5 Hurdles to Owning a Franchise and How to Get Over Them

By MATT DIAZ You don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to jump these franchising hurdles. Here are five things every potential franchisee needs to know before making their decisions to become business owners. Real Estate Finding the perfect location for your franchise can be a challenge and one of the most important decisions a business owner has to make. A good location can be the difference between an extremely successful investment and a flop. Taking the time to carefully plan out a location is infinitely better than rushing to open the doors. Financing Obtaining the funding to start a new business can be tricky, especially right now with banks tightening their lending policies. Alternative funding might be the way to go. Many people don’t realize that they have different funding options at their disposal such as using their 401K to finance their business. A good thing to remember is, most of us aren’t experts in financing, so seeking outside council might be a good idea for any perspective business owner. Talent Surrounding yourself and your business with top talent can make or break an opportunity. Finding people as passionate about your business can be a challenge, so working towards keeping your top employees is important. Give credit where credit is due and weed out those who don’t fit your culture. Market Availability “The territory I want isn’t available…what do I do now?” Well, there are a couple ways around this franchising hurdle. The first would be to purchase an existing franchise. This can often be a good route if the existing franchise has a solid client base or if you know that you could expand or turn around a struggling business. Another way to bypass this obstacle is to bring a new concept to an area or find a competitor of the concept you were initially interested in. YOU! Following your dreams, especially when it comes to business ownership, can be nerve-racking. I get it. But taking that plunge can be one of the most exciting things you’ll ever do, but the number one thing to keep in mind is research. That cannot be stressed enough. Research, research and research some more before making any decisions.