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5 Franchise Brands That Are Perfect for Socially Responsible Entrepreneurs in 2023
These franchise brands are looking to make a difference.
Covering a broad variety of industries in places all around the globe, franchises have the power to make a difference. Whether that be through eco-friendly initiatives or equitable access to services, brands have the potential to make positive changes.
For entrepreneurs looking to invest in brands with socially responsible values and practices, there are strong contenders to choose from. Here are five to start with.
Since 2007, Shuckin’ Shack Oyster Bar has been offering quality, sustainably caught seafood in a restaurant that focuses on eco-friendly practices. For the 19-unit brand, making responsible seafood choices is one of the best ways to ensure healthier oceans. And that starts with sustainable seafood caught or farmed with minimal environmental and social impacts.
“Our oysters come from farms, not the ocean, to allow the wild oysters to take care of the bay,” says co-founder Matt Piccinin. “Oysters are extremely important to the ecosystem, and overfishing can destroy them.”
Additionally, the brand only offers biodegradable and reusable straws, and reduces single-use plastics whenever possible. You will not find styrofoam, plastic bags or drinks in plastic bottles at Shuckin’ Shack.
The cost to open a Shuckin’ Shack franchise ranges from $453,000–$1,128,252.
The Junkluggers is an eco-friendly junk removal company committed to providing an elevated customer experience and bettering the environment. Its mission is to “enhance lives, [its] community, and the environment by donating, recycling, and supporting local charities.”
The franchise has a goal of keeping 100% of reusable junk out of landfills by 2025. In order to meet this goal, it sorts through the items it removes from people’s homes, and donates and recycles as many of the items as possible. For every item that it is able to donate, The Junkluggers will provide clients with a donation receipt within 14 days.
If something is not donatable, the brand recycles as much of it as they can. The team is even trained to decide which materials can be disposed of in an eco-friendly way.
The cost to open a The Junkluggers franchise starts at $121,160.
Although there are many cleaning companies out there, not many services use environmentally friendly measures like ecomaids. The 100-plus-unit cleaning franchise offers environmentally safe green cleaning for homes and businesses, as well as LEED-certified cleaning for buildings.
The franchise is entirely green, eco-friendly, sustainable, plant-based, non-toxic and non-corrosive. The equipment and supplies used are reusable, non-consumable and recyclable. Updated heavy-duty and commercial-grade equipment, including HEPA micro-filtered vacuums, get the job done right every time.
“Everything we do is either recyclable or reusable,” said Sharon Cupach, senior director of franchise development for Happinest Brands, ecomaids’ parent franchisor. “We don't greenwash. We really do walk our walk and talk our talk. We really are green. Our cleaning systems are based entirely on science. Everything we do has the planet and environment in mind.”
The total investment necessary to open an ecomaids franchise ranges from $110,990–$136,379.
Everytable aims to make healthy food more affordable by cutting down on production costs and selling meals at prices based on the income of the neighborhood in which the store is located.
When the brand began looking into franchising, CEO Sam Polk was confronted with the fact that expensive costs could undermine the accessibility-focused mission of Everytable.
“Franchising, like so many industries in America, is for people who come from privilege and have had the chance to accumulate wealth,” Polk said in a video with Freethink. “And we looked at the reality of the situation. Talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not.”
Now, through its Social Equity Franchise program, Everytable is leveling the playing field and building a pathway to business ownership within its communities. The training and development program, Everytable University, sets entrepreneurs from marginalized backgrounds on an expedited pathway to potentially owning and operating an Everytable store through employment and on-the-job training programs.
No-H2O is an on-demand car washing service that uses a mobile app to allow customers to have their cars cleaned anytime, anywhere in an eco-friendly, waterless fashion. According to an environment-dedicated page on the brand’s website, the traditional car wash uses 35 gallons of fresh water to clean one car. At No-H2O, it's in the name. The brand uses no water when cleaning cars.
The brand claims that, over the last five years, the No-H2O franchise network and its on-demand detailers have saved the environment over 5 million gallons of fresh water. No-H2O uses an innovative waterless car washing product that emulsifies dirt particles and then safely absorbs those particles into a microfiber cloth. The positive charge in the product combined with a negative charge in the microfibre cloth creates an effective solution to washing cars and more.
The investment range to open a No-H2O franchise ranges from $135,000–$163,000.
