For certain business buyers, a franchise is a good fit. As explained in the previous post, Franchises, a business-in-a-box, franchising is a method of being in business for yourself, but not by yourself. Individual franchisees are local owners/managers who apply a prescribed system of business operation to produce and sell specific products/services throughout a market territory.
Purchasing a Franchise
Franchising is a fast-growing area. There are franchises in almost every industry from recruitment to landscaping to building maintenance to consulting services to metal supply to education and the list goes on.
The important issue is –what skills are required to be successful in a franchise and what does a typical day as an owner of this franchise look like.
- Some franchises require sales, marketing, and management skills to be successful and will make the owner $400,000 plus per year.
- Some require training or coaching skills. Others require operations and supervisory skills.
- Some deal with the public and some are business-to-business franchises.
- Some will make the owner a decent living and that is all.
- Some are good for part-time or absentee owners and some require total commitment.
- Some are great for multiple location owners and some are not.
If you are considering the purchase of a franchise:
- Use a good broker who knows the franchise system.
- Do your diligence before you buy – meet or speak with numerous current franchisees in the system that you have selected from their list of all franchisees, check for litigation and disputes within their system.
Sunbelt participates in the annual franchise meetings of the franchisors we represent and maintains regular contact with all of the franchises. We represent some 50 franchisors in Canada and they represent one out of every 10 businesses we sell.
We are very discriminating about which franchisors we will represent: we validate the franchise before we take them on and we keep validating them to make sure they are delivering appropriate services and support to their franchisees and that their franchisees are being successful.
Don't hesitate to contact our nearest office. We are always available for a no-cost, no-obligation meeting to discuss your current situation and desired outcome.
