000 / month? Although sounding a bit “Too Good To Be True”, that store exists.

You can find it at www.incomestore.com We are looking for capital investments of $50,000 to $700,000 to put a partnership together with you. We buy it with you and run the business for you. We maintain and grow your online business as you do other things. Watch our videos on IncomeStore.com and TodaysGrowthConsultant. com web sites for more information.

Similar to a real estate agent, Income Store finds “Revenue

jani-king Jani-King - The world’s largest Commercial Cleaning Franchise Opportunity. This Franchise Opportunity has over 9,000 unit franchise owners in 14 countries.

Franchise Owners are professionally trained to provide services to customers in Commercial Buildings, Healthcare Facilities, Schools & Universities, Hotels/Resorts, Casinos, Sporting Venues, etc.

For 44 years Jani-King has perfected a method

kz companies KZ Companies is a full service commercial & residential real estate development and investment company.

Our Franchise Services Division specializes in directly integrating with franchise operators to lead in all aspects of new store development and new store roll out programs.

We provide an unparalleled access to capital and manage our client’s development process from start to finish. Our in-house resources and well capitalized company provide turn-key capabilities that deliver stores quickly and economically.

Liberty tax service Founded in 1997 by CEO John T. Hewitt, Liberty Tax Service is the fastest-growing tax preparation franchise in the industry and has prepared almost 18 million income tax returns in more than 4,400 offices and online.

Liberty balances strong growth, best business practices, social responsibility, and a fulfilling life experience for our franchisees. We’re committed to creating a business system and environment that will be held up as the model for all other tax preparation franchises to emulate.

of operation in the commercial cleaning industry.

Known as “The Jani-King System”, new franchise owners are trained using the most up to date technologies, procedures, tools, and equipment.

They are able to grow their business and succeed with the expertise and support of a local regional office, in addition to numerous Jani-King International resources.

For more information: Phone: 972-991-0900 / 1-800-JANIKING or Email: csturdivant@janiking.com Website: www.janiking.com

Since the inception of our company in 1994, we have successfully built over 200+ projects for national and regional retailers across the country and developed an extensive foundation of relationships with tenants, homeowners, landlords and municipalities. Through our relationships we pride ourselves on a proven track record of delivering all our projects on time and on budget. Our long history of successful projects can be attributed to a grounded belief that our success depends on our clients’ and partners’ success.

For more information: Phone: (949) 476-2700, Email: info@kzcompanies.com Or go to Website: www.kzcompanies.com

Liberty Tax is a company to watch, not just in tax preparation franchise terms, but in the business world as a whole. Our corporate team, Area Developers, and franchisees are accessible and down-to-earth. We provide a supportive network and a culture that is progressive and fun.

You can join one of the top franchise opportunities in the world. Just fill out our request franchise information form to find out more about Liberty Tax. www.libertytaxfranchise.com/request-franchiseinformation.html

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Little Caesars

continue to receive support, expert analysis and consultation from corporate as their business grows.

Little Caesars offers strong franchisee candidates opportunities in select locations across the country. As America’s fastest growing pizza chain, Little Caesars provides candidates an opportunity for independence with a proven system, a simple operating model and strong national brand recognition.

Little Caesars’ requires candidates desiring to open one store to have a net worth of $150,000 with a minimum of $50,000 in liquid, unencumbered assets (such as cash).

Franchisees must also be able to obtain financing to cover the total costs of opening a franchised location.

Franchisees benefit from a comprehensive training program that focuses on all aspects of the business, including training, architectural and construction services to help with design, preferred lenders to assist with financing, the ongoing research and development of new products, and effective marketing programs. Franchisees

Phone: 800-553-5776 Email: USdevelopment@LCEcorp.com Website: www.LittleCaesars.com

LivePOS

franchisors with the ability to run a successful and very profitable business, with ZERO upfront cost.

Technology is changing the way we shop. Social Media, targeted advertising and repeat customers can make the difference between a successful business and failure. If you are still using outdated, dinosaur like point of sale system, you are leaving money on the table.

