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For entrepreneurs considering ways to grow their businesses, determining whether franchising is the right move is an important decision.

1851 Franchise caught up with Scott Gittrich, president and founder of <a href="https://toppersfranchise.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=why-i-franchised-my-business-toppers-pizza-welcomemat-services-and-coolgreens-2705281" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Toppers Pizza</a>, Brian Mattingly, CEO and founder of <a href="https://welcomematservices.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=why-i-franchised-my-business-toppers-pizza-welcomemat-services-and-coolgreens-2705281" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Welcomemat Services</a>, and Robert Lee, CEO of <a href="https://www.coolgreens.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=why-i-franchised-my-business-toppers-pizza-welcomemat-services-and-coolgreens-2705281" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Coolgreens</a>, to learn about why they decided to franchise their businesses.

Scott Gittrich, Toppers Pizza

Growing up working for a restaurant franchise, Gittrich envisioned Toppers Pizza as a franchise when he opened the company in 1991. However, he knew he needed to prove his business model was successful before franchising.

&ldquo;Coming from the franchise business, I had a pretty idealistic view of the relationship between franchisees and franchisors,&rdquo; Gittrich said. &ldquo;I understood how closely they worked together, and I saw firsthand that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.&rdquo;

About a decade after opening, Gittrich was confident that Toppers Pizza was ready to become a franchise because of its profitability, scalability and teachable concept. Through franchising, Gittrich believes the company has been able to grow faster and serve its customers more effectively.

&ldquo;Successful franchisees know the market, everyone in it, and what customers want better than anyone,&rdquo; Gittrich said. &ldquo;The customers win when business owners are as close to them as possible, which is something you get through franchising.&rdquo;

Gittrich also likes how franchising gives him the opportunity to share his passion for Toppers Pizza with others.

&ldquo;I find it very rewarding to work with entrepreneurs who are creating wealth for their families and sending their kids to college by building the Toppers Pizza business,&rdquo; Gittrich said. &ldquo;It feeds my entrepreneurial spirit to help our franchisees be successful.&rdquo;

Brian Mattingly, Welcomemat Services

As a company that helps small businesses flourish in their local communities by connecting them with people who recently moved to the area, Mattingly views franchising as a key component of Welcomemat Services.

&ldquo;We focus on working with local businesses, so we knew from the start how important it is to be community-focused,&rdquo; Mattingly said. &ldquo;Having franchisees who know the ins and outs of their communities and who have relationships with local business owners has been a powerful piece of our company.&rdquo;

Although Mattingly wanted to franchise Welcomemat Services when it was founded, he decided to wait in order to develop a better understanding of the business.

&ldquo;We had to be patient to make sure we could learn the business ourselves before franchising,&rdquo; Mattingly said. &ldquo;We decided to put about 12 corporate units in place so we could learn the training and build the systems we planned to teach franchisees.&rdquo;

Recently landing first in the advertising franchise category in Entrepreneur Magazine&rsquo;s 2017 Franchise 500 ranking, Mattingly attributes the company&rsquo;s success to its network of committed franchisees.

&ldquo;When you have a franchisee that knows the community, they can find the best local businesses to connect new residents with,&rdquo; Mattingly said.

Robert Lee, Coolgreens

One of the biggest business challenges Lee has faced was determining the right time to franchise Coolgreens, which is a fresh, naturally-sourced food concept that prepares soups, salads, wraps, bowls and flatbreads in-house.

&ldquo;Everyone says you can expand and grow your business so quickly by franchising, but as a business owner, you have to admit when you&rsquo;re not ready,&rdquo; Lee said. &ldquo;You have to make sure to grow enough internally and have systems and procedures in place.&rdquo;

Seven years after opening Coolgreens, Lee decided the time was right to franchise the company. He was confident Coolgreens would make a good franchise because the barriers of entry are low, it does not require any special equipment, and the training process is relatively simple.

&ldquo;Before we decided franchising was a good fit, we kept a running list of everyone who had asked us about franchising opportunities so we could reach back out and let them know the great news,&rdquo; Lee said. &ldquo;Our first two franchisees were previous customers.&rdquo;

Besides allowing Coolgreens to expand into a variety of new markets, Lee likes how franchising allows him to share the brand with people interested in helping it grow.

&ldquo;It&rsquo;s amazing meeting people who love your brand so much that they want to get involved,&rdquo; Lee said. &ldquo;I enjoy giving a piece of the company to committed individuals who are willing to work hard and helping them advance their careers.&rdquo;

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Franchising Insights | Toppers Pizza, Welcomemat Services, Coolgreens | 1851 Franchise

1851 Franchise

Three successful franchisors share reasons they decided to franchise their companies

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