Meet the Leadership Team of Fresh Coat Painters

Fresh Coat Painters, the leading low-cost residential and commercial painting franchise under Strategic Franchising Systems, is powered by a robust team of experienced leaders committed to the success of each franchisee. As part of the brand’s commitment to empowering entrepreneurs from all walks of life, Fresh Coat Painters ensures that franchise owners don't need a painting background to become a successful business owner — they simply need passion, drive and a desire to work within the franchise system. Fresh Coat franchisees can feel confident knowing that these leaders are in their corner. 

Lisa Hudson: A Servant Leader at the Helm

Lisa Hudson, the brand president of Fresh Coat Painters, brings a wealth of experience to her role, having navigated both the franchisee and franchisor sides of the business. 

Hudson's distinguished career began with a 26-year stint at Macy's, where she led multiple stores to achieve sales milestones ranging from $10M to $72M and played a key role in national and regional leadership initiatives. This experience honed her skills in team coaching and executive leadership, setting a strong foundation for her later ventures. In 2015, Hudson joined The Growth Coach, a business coaching franchise under Strategic Franchising Systems, starting as a franchise owner and later rising to president of franchise development. During her tenure, she displayed exceptional leadership, particularly through the challenging times of COVID-19, by providing strategic and empathetic guidance to franchisees.

Her journey continued at Lysse New York, a women’s fashion brand, where she further solidified her reputation as a versatile leader committed to growth within the boutique, ecom and department store community. This commitment brought her back to the Strategic Franchising System family, where she served as the executive vice president of Fresh Coat Painters. In this role, she led a 27-person team that was focused on vision, processes, and accountability. Hudson utilized her unique insights as a former franchisee to develop strategies that truly resonated with franchise owners. Her leadership has been crucial in fostering a community among franchisees, underscored by initiatives like Fresh Coat Cares, which emphasize the brand's commitment to charitable work and mutual support.

"I’ve always been a servant leader," Hudson said. "It's not about what we want as a franchisor; it’s about helping franchisees grow their businesses. My understanding of being a franchise owner brings leadership to our team in guiding our owners to follow the proven system to succeed and drive profitability.”

Appointed brand president in early 2024, Hudson is now poised to drive Fresh Coat Painters to new heights, with plans to strengthen the network and enhance services while continuing to make a positive impact in the lives of customers and franchise owners alike. Under her leadership, the brand aims to expand its footprint across the United States, targeting key markets and supporting passionate entrepreneurs in achieving their goals.

"Throughout my career, I've always prioritized the journey of the customer and the success of our franchisees," Hudson said. "I am excited to continue this work as brand president, helping our franchisees scale their businesses and enhancing the lives of our customers through the transformative power of painting."

Greg Platz: Growing With the Brand

Greg Platz, vice president of national accounts, has been with Fresh Coat since 2008, witnessing and contributing to the brand’s significant evolution. Before Fresh Coat, Platz was with the ServiceMaster family of brands, working as an area developer with several different brands within the corporation. 

Starting as Fresh Coat’s first business coach, Platz’s role expanded with the company, leading to him to take on the role of vice president of operations in 2011. After leaving briefly to help get TruBlue Home Service Ally, another sister brand, up and running, Platz returned to Fresh Coat to head up a new division: National Accounts and Commercial Painting, which aims to establish partnerships with vendors all across the country. 

“We support any company in need of maintenance painting and similar services,” Platz said. “Our division has established around 35 national partnerships, benefiting all our franchisees. Additionally, we handle commercial painting projects: my team of five, including myself, manages these initiatives. We review blueprints submitted by our franchisees, estimate the required time and resources, and then submit bids to general contractors on their behalf, assisting them throughout their commercial projects. Furthermore, we proactively seek out new commercial painting opportunities, creating further prospects for our franchisees.”

Reflecting on his journey with Fresh Coat thus far, Platz notes, "The growth of the brand has been remarkable. Previously, we didn't offer exterior or commercial painting — these services now greatly distinguish us and provide tremendous benefits to our franchisees.”

Today, Platz says his favorite part of working as a leader within the Fresh Coat system is the ability to nurture the entrepreneurial spirit in people.

“When I look at the top revenue producers at Fresh Coat today, I am very proud,” Platz said. “My team and I trained them, so witnessing their multimillion-dollar businesses flourish is incredibly rewarding. I remember those same folks in their initial training, growing their businesses with a 'whatever it takes' mentality. The greatest satisfaction for me in this industry is taking a startup and turning it into something highly successful.”

Jim Farinacci: Championing Brand and Franchisee Growth

Jim Farinacci, the vice president of marketing, brings with him a rich background in media and advertising. He spent a decade in various marketing roles across media giants like ESPN, Fox and ABC Sports. From there, Farinacci worked at an ad agency, but began looking to move over to the client side and focus on a single brand. When he discovered the opportunity to join Fresh Coat, it immediately piqued his interest as something fresh and exciting.

“This was my first franchise role, and I was really drawn to the idea of taking on a multifaceted role that would help grow a franchise company while also helping individual franchisees grow their businesses,” said Farinacci. “I also had experience working with home service brands at the ad agency, so this felt like a natural transition.”

Farinacci officially joined the Fresh Coat team as the VP of marketing in early 2021. Today, his role revolves around elevating brand awareness and directly supporting franchisees in their marketing and business growth efforts. 

“I meet with our franchisees every single day,” Farinacci said. “These people bought a franchise for a variety of reasons — they wanted to achieve financial independence, they wanted to spend more time with their loved ones, they wanted something to pass on to their family. So, helping them achieve their specific dreams and grow their business is really satisfying and is the main reason I love this role.”

And Farinacci says the Fresh Coat model makes it easy to position franchisees for success. “As a franchise, we are in a very good spot in the market,” he said. “We offer benefits that no other painting franchises offer, like the ability to do commercial work at no extra cost or the Winner’s Circle, which offers a huge financial reward for working hard.”

Deeply Committed to the Success of Fresh Coat Painters Franchisees

Overall, these three leaders all share one common trait: a deep commitment to the brand and its franchisees. 

“The combined expertise and dedication of everyone on our leadership team ensures that Fresh Coat remains a leader in the painting industry, offering unmatched support and opportunities for growth to all of our franchise owners and team members,” Hudson said. 

The Fresh Coat team is currently looking to help more passionate and qualified entrepreneurs achieve their goals while expanding the brand’s footprint across the country. Target markets include Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont.

For more information on franchising with Fresh Coat Painters, visit: https://1851franchise.com/freshcoat/.