Real-Time sales and inventory reports, employee time and attendance, commissions, payroll, promotions and over 1,000 other features makes LivePOS the market leader in this space. The LivePOS FMS Dashboard provides direct access to store sales, royalty remittance, franchise wide SKU control and many other tools to ensure consistency throughout the brand, regardless of state or location

Enters LivePOS, a Cloud Point of Sale Solution designing exclusively for multi-location, chains and franchises owners. With over 20,000 customers worldwide, LivePOS provides both franchisees and

LoyaltyGenerator LoyaltyGenerator provides a fully-managed, automated, cloud-based cross-media marketing platform that incorporates prescriptive analytics to empower franchises of all sizes to simply, predictably and profitably generate intense customer loyalty.

With LoyaltyGenerator, franchisors can systematically define and drive the loyalty story at any level of their value chain, controlling brand

Midas Midas, a recognized brand throughout the world and highly renowned name in complete car care, is proud to be one of North America’s original franchise opportunities – and one of its best.

With Midas, you experience the best of both worlds - the support of an experienced franchise organization and the satisfaction of operating your very own auto service enterprise. As a Midas franchisee, you become a trusted name the day you open your doors for business. Building consumer trust is at the heart of our brand. We work every day to earn that trust by providing expertise, responsiveness, and the best value to every customer every time.

Benefit from nearly 60 years of “The Midas Touch”

Minuteman press Serving the business community for over 40 years, Minuteman Press’ customer service driven business model provides digital print, design and promotional services to businesses. Today we are much more than just print, we can provide anything you can put a name, image or logo on!

Minuteman Press is a number one rated

Franchising USA

For the sixth year in a row, Little Caesars was named “Best Value in America”* of all quick-serve restaurant chains.

Website: www.livepos.com Email: info@livepos.com

continuity and consistency from the top-down, while selectively enabling franchisee autonomy from the bottom-up.

Innovators like Annex Brands trust LoyaltyGenerator to automatically deliver the right message to the right customer on the right channel, at the right time. Just set it and forget it.

We’ll take care of the rest.

For more information about increasing your customer loyalty, please visit: www.loygen.com.

Midas has built a stellar reputation in the automotive service and repair industry nearly six decades. We want to help you succeed. Before you open a location and as you continue to operate your shop, Midas will help you with the following: • Business management system for your shop • New franchisee orientation • Ongoing training and training resources • Operational support.

• Development support • Optimizing and marketing your business: Join Midas today by calling 1-800-365-0007 or visiting www.midasfranchise.com!

This website and any request for information or forms are not a franchise offering or an offer to sell a franchise.

business service franchise that offers world class training and unparalleled ongoing local support. Prior experience is not necessary to own and operate a successful Minuteman Press franchise.

For more information Contact: Al Sanders Phone: 800-645-3006 Email: asanders@mpihq.com Website: www.minutemanpressfranchise.com

Money Mailer Money Mailer Franchisees are marketing consultants, showing neighborhood business owners how to target their best prospects with compelling offers delivered in the mail, on the Internet, to mobile devices and on social media.

This integrated marketing solution is provided to each business for literally pennies per household. We are the only national franchise laser-focused on local businesses, one of the most under-served market segments in the Country. Local business owners do not have the time or internal resources to develop this marketing expertise on their own so franchisees become an internal ad agency resource creating monthly repeat business potential in each protected territory.

murphy business Murphy Business Northwest gives you the best of two worlds: our office is a small, local business closely connected to the community here in Puget Sound, specializing in personal service to our clients; yet, we are affiliated with one of the largest business brokers with offices throughout North America. Our experienced professionals can offer an unsurpassed range of brokerage services: • When Selling a Business or Buying a business, • Business Valuation Services • Commercial Real Estate Brokers

Naturalawn of america NaturaLawn of America offers organic-based lawn care services to customers across the United States seeking safer alternatives to traditional chemical lawn care.

They pioneered the breakthrough into environmentally responsible lawn care back in 1987 (before “going green” was the norm). While chemicalbased companies continued to randomly spray unnecessary pesticides, NaturaLawn of America developed an Integrated Pest Management System (IPM), which was unprecedented in lawn care.

Nutrition Zone Nutrition Zone is in the business of changing lives.

That includes the Franchisees who join us on this incredible and noble journey. At Nutrition Zone, we do not only take great pride in creating stronger, smarter and healthier clients through the best stores and business model in the industry, we take great pride in identifying and developing successful, determined entrepreneurs providing them the tools and opportunities to reach their financial goals along the way.

