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Franchise FastLane & Southfield Capital Acquires Raintree

The most successful franchise broker sales organization adds the most successful organic franchise sales organization to impact franchisor growth; continue to lead outsourced franchise development.

By Nick Powills1851 Franchise Publisher
SPONSOREDUpdated 8:08AM 07/21/23

On Friday, June 30, Franchise FastLane & Southfield Capital completed completed the acquisition of Raintree* — a firm specializing in full-service franchise development for franchisors.

With many franchise brands turning to Franchise FastLane for franchise broker relationship management and Raintree for growth acceleration through organic lead generation, the combined companies are  set to offer a full-circle approach to many brands.

“Two of the biggest names in franchise development have partnered together to bring further a new level of value to the franchise industry” said Brent Dowling, CEO of Raintree. “This is a big move for not just us and our franchisor partners, but for impact to future and current franchisees levering franchising as a pathway to wealth creation and building.”

In fact, collectively, the two businesses rejected 300+ franchisors in the last year for not being able to service that segment of lead generation.

“In the effort to apply a comprehensive approach to the lifecycle of emerging franchise  brands, this acquisition is an opportunity to help even more franchisors grow and exit,” said Carey Gille, CEO of Franchise FastLane. 

“We’ve always had deep respect for the Raintree team. Now that we’re aligned, we will be in a position to deliver even more for both our brand and consultant partners through an unmatched messaging, marketing, and branding experience. In combining the strength and expertise found in each of our organizations, we’re looking to provide innovative new service opportunities for expanded franchise development and other franchisor-related services.”

This acquisition is expected to generate additional interest from highly valued elite franchise brands looking for sales, development, and responsible accelerated growth. Both Franchise FastLane and Raintree will retain ownership of the current brands operating under each of their respective organizations.

About Raintree 

Now in their 10th year of business, Raintree partners with emerging franchise brands to help grow them into national successes. Raintree takes on all facets of the franchise development program, everything from design to digital lead generation, consultant network management, and of course, franchise sales. This allows the founders and executives of the brands Raintree partners with much more time to focus on improving their business model and franchise support program. To date, eight of Raintree’s brands have been acquired by private equity groups. In Raintree’s short history they have awarded over 2,500 franchises and have taken 12 franchise brands across the 100-unit mark, all while impacting over 3,000 communities. For more information, please visit www.raintreegrowth.com.

About Franchise FastLane

Franchise FastLane provides outsourced franchise development services to emerging franchisors. It manages the entire franchisee sales lifecycle from initial lead generation to prospect qualification through to deal closure. FastLane works with franchisors to perfect their discovery process, bring qualified franchisee leads and drive explosive growth. The company leverages a rigorous diligence and onboarding process, industry-leading technology platform, and exceptional sales executives to drive successful franchise development for its franchisor clients, nine of which have been acquired by private equity groups. Franchise FastLane was founded in 2017 in Omaha, NE by Ryan Zink and Carey Gille, making 2023 the company’s sixth anniversary. To date, Franchise FastLane has impacted over 5,500 communities. For more information, please visit www.franchisefastlane.com.

About Southfield Capital

Southfield Capital is a private equity firm that invests in high-growth, lower middle market companies in the outsourced business services sector. The firm targets companies with $4–15 million in EBITDA and partners with management to scale the business through a combination of organic and acquisition growth strategies. For more information, please visit www.southfieldcapital.com.

*This brand is a paid partner of 1851 Franchise. For more information on paid partnerships please click here.

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