Growth Club
1851 Growth Club
FranX | The Truth About Multi-Unit Franchisees
How to make your brand into an irresistible investment opportunity to attract multi-unit franchise candidates.
The Next McDonalds (Big Idea)
Claim Your Free FRAN-X Membership and Profile!
This week marks the launch of the official FranX website!
The website is now home to FranX community driven growth conferences, masterclasses, playbooks, franchisor-franchisee interviews, and upcoming networking events.
The heart of the new website is the free FranX community directory that is open to the franchise community and all FranXers. Be sure to claim your free profile and gain access to the FranX growth resources, and upcoming networking opportunities and events.
What started as a group of franchise professionals helping one another during a time of uncertainty and challenge, has turned into a special community of like-minded franchisors, franchisees, brokers and franchise suppliers. Together we’ll keep uncovering the big ideas in franchising.
News You Can (Actually) Use
Killer Brands
How WellBiz Brands Created Some of the Most Well-Postioned Brands in Wellness
WellBiz Brands Inc., the preeminent beauty and wellness company, is making serious waves in the franchising industry. In 2021 WellBiz Brands saw $500 million in systemwide sales, reached close to 900 locations and 250,000 members, and added two new acquisitions to its portfolio — making it a year of tremendous growth for the company. Now, with a portfolio featuring category leaders Drybar*, Amazing Lash*, Elements Massage*, Radiant Waxing™, and Fitness Together®, WellBiz Brands is well-positioned to dominate the franchise industry and enjoy another banner year in 2022.
Franchisees Kicking Ass: The Franchisee is King
The Great Franchisee: Mandeep Singh, Oath Pizza, Torrance, CA
The former PepsiCo employee aims to turn his venture with the fast-growing pizza franchise into a family business.
Mandeep Singh has spent most of his career in Corporate America. After 10 years with PepsiCo, Singh decided it was time for a change, and began to pursue his dream of becoming an entrepreneur. Today, he is one of the newest franchise owners with Oath Pizza, the nearly 30-unit pizza franchise.
Oath Pizza has made a name for itself in the franchise industry by focusing on fresh, wholesome ingredients and a welcoming full-service atmosphere, but Singh says it was the brand’s focus on family that really caught his eye.
Singh was adamant about finding a business that he could turn into a family legacy, and he says he found exactly that with Oath Pizza.
Yo Broker, Sell My Franchise
With data showing increased revenue among pest control companies, entrepreneurs can leverage the pest control franchise’s decades of experience and scalable business model to carve a lucrative niche in a fast-growing industry.
Over the course of four decades, Pestmaster Services, the more than 65-unit pest control franchise, has established itself as a leader in the pest control industry, which has proven to be pandemic-proof as the demand for home services booms. The global pest control market forecast was valued at $20.6 billion in 2019, and is now projected to reach $30.0 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 5.2% from 2020 to 2027. Now, fueled by the strength of the industry and the backing of multi-brand franchisor Threshold Brands, the leading franchisor in the home service space that includes MaidPro, Men in Kilts, FlyFloe, USA Insulation, Heating + Air Paramedics, Plumbing Paramedics and Sir Grout, Pestmaster is gearing up for significant franchise expansion as more savvy entrepreneurs recognize the value of buying a pest control franchise.
“The home services industry is growing in a meaningful way, offering vital services that customers value, especially during a time when many people are spending more time than ever before in their homes,” said Scott Sutton, Threshold Brands’ chief growth officer. “Pestmaster Services provides an important solution to help people thrive in their most sacred of spaces — their homes.”
The Bottom Thoughts
We are sitting at the franchise unicorn bar – talking all good things franchising, working through the challenges of franchise development and franchisee success.
“Finding franchisees, any type of franchisee is super tough,” I say. “You have to convince someone to invest their hard earned money into a business that they don’t have much control over.”
“True,” says the franchisor.
“Before that convincing, you have to have a great brand, great product, great leadership, great vision, great profitability, great validation, great growth plans, great suppliers,” I say.
“Boy, that sounds tough,” says the franchisor.
“Sure is. What about your brand? Do you have all that?” I ask.
“Well, we are a super crowded category. We have a solid product – in fact, I believe despite our 3.5 star rating on Yelp, that we have the best product on the market. Our leadership team is fairly new – but we have a combined experience of more than 100 years. Our investment ratio is a little less than 1-to-1. Most of our franchisees validate. They aren’t growing with us, much, but they are happy – or rather content. Yes, I would say you have all that.”
“Are you sure?” I ask.
“Sure are. The challenge we have is not our business – it’s leads. Know how to get those.”
“I do.”
“How?” they ask.
“Improve all of the above,” I say.
“Impossible. We have to get leads now. We have to grow. We need more franchisees. In fact, we need multi-unit franchisees. They will buy more units and open more units.”
“Well, you see, it’s not that easy. You have to understand that franchisees and business operators are two different personas. A franchisee, in my opinion, is making a huge, awesome decision to open a franchise. Maybe two locations – but doesn’t really think a whole lot about scale. A business operator comes to the table looking for scale. The challenge with the business operator is that they are super sophisticated. In fact, they have built wealth already – and are looking to build more. Thus, most likely, they have the ability to call BS on your business model. Thus, you better be ready to talk through your game plan.
“Ok,” the franchisor says a little deflated.
“Don’t worry, business operators love opportunities. This is why they buy underperforming locations. They know that by mixing the right location with the right people, operations and investment, profit can turn. So, create your new business plan. Have a great story. Lift up those who are excited. Incentivize your franchisees to grow. Support them more. Focus on product innovation. Take responsibility – ala Domino’s.”
“Ok, this makes sense,” they say.
“And then, you have to know how the process works. Multi-unit operators within other brands know the costs, the models and the profitability. A multi-unit owner from another brand needs to hit a roadblock with their other brand in order to diversify. This is tough. This is a long process. And if you listen to most multi-unit operators, they have parameters – often focused on profitability, both short term and long-term. They probably know you – especially if you have done a good job with PR, content and marketing. You have to deliver a why you, why now.”
“Ok, all of this makes sense,” the franchisor says. They pause. A smile comes on their face. “I get it. I totally do. So, do I exhibit at the Multi-Unit Franchise conference?”
“You should – when you have the above answered, have a plan, and use that booth for prescheduled meetings. But don’t let that be your only tool to tell that story. Fix up your Website, make sure your story is sound, leverage your franchisees. Tell a clear story.”
“Awesome,” they say, and then pause again. “Now, what about those leads?”