Nutrition Zone was founded to serve, educate and empower the community by improving the quality of our

One Stop Tax One Stop Tax is a professional tax preparation services provider offering personal and business income tax returns catered to the low and middle income brackets.

As a franchisor we offer state-of the art tools that help make the entire business run efficiently and intelligently because of our proven business system.

Money Mailer’s revolutionary “GPS” (Goals, Process & System) franchise package provides an exclusive 2 -year performance based funding platform that gives new owners a clear and direct path to success as they open and build their business. It also includes one week of classroom training, 4 weeks of “Boot Camp” at Money Mailer’s company store, 2 years of $0 royalty and a personal Franchise Performance Coach to assist in a successful launch in your own territory.

Money Mailer’s training and ongoing support is unrivaled in franchising.

Phone: 714.889.4698 Website: www.franchise.moneymailer.com Email: franchiseleads@moneymailer.com

• Best Franchise Opportunities for buyer • Equipment Appraisals Our professional business brokers all have past experience as business owners and managers. We apply that business sense to help match buyers to an appropriate business.

Visit the website www.yourfranchiseadvisor.com/home/our-franchiseadvisors/curt-maier/ For more information contact Curt Maier Office 425 679 6627 or Cell 425 505 3649 you and also email curt.maier@murphybusiness.com

By creating natural lawn care programs specific to the needs of each individual lawn and through its use of organic-based lawn care products, NaturaLawn of America continues to give customers nationwide, the healthier, greener lawns they desire while protecting people, pets and the environment.

Headquartered in Frederick, Maryland, NaturaLawn of America provides business opportunities to individuals wishing to own their own franchise.

For more information Phone: (800) 989-5444, Email: info@naturalawnfranchise.com Or go to Website: http://naturalawnfranchise.com/

clients’ lives.

From inception, Nutrition Zone’s customer service and sincerity has been at the forefront of our growth. This is realized through highly educated team members who share our goal of making a positive, meaningful impact in our communities. Nutrition Zone provides premium service and premium products at extremely competitive prices.

SERVICE - QUALITY -COMPETITIVENESS - EXCELLENCE NUTRITION ZONE – A FORCE BEHIND A BETTER YOU!!

www.nutritionzonefranchise.com

Our services are sought year after year despite economic condition and regardless of demographics and income levels.

Contact: Charles Kinuthia Phone: 855.408.2937 or Email: franchise@onestoptax.com You can also check out our website: www.onestoptax.com

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Our Town America For over 40 years, Our Town America has been providing new movers with traditional hospitality by mailing warm housewarming gifts from local businesses in a premium welcome package.

It is Our Town America’s mission to welcome new movers into their communities, to help local businesses gain new loyal and long-term customers, and to provide franchisees with an excellent business opportunity.

Thousands of satisfied business owners throughout the United States attest to the success and effectiveness of the Our Town America program

Oxi Fresh Carpet Cleaning

Since beginning to franchise in 2005, Our Town America has been consistently ranked a Franchise Business Review Top 50 Franchise making them the only Advertising brand to land a spot in the 10-year Hall of Fame and the sole company to be crowed Franchise Business Review’s Top Company.

Website: http://www.ourtownamerica.com Email: franchising@ourtownamerica.com

fastest dry times possible: one hour on average.

The home-based concept’s innovative carpet cleaning system uses environmentally friendly cleaning solutions, leaves no sticky residue and is safe for children and pets.

Recognized as one of “America’s Best Franchises,” according to Forbes magazine, Oxi Fresh has more than 280 carpet cleaning locations in 45 states and Canada, with many more in development. Company plans call for awarding 50-75 additional franchise opportunities to qualified candidates over the next 12-18 months.

In addition, Oxi Fresh’s innovative cleaning method only requires two gallons of water per home – as opposed to the 40-50 gallons that many other carpet cleaners use – and consequently offers one of the

Contact: Kris Antolak Phone: (720) 963-6193 Email: kris@oxifresh.com Website: www.oxifresh.com

Persona Wood Fired Pizzeria

You can choose from one of our chef inspired specialty pizzas or create your own with over 30 toppings to choose from. Our expert pizza makers will create your pizza just the way you like it. Your imagination and creativity is the only limit!

