1851

<p><a href="https://www.franchisefastlane.com/about-us/team/ryan-zink/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=frandev-players-ryan-zink-ceo-franchise-fastlane-2715040" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><u>Ryan Zink</u></a> knows about growing franchises.&nbsp;</p><p>As the manager of 15 <a href="https://www.gncfranchising.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=frandev-players-ryan-zink-ceo-franchise-fastlane-2715040" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><u>GNC nutrition stores</u></a>, he helped run the top five revenue-producing stores in the country. He went on to help start up, and then sell, a wholesale business. Next, he co-founded <a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/completenutrition/333878?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=frandev-players-ryan-zink-ceo-franchise-fastlane-2715040" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><u>Complete Nutrition</u></a> brand, which grew to a network of 200 retail stores, before selling that to private equity.</p><p>Now, he’s out to help franchisors achieve the success he’s experienced through his Omaha-based company <a href="https://www.franchisefastlane.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=frandev-players-ryan-zink-ceo-franchise-fastlane-2715040" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><u>Franchise FastLane</u></a>. He calls his organization a “gas pedal” that helps brands accelerate franchise growth. “I like to say we represent the next big thing,” he says.</p><p>His company awarded over 1,000 franchise units this year alone, so we asked him his thoughts on the keys to achieving growth for franchisors.</p><h4>1851 Franchise: Tell me a little bit about your firm, Franchise FastLane.</h4><p>Ryan Zink: We are a full-service outsourced franchise development company. So franchisors that would prefer to outsource their development rather than build the internal team come to us. We figure out the process, the technology, the marketing strategies, and build the relationships inside broker networks. If they prefer just to sort of fast forward that or jump in the fast lane, if you will, we work with them.&nbsp;</p><h4>1851: Who are your clients?</h4><p>Zink: We speak to over 150 franchisors a year and will typically bring on five to 10. We have really strict criteria for brands that we'll work with. We call it our Necessity List. A brand has to check the box of every necessity we look for in order for us to represent them.</p><h4>1851: How did you get interested in franchising?</h4><p>Zink: I sort of fell into it. I got a degree in broadcast journalism and decided I didn't want to move away from Omaha to a small town to do J.V. basketball on the radio. So a friend of mine was working in a franchise GNC location and had some success. The franchisee and I got along really well, and I managed all his stores. We had the top five GNC locations in the country.</p><p>Then we became a supplier. We had a company called NDS Nutrition, where we were supplying nutritional products to GNC franchisees. We eventually grew that and sold that to a private equity firm.</p><p>Then we started a nutrition retail store, Complete Nutrition, in 2005, which we grew to over 200 locations. In December of 2015, we sold that to a private equity group. After the sale, I only knew two things: I knew nutrition, and I knew franchise development. I couldn't do anything in nutrition any longer because of a non-compete. So I decided to start Franchise FastLane, which is designed to help emerging brands do exactly what we did with Complete Nutrition, which is to find great franchise partners and ultimately grow it into something that is a national brand.&nbsp;</p><h4>1851: What are the keys to consistent franchise growth?&nbsp;</h4><p>Zink: There's a lot of them, but if you just want to simplify it, what it is about is: having profitable, happy franchisees and open territory. If you have franchisees that are singing your praises, they're making money, they want to grow themselves and you have open territory around the country. Those are the types of opportunities other people want to get into. There are a lot of industry-specific things you can think of, but I think you can boil it down to happy profitable franchises and open territory.&nbsp;</p><h4>1851: What are the biggest hurdles to successful franchise growth?</h4><p>Zink: I think it all starts with attention. Then it's really going to come down to whether you have a proven model and the funds to grow that proven model and support your franchisees.</p><p>Attention is so hard to get in a world where everybody else is trying to grab people's attention. Just take franchising alone, where you have 4,000 franchise opportunities out there. If you're an established brand, and you've been able to build those relationships over time, it's not as challenging. If you're an emerging brand, trying to figure out what is the right place to market to get attention, which portals work the best and which broker networks are the ones that you're going to find some good partners with. That’s just the very front end of it. So think about what your business does that’s going to capture some people's attention.&nbsp;</p><p>I think another hurdle, of course, is just access to capital. There's no lack of business opportunities. We speak to 150 franchisors every year and each one of them, in their own way, has something compelling about the business. But many times, we just can't represent them because they're either too young or they don't have enough happy franchisees and data in their past to talk about profitability. We look at the amount of working capital that we have, and we just say you don't have the required resources to be able to support the type of growth that we typically bring.&nbsp;</p><h4>1851: How has COVID affected franchise growth opportunities?</h4><p>Zink: I think the obvious one is that the concepts that require people to go into an establishment have taken a hit, whether that's beauty, food or fitness. Now, if you flip that and you look at what other opportunities are out there, B2B and B2C service opportunities have skyrocketed. People are at home thinking about, how do I paint the walls? How do I improve the home? And home services franchises, they’re booked out, they're having a lot of success because people are sitting there thinking I need to do a home project.&nbsp;</p><h4>1851: Are there any common mistakes you see franchisors make when they're trying to grow?</h4><p>Zink: Bad investments at the growth stage. When you're an emerging brand trying to grow capital is so vital. I see many bad investments, whether it's marketing in the wrong place and marketing in the wrong place for franchise candidates is one of the quickest ways to vacuum up all of your working capital. Marketing is expensive and if you don't get a franchisee out of it, you don't have those franchisees coming back to offset your costs.&nbsp;</p><p>Another mistake is not outsourcing things that are not core to your business, especially in the growth stage. You cannot be great at everything, but you've got to be great at your business. So focus on what you're good at, and outsource the rest.&nbsp;</p><h4>1851: Any franchise growth goals for 2021?</h4><p>Zink: I would like to help 20 franchise brands find qualified franchise partners and award over 1,000 franchise territories — again!</p>

