FranX | Franchisors know the secret, but do first-time franchisees under multi-unit?

While franchisors all fight over qualified and ready to buy multi-unit franchisees and research, in-depth (magazines, conferences, podcasts) on how to find these gems of operators, there is another significant insight for the industry to the multi-unit franchisees – especially for those first thinking about becoming a franchise owner.

By Nick Powills1851 Franchise Publisher

10:10AM • 04/15/22

The Next McDonalds (Big Idea)

Franchisee Myriam Guerrero on Buying a Tint World Franchise

After successful careers in nonprofits and the military, Myriam and Alex Guerrero opened their first franchise in El Paso late last year - and they're just getting started.

When Myriam Guerrero’s husband, Alex, decided to retire from the army after 28 years of service, the couple knew they needed to find a meaningful way to occupy his newfound free time.

“[Alex] built his whole career around the army, so we wanted to find something for him that would, of course, sustain our income after his retirement, but also give him something to do that he enjoyed doing,” Guerrero says.

For Guerrero, who works full-time at a nonprofit, finding a business opportunity that would allow the couple to give back to their local community in El Paso, Texas, was also important.

In 2020, the Guerreros found what they were looking for when Alex was introduced to a local franchise broker while attending a retirement workshop at Fort Bliss, who encouraged the couple to consider buying a franchise as a means of launching an enjoyable post-retirement career.

For the Guerreros, the suggestion to become franchisees was a good one. After purchasing their first franchise last year from Tint World, an automotive styling and window tinting company with stores in 25 U.S. states and several international locations, the couple embarked on a journey that brought them unexpected success – and a chance to grow their business even more in the future.

In addition to making smart business choices, Guerrero says the success of the couple’s first franchise has also been the result of the high level of support provided by the corporate team at Tint World – support that has inspired the couple to consider becoming multi-unit franchisees.

“I think [Tint World] under-sold themselves. I mean, they told us, ‘We’re here for you guys, we will support you.’ But I think they fell short on really emphasizing those things, because they have been tremendous. It has been a very positive experience for us – and now we’re looking at store number two,” Guerrero says.

Franchisees Kicking Ass: The Franchisee is King

The Great Franchisee: Sean-Michael Green, JDog Junk Removal & Hauling, Connecticut

The former U.S. marine and UCONN business professor is taking local veterans under his wing through new employment opportunities with his franchise.

Don’t let Sean-Michael Green hear you say he is in the junk removal business. JDog Junk Removal & Hauling means much more than that to Green, a former U.S. marine and UCONN business professor. The veteran-oriented franchise brand allows Green to employ a team of veterans who he says are the best in the industry.

We spoke to Green to learn more about his experience with JDog and his plans for the future.

Tell us a little about your background.

Sean-Michael Green: I worked in higher education serving as Vice President at Albertus Magnus College and Associate Vice President at the University of New Haven. When COVID-19 hit, I was working in the higher education space and it seemed things were falling apart. No one was able to get their freight or goods delivered, and so I began a logistics company. All of a sudden I had 100 employees, all of which I enjoyed and I wanted to continue to employ them.

What made you pick this brand? What excites you most about this company?

Green: It’s an interesting model. At JDog Junk Removal & Hauling we take things out of people’s lives (junk) that don't serve them anymore, but it’s not just a removal business. It’s reviving its usefulness as well because we find families who need the items being tossed away. A big part of it was its exclusive nature. Not everyone can buy in, you have to be a veteran or a family member of a veteran. I don’t usually brand myself except as a Marine, so being a Veteran is a big part of my personal brand, and this is a natural fit and really a natural progression of who I am in this business.

Yo Broker, Sell My Franchise

Multi-brand franchisee Rylan Miller explains how prospective franchisees can carve a path to multi-unit success in franchising.

Rylan Miller has built a small empire in the franchise industry, opening a whopping 29 units with smoothie concept Tropical Smoothie Cafe and becoming one of the first franchise owners with 810 Billiards and Bowling, the emerging “eatertainment” franchise out of South Carolina. Miller’s multi-brand growth has established him as one of franchising’s Big Fish, but Miller did not enter the industry with the resources and investment experience typically associated with the industry’s largest franchisees. Miller carved a path to success in franchising by trusting his instincts as a consumer and investing in brands he had a personal affinity for.

That approach, Miller says, is key to establishing large-scale growth opportunities in franchising.

In a recent interview with Nick Powills and Charles Internicola for franchise mastermind group FranX, Miller discussed his journey to multi-unit and multi-brand ownership and his advice for fledgling franchisees hoping to achieve similar growth.

The Bottom Thoughts

Multi-unit franchisees are gold, butter, cash money, or, insert whatever flashy word the cool kids are saying today. And they are not just cheddar for franchisors – they are money for franchisees – meaning, if you have the financial wherewithal, don’t just limp into franchising, jump head first.

So, as a future franchisee, this could potentially mean adjusting your buying strategy – not just swallowing up additional units for the sake of it, rather really planning on scale.

Sign a lease, break dirt, sign second lease, open unit one, break dirt on unit two, sign lead on unit three and open number two. Rinse and repeat.

Why?

Scale is how you build wealth.

Certainly, you can find the unicorn stories where someone became rich by opening one tiny sub shop – but that’s the minority. The majority of get rich stories within franchising are found in multi-unit, scaling portfolios.

So, when looking at the right opportunity for you, look at an opportunity that you can scale. Let’s say you can open a $1m restaurant. Don’t. Open three $333,333 investment opportunities. This way, you are protected, a little more, from failure (pessimist) and have the opportunity to make a ton more money. If you are a franchisor – play this up. Play up the numbers. If the $1m investment does $1.2m AUV and the $333k one does $700,000 – the collective could be a much different gross, net and reinvestment opportunity.