Founded in 2006, Oxi Fresh Carpet Cleaning has established itself as one of the nation’s fastestgrowing carpet cleaning companies.

Persona Wood Fired Pizzeria is the only “Create Your Own” concept of its kind that was developed by two Chefs— one classically trained and the other an Italian Pizzaiolo and World Pizza Champion.

Persona’s exceptional quality starts with our fresh and extremely high quality ingredients. We craft an authentic Neapolitan pizza from imported “00” flour imported from Naples, Italy. The vine ripe plum tomatoes grown for our tomato sauce are sourced from the San Joaquin Valley. Our hand-made meatballs, sausage and sauces have all won gold medal acclaim worldwide, and we think your taste buds will agree.

pillar to post Pillar To Post is North America’s leading home inspection franchise.

We have been named a Top 50 Franchise for franchisee satisfaction in 2013, 2014 and 2015 by Franchise Business Review. #1 Home Inspection franchise for 2013, 2014 and

pinot’s palette Pinot’s Palette is a pioneer of the paint and sip experience – a revolutionary way to enjoy art and wine, meet new people and bond with friends. #1 paint and sip for franchisee satisfaction – Pinot’s Palette is a unique, art-inspired entertainment concept catering to adults, corporations and kids.

By combining art and wine into a single concept, Pinot’s Palette now offers an inclusive, social activity for guests to enjoy with friends, family or work team members.

Franchising USA

while dozens of locally owned franchises validate the Our Town America concept as a viable business opportunity. Franchisees are neighborhood marketing consultants, showing local business owners how to target their best prospects with enticing offers via direct mail.

Once your pizza assembly is complete, we bake it in one of our imported Italian Marra Forni wood fired ovens. At 800 degrees, 90 seconds is all it takes to produce a pizza that is crispy and chewy in the Neapolitan tradition.

Craving something from the garden? Our freshly tossed salads are a great complement to your wood fired pizza. Our award- winning dressings are all made from scratch. Complete your experience with our rich gelato handmade locally by an Austrian-trained gelato chef.

For more information visit www.personapizzeria.com or Email: info@personapizzeria.com

2015 by Entrepreneur Magazine, as well as a Top Low Cost Franchise, Top Home Based Franchise and among the Best of the Best listings with Entrepreneur magazine in 2013 and 2014.

Contact: Brian Wieters Phone: 1-877-9633129 or Email: franchise@pillartopost.com Website: www.pillartopostfranchise.com

Pinot’s Palette’s entertaining environment, expert guidance from trained local artists and exceptional customer experience creates strong word of mouth, community recognition and a loyal customer base.

Pinot’s Palette looks for franchisee partners who love to entertain and values that fit comfortably within the Team Pinot culture. Not art experience required!

Franchising since 2010 with more than 130 locations in 33 states, Pinot’s Palette is an established, awardwinning concept leading the paint and sip industry.

Website: www.PinotsPalette.com/Franchise or Email: Franchise@pinotspalette.com

PROSHRED Security PROSHRED® pioneered the mobile paper shredding and recycling industry in the mid 1980’s in Canada and is recognized as a North American leader.

PROSHRED® shreds and recycles confidential documents and proprietary materials for “fortune 500 companies”, “large”, “small and medium sized enterprises” as well as “home based business” and “residential consumers” in all industry sectors. PROSHRED® combines

Redrhino REDRHINO isn’t just another flooring company – we are a premium epoxy coating supplier and installer committed to doing the industry’s best work on every project.

That one philosophy sets us apart from our competitors, and has helped us grow into a nationwide leader in epoxy flooring since 2005.

There are a lot of businesses and independent contractors offering epoxy coating for concrete floors, but when precision, quality, and real-world

unparalleled customer service with absolute security and is the only company to receive both ISO 9001-2008 and NAID AAA certification.

PROSHRED®’s explosive growth is a result of increasing concerns with regard to “identity theft” and the “environment”. PROSHRED® is a GREEN business opportunity.

Contact: Shelley Gable Phone: 416-490-8600 (116) Email: shelley.gable@proshred.com Website: www.proshred.com

guarantees matter, clients turn to us. That’s because we have a reputation for being customer-service centered, and being able to manage projects and timelines that other epoxy flooring companies can’t.