FranDev Players: Ryan Zink, CEO, Franchise FastLane

1851 Franchise

Co-founder and CEO of Franchise FastLane Ryan Zink shares his secrets for hitting the accelerator when it comes to franchise growth.

frandev-players-ryan-zink-ceo-franchise-fastlane

Comfort Keepers

Comfort Keepers - Midyear Press Release 2025 - 1851 Franchise

Comfort Keepers® Hits Mid-Year Stride With Strong Franchise Growth and Rising Demand for In-Home Care

comfort-keepers-franchise-midyear-momentum-2025

petbar

petbar - Garrett Dewan - Why I'm Investing - 1851 Franchise

Why Garrett Dewan Is Choosing To Reinvest in petbar

petbar-franchise-austin-garrett-dewan-multi-unit

Paris Baguette

NJBIZ: Paris Baguette Ramps Up Expansion With New Franchises, Facility and 2030 Growth Target

njbiz-paris-baguette-ramps-up-expansion-with-new-franchises-facility-and-2030-growth-target

Busy Bee Jumpers

Top 10 Reasons To Buy a Busy Bee Jumpers Franchise in 2025

top-10-reasons-to-buy-a-busy-bee-jumpers-franchise-in-2025

Home Halo

home-halo-former-athletes-frachisees-image

Why Former College Athletes Can Make Winning Home Halo Franchise Owners

former-college-athletes-home-halo-franchise

Buying a Franchise Masterclass

 Franchise Opportunities

Get Support Buying a Franchise

How to Buy a Franchise White Paper

How to Buy a Franchise

How to Sell Franchises

How to Grow a Franchise

Find a Franchise Supplier

1851 Franchise Opportunities

Franchisor News

Franchisor Power Rankings

FranCamp Mastermind Summit

Franchise Development Website Builder

Franchise Resources

What ALEC-Laffer's Report Means for Franchising

Website Awards

Power Rankings

About 1851

Advertise on 1851

Contact 1851 Editorial

Terms of Use

1851 Login

GROWTH CLUB LOGIN

facebook

instagram

twitter

linkedin

youtube

Wendy's CEO Kirk Tanner Steps Down - Breaking News - 1851 Franchise

Wendy’s CEO Kirk Tanner Steps Down Amid Challenges, Leaving Franchisees Facing Uncertainty

wendys-ceo-transition-kirk-tanner-franchisee-uncertainty

"Come in, We're OPEN" sign against abstract background

Small Business Optimism Dips, Raising Concerns for Franchise Owners

small-business-optimism-dips-raising-concerns-for-franchise-owners

Photo of Roof Scientist truck and trailer

Roof Scientist Expands Into Northern Indianapolis as Entrepreneur Dale Speckman Launches New Business in Fishers

roof-scientist-expands-into-northern-indianapolis

Image of Donald Trump pointing with red stripes in the background

August 1 Tariff Deadline Is Said to Have ‘No Extensions’: What This Could Mean for Franchises

august-1-tariff-deadline-franchise-impact

What June’s Jobs Report Means for the Franchise Industry

what-junes-jobs-report-means-for-the-franchise-industry

The Ultimate Guide to Selling Franchises: How To Create a Strong Incentive

how-to-build-strong-incentives-to-attract-prospective-franchisees

Amanda Evans - Stellar Service Brands - Franchise Marketing Leaders 2025 - 1851 Franchise

Top 25 Franchise Marketing Leaders: Amanda Evans — Senior Vice President of Marketing, Stellar Service Brands

stellar-service-brands-marketing-leader-amanda-evans

Photo of a large group of people standing in a circle, placing hands together in center

Franchise Opportunities for Minorities: Expanding the Franchise Network

franchise-opportunities-for-minorities

Coffee & Analytics graphic with photo of Nick Powills

Franchise Growth Is Messy. Lead Gen Is Uncomfortable. Let’s Fix It.

franchise-lead-generation-insights

From Prescriptions to Pastries: Kari Khandelwal Creates a Comforting Community Bakery 

From Prescriptions to Pastries: Kari Khandelwal Creates a Comforting Community Bakery in Overland Park, Kansas

paris-baguette-franchise-overland-park-khandelwal

Kansas Couple Revitalizes Local Childcare With Children’s Lighthouse

From Corporate Careers to Community Roots: Kansas Couple Revitalizes Local Childcare With Children’s Lighthouse

kansas-couple-opens-childrens-lighthouse-gardner-olathe

Hooters Leans Into Franchising With Closure of 30 Company-Owned Stores - Agg - 1851 Franchise

Hooters Leans Into Franchising With Closure of 30 Company-Owned Stores

hooters-franchise-model-company-owned-closures

Hely and Hiral Patel Bring Their Longtime Dream to Life With The Brass Tap

brass-tap-franchise-pasadena-maryland-hely-hiral-patel

Franchisee spotlight graphic with photo of Ricki Oberoi and Layne's Chicken Fingers logo

FranDev Players: Ryan Zink, CEO, Franchise FastLane

MORE STORIES LIKE THIS