How the Leader of This Growing Franchise Learned to Surround Himself With the Right People

Don Powers, founder, president and CEO of the Fitness Machine Technicians (FMT) franchise, is in the third year of a comprehensive five year plan focusing on expansion. With a trusted board of advisors and valued franchisee partners, Powers is armed with the industry know-how and quality team members to successfully scale his business. But when Powers first began franchising, he was more concerned with keeping his business alive than growing it.

Before founding FMT in 2002, Powers had worked in the fitness industry for over 20 years. He owned a gym alongside business partners, and found that there was one obstacle that came popped up over and over again: it was challenging to find qualified technicians to repair exercise equipment when it broke or malfunctioned. With no prior technical experience, Powers took it upon himself to learn how to repair equipment, and thus met a need that few others could.

From there, he grew his business independently, strengthening his skills and creating solid relationships amongst his clients. What Powers brought to the table was the drive and willingness to not simply meet a task, but to learn how to master it. Whenever there was a new hill to conquer, he took it upon himself to figure out the best way to do it, relying on his ability and wherewithal to figure it out.

When Powers began entertaining the idea of franchising FMT in 2010, strongly believing that his system was easy to duplicate, he was working under the assumption that prospective business owners adopted the same go-getter attitude as him. Realizing this was not always the case, one of his first two franchisees failed to thrive, and eventually had to end the partnership.

“My first plan was to sell franchises for a lower franchise fee so anybody could have the chance to buy,” said Powers. “But I got people who were looking to find a job, not an opportunity. ‘How much business is there in the county right now?’ they would ask. The right question is, ‘How much opportunity is there to create business and grow in the county?’ I was attracting people who just wanted to get out of their current jobs and, as a result, I kind of fell on my face.”

To help him reevaluate the type of franchisees he was marketing to and ultimately partnering with, Powers sought out the help of SMB Franchise Advisors. Steve Beagelman, founder and CEO of the consulting group, worked with Powers to determine the best strategies for growing FMT. Beagelman suggested Powers assemble a board of experts to help him make decisions pertaining to areas like development and public relations. Today, Powers says that coming to rely on his board members for advice is the best move he’s ever made.

“Don’s initial plan was to find like-minded owners, which wasn’t a bad idea, but his first outreach was to techs—people who were just like him. Don forgot that he always had the drive to be a business owner and to do more, year over year,” said Steve Beagelman. “And for the past year, we’ve continued helping him to fine tune his franchise. We meet as a board every month, have completely re-branded the image and have a more refined focus on owners who have a strong sales and marketing background. We are looking forward to a great year in 2017 and are well on our way to meeting goals already.”

With services currently available in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, Powers’ next step is further developing the northeast. Next year, his plan is to extend his reach west. And after that, Powers wants to take the brand national.

“I’ve evolved very, very carefully,” said Powers. “I analyzed--maybe even micromanaged--the business when I first started it. I worked the business the way I worked my other businesses. What I had to learn over the years is that I have to let things go and rely on the help of others. I can’t do everything. I’ve made it a real point to find people who have the capability to properly fill a role, but they also have to be nice. We need to work together as a team.”