When you need flooring that’s beautiful and durable, applied correctly the first time on your schedule, REDRHINO should be your first call.

For more information contact Michael D. Kenealy | CEO 1 (310) 435-4153 or 1 (888) 292-6478 email: info@redrhinoflooring.com Or visit our website www.redrhinoflooring.com

Renew Crew

weak the economy is, thereby providing a recession-resistant

Renew Crew is proud to be North America’s most trusted

Every day we continue to refine our products and systems

choice for exterior surfacecleaning and protecting. We are the leading national brand with a proprietary 3-step process that

revenue stream. to maximize your expertise and optimize your chances of exceeding your goals for your business. Our corporate team

works wonders. We call it Renew Crew Clean™. You’ll call it

is committed to supporting you as you start and build your

the path to achieving your personal and business goals!

enterprise locally. From sales and operations, to marketing

Renew Crew is undoubtedly the leader in exterior surface

and accounting, you’ll have access to support staff for all

cleaning and protecting. Cleaning and protecting outdoor

aspects of your business

surfaces is an important part of home ownership and a

Contact: Shemar Pucel

segment of an estimated $476 billion home maintenance

Phone: 804-214-3021

market. Even better for our franchisees, these homeowner

Email: spucel@outdoorlivingbrands.com

maintenance obligations remain regardless of how strong or

Website: www.renewcrewfranchise.com

service brands international

franchisees to experience ease of operation and success.

One Company. Multiple Brands.

We’ve created life-changing opportunities as a privately-owned company with a distinctive culture of community service and hundreds of successful business owners nationwide.

With over 30 years of franchising experience, SBI provides the leadership, business systems and franchisee support that allow our

We are: Molly Maid, Mr. Handyman and ProTect Painters. Our mission is to help owners quickly reach their profit goals and realize their dreams.

For more information contact: Steve Lajiness, V.P. of Franchise Development for SBI Tel: 734-822-6110 or Email: steve.lajiness@servicebrands.com Website: http://franchise.servicebrands.com/

Sherpa Kids

Each member of the Sherpa Kids Franchise System has an important role to play.

Sherpa Kids will work and engage with all stakeholders to ensure continuous learning that meets children’s needs. We pride ourselves on creating a nurturing and caring environment for the care of your school-aged children. We do this through a structured and wellbalanced program in before, after school and vacation care services.

The success of every individual Franchise strengthens the Sherpa Kids brand. A growing Franchise System means greater marketing and advertising power, more brand awareness, higher market penetration, new and improved systems, and more team members to share knowledge, ideas and strategies.

Become a Sherpa Kids Country Master Franchisee and make an investment on two levels.

Your new life will be rewarding financially and personally as you help school communities and franchisees achieve their business and lifestyle goals.

Already operating in 6 countries – Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, England , Canada and Ireland.

Contact: Vicki Prout Email: vicki@sherpa-kids.com Phone: +61 8 8354 4886; Mobile: +61 4 3980 3078 Website: www.sherpa-kids.com

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smokes poutinerie Smokes Poutinerie is the Worlds Largest & Original Poutinerie; inventing and leading the quick-serve Poutine industry, offering over 30 types of Gourmet Poutine.

The exclusive Poutine menu plays a very significant role with its Signature Gravy, Fresh Hand-Cut Fries, Squeaky Cheese Curds and an unlimited combination of toppings like double-smoked bacon, flat iron steak, grilled chicken, caramelized onions, sautéed peppers and many more mouthwatering options.

The first official U.S. location recently opened in Berkeley, California where customers were lined up around the block anxiously awaiting their first bite! Next up, Smoke’s Poutinerie Las Vegas, Hollywood, New York City and numerous other states and cities.

The Smoke’s Poutinerie goal is to bring this authentic, quality Canadian dish to the rest of the World in their own original and unique way.

Phone: 905 427 4444 Website: www.smokespoutinerie.com Email: franchises@smokespoutinerie.com

SOLDIERFIT

on personal service, member connections and teamwork, members are made to feel like they belong to something bigger than themselves.

SOLDIERFIT is a military inspired fitness franchise with centers and gyms specializing in large group boot camp training, personal training and kids’ fitness programs. It offers a functional fitness gym set in a family environment for all fitness levels.

