Monday, March 14, 2011

Why someone starts a franchise

Why would a doctor leave her practice and buy a “maid service” franchise? Why would a District Manager for “Best Buy” leave his job and buy a “computer service” franchise? Why would a “stay at home” mom decide to get back into the business world and purchase a “tax preparation” franchise?

Over the past couple of years I have helped these and other people find a franchise so they could follow their dreams. We all have our reasons to get out of the “rat race” of the sometimes mundane world that we live in.

Back in 1984, I felt I was being held captive by the corporate world. The pay checks were steady, but more importantly, I was just glad to have a job. I was handcuffed and shackled to my circumstances, which included a house payment, a car payment and providing a living for my wife and 4 children on a salary of $22,000 a year. There was a major personality conflict between my supervisor and myself. I eventually came to the realization that I was not happy working for someone else, that I was an entrepreneur at heart but was being held hostage by my environment. I knew I needed to escape. When you have a wife and children that you love and who depend on you, how can you dare bolt for freedom?

Every day, thousands of men and women find themselves asking the same question. How can I risk my job security and make a break when it could put my family’s well being in jeopardy? That question can make you do a lot of soul searching.

The answer to that question can be answered in many ways. Here is how I answered it. What good am I to my family, if I am angry, unhappy and miserable to be around? How can I contribute if I have nothing to look forward to when going to work? The Bible states, “with no vision, the people will perish.” To properly take care of my family, I knew I had to have vision about how the future could improve.

For months, my supportive wife and I brainstormed, dreamed and tried to create a vision of the future. It was not easy. We tried and tested many different ideas, to no avail. In order to try one of my potential businesses, we sold our house and moved out to a farming community. Even though the business didn’t work, we still enjoyed raising our small children in that environment.

One day while getting ready to leave for a wedding in Los Angeles, my ten year old son asked me if I would bring him back a “real” Dodgers baseball hat. Of course I promised I would. Due to the lack of the “real” Dodger’s caps in any store we visited, this ended up being a promise I could not keep. As my wife and I traveled home, we continued to brainstorm business ideas. Then an idea struck--we should open up a store that sold souvenirs of every fan’s favorite team. I was a Chicago Cub’s fan, my son a Dodgers’ fan and we lived in Utah. There had to be others like us that lived away from their favorite team, but would be interested in buying a hat or t-shirt to show their support. I really believed that we had a winning idea.

To make a long story short, I opened a small store in a local mall. It became successful rather quickly. I even had customers requesting my help in opening their own store. Within six months of opening my first Pro Image store, with the help of my brother, we began franchising. Our company grew rapidly and within 18 months we had 32 Pro Image stores open. By the time we sold the franchise chain nine years later, we had over 250 stores in 46 states and six countries.


This experience taught me how important it is to have someone helping you start a business. Seeing many others try to copy our concept and fail showed me there is a lot more to keeping a business open than just having a great idea. The Small Business Association (SBA) has stated that the chances of success for a franchise company are much greater than someone starting out alone and by themselves. I have read that the majority of non-franchised businesses are closed down within 5 years after starting, whereas in franchising it has been reported after 10 years that most franchised concepts remain open. To me, it is almost a no brainer. Do you want to be open and making money, or closed, having lost your investment.

The reason doctors, bankers, accountants, corporate management and others decide to get out of the “rat race” and break away from those holding them back is to gain their freedom and be their own boss. It is a dream for most of us, to control our own destiny. Hundreds of thousands of people have found that by buying a franchise, they get help in advertising, hiring, management, inventory, start-up procedures, major product discounts among other bonuses. They therefore avoid costly mistakes most independent owners make.

What did I do after starting and then selling two franchise companies? My son, the Dodger’s fan who had just received his MBA, and I purchased three franchises from a local franchise company. If I am going to risk my money, I am not going to reinvent the wheel. I have always said that getting help from a franchisor is the smart way to go. I am just putting my money where my mouth is.

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