Franchise Management For Dummies. Mazero Joyce

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СКАЧАТЬ and for others, the customer must pick up the pie. Some have pies priced for feeding a little league team, and others are gourmet offerings. There are companies like Papa Murphy’s where you can customize your pie at the store and then take it home and bake it yourself at 425 degrees. (Your family might even think you know how to cook if you hide the box from them). All these businesses are pizza franchises and may show up in some source guides under the same category. But their varying features make them significantly different types of franchise and investment opportunities.

      The investment required will also vary widely, as will the types and number of employees you will need, types of real estate you can use, equipment requirements, amount of money you can earn, the markets they have available for you to invest in, and maybe even the number of locations the franchisor will allow you to open. In some systems you may only be able to open in mature markets, and in others you may have the opportunity to build the brand in new markets, which opens up for you some interesting possibilities.

      Let’s move on to hair salons. Some franchised salon chains are geared to cutting only men’s hair while others focus on women. Some are full service and provide waxing, coloring, manicures, and perms, while others are limited service opportunities like Great Clips targeting their customers based on their low price for a haircut and how quickly you can get in and out. There are even those that specialize in haircuts for children, and concepts like Sport Clips that are based on a sports theme with TV screens tuned to sporting events. All hair salons may work on hair, but how they segment the market and approach their customers differ widely from company to company.

      “Great Clips has as its core service, haircuts, and our price for services has barely changed over 35 years,” says Steve Hockett, president of Great Clips, Inc. “Our goal has always been to provide a great experience for customers with short waits, moderate pricing, convenient locations and hours – for men, women, seniors and kids. We have never wanted to be all things to all people, which is why, for example, we have never provided coloring services. We have a simple business, with a consistent focus, and it has served Great Clips franchisees well, with over 4,100 salons open in 175 TV markets across the U.S. and Canada.”

      In a similar fashion, franchises within the fitness and gym industry range from traditional gyms to specialty fitness centers with a focus on a specific type of workout (such as Pilates, Zumba, barre, cycling, or boxing) and some are open 24 hours a day. There are concepts that offer memberships only to women and there are still others that offer ancillary services, such as nutrition consulting, massage, or tanning services.

      There is so much information about franchise opportunities available today that you can easily get overwhelmed. The vast investment differences between franchise opportunities listed under the same broad industry heading is one of the reasons why we recommend you ignore the ratings given by some of the publications. Two companies may both sell pizza, but from an investor point of view, they are in very different industries.

      

The easiest way to conduct your research is to select one great source of information that is clearly written, understandable, and available in a style you understand (sort of like this book). Put the other sources aside and do all your research using that one guide. Only after you get your list of possible industries and companies down to a reasonable few should you also explore those opportunities by name in the other listings. Working this way is much easier, and usually you will not miss much of the information that you will need at this early stage of your investigation. Using the IFA, Franchise Update, Franchise Times or Entrepreneur listings are good ways to begin.

       Paying attention to what’s hot

      So which franchises are hot?

      That is always the first question asked of us by reporters and every prospective franchisee we meet. We will give you the same answer we give to them: It depends. With all the industries that use franchising and all of the companies offering opportunities in those industries, it is hard to give a meaningful answer. What is hot this year may not be next year. And most importantly, what we may consider hot may not be something that fits what you are looking for. Becoming a franchisee and choosing the right opportunity is a very personal decision – one that you must ultimately make yourself.

      Start by looking for the trends and see who is capitalizing on them:

      ❯❯ If health and wellness is what attracts you, and fresher, locally grown, upscale, and grown-up food are what you’re looking for, then maybe one of the brands populating the fast casual segment, like Blaze Pizza, may be the right choice for you. If food is not something that excites you, then possibly a fitness concept like Kaia Fit or a nutraceutical concept is where you should look.

      ❯❯ If you think that having Mom and Dad working longer hours outside of the home has created an opportunity for helping families save time and parents better bond with and care for their children or parents, take a look at franchise systems that provide children’s education and entertainment or home healthcare like the Goddard School, School of Rock, or Bright Star.

      ❯❯ Paul McCartney wrote “When I’m 64” when he was 24, and in 2006, when he reached that magic number, he was glad to learn that today’s 64 is yesterday’s 44. Servicing the senior citizen who is living longer and healthier may be your magic ticket as demographic and sociographic trends support those industries’ growth. Fitness concepts like Blink or Orangetheory or maybe a golf business like GolfTEC may be attractive to you.

      Every year, new trends even in legacy industries unfold. Consider that quick service and fast casual restaurants are going through rapid changes to their labor models as apps replace waitstaff and robots begin to replace back-of-house staff. Similarly, hotels are lowering their operating costs by using online reservation systems, even providing guests with room keys before they arrive. Many are changing their décor and services to attract millennial travelers, like Marriott’s Moxy or Hilton’s Tru.

      Because of changes in demographics, consumer trends, technology, the economy, and geopolitical events, existing franchises will change, and exciting new opportunities will continue to emerge. Follow the trends, look through the fads, and somewhere on the other side you will find a company that has started a franchise system designed to capitalize on the opportunity interesting to you or an older brand like Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen remaking itself for the same reasons.

      

If you choose to invest in a franchise in one of the popular industries, you might consider a newer or smaller franchise system. Emerging franchisors are often more flexible with respect to development, training, and fee structures than the larger, more established ones. Alternatively, you may want to go down the less-worn path and look closely at opportunities in less-popular industries that you believe, based on your research, are just now starting to become popular.

      

Keep in mind, though, that the smaller systems, while possibly more flexible in working with you, may not offer all the benefits and services of the larger, better-established franchisors. A strong legacy system – one that can provide you with the operational support and efficient supply chain you need – can be a very attractive investment. Although you may need to invest more in marketing your location, becoming established in a new market can have some terrific benefits as well.

Adding Franchises, One at a Time

      The number of franchisors, the variety of industries represented in franchising, and the range of investments available create opportunities for the smallest single-unit mom-and-pop operator to a large multimillion-dollar investor group or established businesses that are looking to add a franchise investment to its portfolio.

       Flying solo: Single-unit franchises

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