SOLDIERFIT is different from other fitness companies in that character building is the number one priority, not aesthetics. By focusing

Spark mobile video Spark manufactures promotional trucks with integrated digital video screens.

Trucks range in size from pickup-truck based models with 4’ x 6’ digital screens up to large box-style models with 8’ x 14’ video displays.

The trucks are used as mobile billboards for any business and also as ordinary delivery

Spherion Staffing Services Join the ranks of an established recruiting and staffing leader!

As a Spherion franchise owner, you will be well-positioned to create a successful future for yourself and you’ll have a stake in helping others make a better life for themselves through rewarding employment opportunities. This is the passion that drives our business every day and the financial rewards are just as exciting. One of the fastest growing industries, staffing is projected to grow six percent annually and reach $115 billion this year. Spherion owners produced more than $500 million in annual sales last year alone. It’s an ideal opportunity for an entrepreneur to step into and begin building a thriving business.

Since 1946, Spherion® has been supplying flexible, tempto-hire and direct-hire talent to companies of all sizes and

Stratus Building Solutions Founded in 2006, Stratus Building Solutions was developed to provide a superior, environmentally friendly commercial cleaning experience driven by dedicated, entrepreneurial, small business owners and regional support centers.

Now under new ownership, the company continues to grow upon idea that through commitment and a loyalty to exceptional service, your own commercial janitorial service franchise has unlimited earning potential.

For the past 9 years, Stratus Building Solutions has developed into a household name in the janitorial service industry. Offering professional training programs,

Franchising USA

There is no slowing down the Gravy Train, with Smoke’s Poutinerie expanding exponentially since its debut on the Franchise scene in 2009. Boasting a whopping 100 locations Coast to Coast in Canada and kicking it into high gear with its expansion into the U.S., Sports & Entertainment and International Markets.

The business is founded on community, patriotism, and the American dream. Since launching in 2007, SOLDIERFIT has expanded across Maryland with locations in Gaithersburg, Frederick and Columbia and will be opening a franchise location in Virginia in fall 2015.

Website: soldierfitfranchise.com

vehicles. Financing is available with payments averaging $2000 per month. Often payments can be reimbursed through franchise co-op marketing programs.

Contact: Robert Tarabella Phone: 844-SPARK-44 or Email:info@sparkmobilevideo.com Website: sparkmobilevideo.com

industries. Specializing in administrative, light industrial, contact center, non-clinical healthcare and professional placements, we offer a comprehensive range of workforce solutions to fit the unique needs of our clients. Operating through a network of 175 franchise locations, Spherion has distinguished itself as a local staffing partner providing personalized service, backed by the resources and breadth of a $2 billion workforce leader. Last year, we connected more than 170,000 job seekers to 3,000 companies nationwide, and the numbers continue to grow. We are a strong community of owners that genuinely love what we do and it has earned us a reputation of excellence in our industry.

To learn more, please contact Bill Tasillo on our Market Expansion Team at 404/964-5508 or go to www.spherion.com/franchise

multi-level business support, state-of-the-art cleaning equipment, Green Seal Certified, biodegradable, non-toxic “Stratus Green Clean” chemicals, 24-Hour emergency services, Stratus Building Solutions is second to none in the commercial janitorial service industry and the pursuance of cleaning for health.

With customizable cleaning options and competitive rates, Stratus Building Solutions provides services to a large range of clients, from schools, medical offices, shopping centers, warehouses, dealerships, religious centers, professional offices, daycares, retail stores, gyms and more.

Contact us today at www.stratusclean.com

The Interface Financial Group – IFG 50/50 The Interface Financial Group – IFG 50/50 is an affordable home-based franchise that provides short-term working capital to small and medium-sized businesses by purchasing current, quality invoices at a discount, thus accelerating the client’s cash flow and growth.

All transactions are syndicated 50/50 with the franchisee and the franchisor, and that means less working capital required to fund transaction: IFG does the bulk of the due diligence and the ‘paperwork’ for the transactions, and IFG 50/50 franchisees will concentrate their efforts on building the referral relationships – they do the ‘people work’.

Key advantages of being an IFG 50/50 franchisee include: • No staff to hire, fire, or manage

The Joint Chiropractic The Joint Chiropractic is reinventing chiropractic care by making quality alternative healthcare affordable for patients seeking pain relief and ongoing wellness.

