Franchise Leadership and Development Conference Profile: Pete Lindsey

By BRIAN DIGGELMANN For three days in October, some of the best and brightest minds in the franchising community will assemble in Atlanta for the 14^th Annual Franchise Leadership and Development Conference. Experts from over 40 industries will gather to discuss the current state of franchising and how to take their businesses to the next level. We asked five franchise development professionals from attendee brands to share their wisdom and insights into how development strategy has evolved over the past twelve months and where their companies are headed. It’s pretty safe to say Pete Lindsey knows the franchise development business. A former franchisee of Mail Boxes Etc., Lindsey joined the operations department of that company in 1991 before helping execute one of the largest franchise brand shifts in history when UPS bought Mail Boxes Etc. in 2000. His success in the newly-branded UPS Store organization led to his promotion to National Development Manager. Today, Lindsey oversees the franchising division of Sport Clips* as Vice President of Franchising. 1851: On a macro level would you say growth is trending upwards? Pete Lindsey: Speaking for Sport Clips it is certainly up. We’re running about 60 percent over last year. We have 947 operating centers and we expect to hit 1,000 this year. Having been with the UPS Store, you see things resonate at a certain point and we’re certainly enjoying that now. 1851: Have your overall number of inquiries gone up over the past year? I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a higher number but I think the quality has gone up. Entrepreneurs have more access to information than they may have had in the past, so I think there are filters out there now that allow entrepreneurs to pinpoint where their passions are and what they can follow. As a result, once they get into your process they’re more prepared. 1851: How are you reaching out to those entrepreneurs? We’re still using traditional means like franchise portals and print. Radio has been very successful for us. One of the things I’ve learned in my 24 years is that lead generation is one area that you constantly have to be testing because it’s always in flux. The two things we do here at Sport Clips are making an effort to go learn from the best, like at the Franchise Leadership and Development Conference, and constantly testing new ideas to get your message out to people that you think would complement your brand. 1851: Have those tests yielded positive results? I’ll be the first to say I’ve fallen down on a couple tasks. We ran a pay-per-click test that didn’t meet our expectations, but that kind of thing doesn’t stop us. Right now we’re going into a print opportunity that we feel very good about. It’s a delicate balance between the medium you choose and the message you’re sending to entrepreneurs. Finding the balance between those two ideas and constantly testing them is critical to our DNA at Sport Clips. 1851: Have social channels factored into your development strategy? We are looking at a test with LinkedIn. It’s an area we want to go in to but we haven’t been able to measure strong results. A lot of people are talking about LinkedIn, but when I ask how many deals they’ve received from it I hear maybe one or none. I think there are a lot of pioneers right now and I do believe it will become a force, but we still see it in an evolving stage right now. 1851: Has financing been a stumbling block for prospective franchisees? Lending really isn’t a problem for us. We didn’t close any stores last year at all and that lends itself to who we onboard. We do not accept everybody that wants to sign a license with us. We have to make sure that we have a strong alignment of what we’re collectively trying to do. It’s that kind of discipline that has put us in strong position where lenders look at us very favorably. 1851: Are you seeing a shift towards multi-unit deals? We don’t offer single licenses—we offer a 3-pack. We will offer singles for veterans because we’re very strong supports of the VetFran program. We’re want people looking to replace a corporate income, so from an economic standpoint we want to make sure the people that come in can enjoy the kind of lifestyle that they’re used to or want to visualize going forward. We have a lot of people that are purchasing 5-packs, 10-packs and even higher, so it’s very exciting. 1851: What about franchisees of other brands inquiring about your system? Absolutely, in fact we just had a gentlemen come to Discovery Day who owns 10 Little Caesar’s franchises. We’re seeing a lot more of that. What multi-unit franchisees are looking for is diversification of their portfolios. Fortunately, our Item 19 has shown very strong growth the last three years in excess of 9 percent, so some of the folks, maybe in food franchises that didn’t fare as well during the recession, are looking at Sport Clips and franchises like ours to help balance out that portfolio as they move forward. 1851: What are your most successful franchisees doing? A lot of it is just blocking and tackling – what’s going on in your four walls. It’s making sure that you’re offering an uncommon experience to customers. We spend a lot of time developing this system that we know works, and we’re very careful about who we onboard to make sure that the folks understand our system clearly and have a commitment to work that system. All systems evolve to a degree, but in everything I’ve seen in my 24 years those that want to try to recreate the wheel don’t do as well. Those that really follow the system are the ones we see stand out. 1851: What are some lessons you’ve learned so far this year? At the end of the day it’s really making sure that as we grow we have our partners here in operations, marketing all the way down the line supporting that growth and providing that uncommon experience for our franchisees in getting their franchises up and operating out of the box. Although that may be a little old school, it’s something that we here at Sport Clips always align ourselves with. 1851: What’s on the horizon for Sport Clips? We expect to have 1,000 units open by the end of this year and we’re really excited about that. We’re in a fast growth mode right now. With our same story sales being so healthy and no closures last year, we’re in a very unique position. What we’re doing is really trying to protect that idea by making sure that we support our franchisees, mitigate any kind of closures and creating the opportunity for our franchisees to achieve their dreams. 1851: What do you hope to gain out of this year’s Franchise Leadership and Development Conference? This is the core group of the IFA that attend this conference and they are the best of the best. If I can come out with one or two good ideas that I can come home and implement, it’s a clear win for me. Having benefitted from this conference in the past, I have every expectation that I will. It’s also giving back. I’m going to be facilitating a panel on how to use metrics to develop your team and grow your brand. If we can help some younger franchisors, I think that’s the obligation of these kinds of opportunities.