Our membership plans and packages eliminate the need for insurance, and our no-appointment policy, convenient hours and locations make care more accessible.

The Joint performs more than two million spinal adjustments a year across 250+ clinics nationwide.

With a proven franchise model in a $12 billion dollar

TopFire Media TopFire Media is an integrated digital marketing and public relations agency, specializing in the franchise industry.

Our clients benefit from our years of experience in franchise SEO service, public relations, media relations, content writing and management, social media marketing, and web design. We work to bring all of these elements together to achieve a common goal – our clients’ success.

Veterans Business Services Veterans Business Services provides the most advantageous franchise acquisition terms for Veterans and provides innovative entrepreneurial training for qualified Veterans seeking grants under the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Program.

Veterans Business Services (“VBS”) specializes in entrepreneurial opportunities for Veterans and has an extensive reach into the Veterans community and can generate significant interest from qualified Veterans who wish to start a franchise or small business.

VBS offers multiple marketing methods that have proven effective with helping franchise organizations with their expansion plans. Utilizing custom email marketing

WELLBIZ BRANDS, INC WellBiz Brands, Inc. is headquartered in Highlands Ranch, Colo. and is one of the largest health and wellness companies in the United States. The company owns three separate franchise entities: Elements Therapeutic Massage, Inc., which franchises massage studios, providing custom therapeutic massage to meet clients’ individual needs, Fitness Together Franchise Corporation, which franchises one-on-one and semi-private personal training studios, and Fit 36, Inc., which franchises high intensity interval training studios, with workouts done as a group.

• No storefront to own, lease, or maintain • No Inventory or stock to purchase • No extensive travel because IFG franchisees do business locally • Business-to-Business, professional environment with regular business hours of operation • Flexibility to relocate for part of the year or permanently and continue doing business Our franchisees are excellent communicators, relationship builders with decision-making and problem-solving skills, and much more sales & marketing oriented. IFG has been in the ‘invoice discounting’ business since 1972, and employs its franchise network in the US, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, the UK, Ireland, Australia, Mexico and South Africa. www.interfacefinancial.com

industry, The Joint is making quality healthcare affordable, approachable and convenient for patients—while simplifying business operations for chiropractors and franchise owners.

Our plans and packages eliminate the need for insurance, and our no appointments policy and convenient locations make care more accessible.

The Joint performs more than two million spinal adjustments a year across 250+ clinics nationwide.

For more information, visit thejoint.com/franchise or Email: franchise@thejoint.com

Our integrated approach combines our public relations and franchise SEO service prowess and is designed to generate brand awareness, drive consumer engagement, and build credibility for your company.

Phone: (708) 249-1090 Fax: (708) 957-2395 Website: www.topfiremedia.com Email: info@topfiremedia.com Contact: Matthew Jonas

campaigns, news press releases, and online franchising e-magazine articles, VBS gets the message to qualified Veterans who are invested in starting a franchise.

VBS supports service disabled Veterans who are enrolled in the self-employment track within the Veterans Administration and provides outreach efforts to transitioning military through TAP and ACAP programs. As a graduate business of the Entrepreneurial Bootcamp for Veterans (“EBV”), we also assist other graduates of EBV and provide coaching support through mentoring programs. VBS is where Veterans turn to make their franchise dreams a reality.

Contact: James Mingey Phone: 202-349-0860 Email: info@veteransbusinessservices.us Website: www.veteransbusinessservices.us

Elements Therapeutic Massage, Inc. began franchising in 2006 and has approximately 210 Elements Massage™ locations. Fitness Together Franchise Corporation began franchising in 1996 and has approximately 175 Fitness Together® locations across the United States. Fit 36, Inc. began franchising in 2014 and has a single FIT36™ location in downtown Denver.

For more information Websites: wellbizbrands.com, elementsmassage.com, fitnesstogether.com, fit36fitness.com

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Starting your own franchise is

easier than you think.

Franchising with 7-ElevenŽ just might be the smartest business move you’ve ever made.

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Ready to get started?

Apply now at Franchise.7-Eleven.com or call 1.800.782.0711

Š 2015 7-Eleven Inc. All rights reserved.

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