How Many Brands Candidates Should Look at Before Buying a Franchise

There are so many fish in the sea. It’s a saying most often heard when talking about dating, however, it turns out that the same is true of the franchise world.  There’s just one pesky difference: if it doesn’t work out with a franchise, it’s a lot harder to break up.

When it comes to choosing a franchise, one may look to a franchise consultant, the matchmakers of the franchise world. But ultimately, it’s up to the soon-to-be franchisee to decide whether a brand is the real deal or just a fling.

And as they say with love, when you know, you know.

That was the case for Joe Turok, who opened up a Welcomemat Services franchise earlier this year. During his search for a new business concept, the former accountant knew he wanted to continue using his background working with small businesses, and he also loved the idea of having the support of a franchise system backing him up, but he wondered how he could combine the two.

Then Joe met his match, a new mover marketing and technology company called Welcomemat Services, and he knew he’d found the one. After spending much of his career working with major firms, Turok had recently started working as an independent contractor, which fostered a new passion for helping small businesses. Welcomemat Services shares that passion, and Turok was thrilled to join their fortunes.

“My work as an independent contractor stoked my passion for helping locally owned businesses, and it’s what inspired me to work with Welcomemat Services,” Turok said. “It presented an opportunity for me to continue working with small businesses and really help them stay competitive.”

For Mosquito Joe* franchisee Joe Schelhaas, it was a matter of finding a franchise he felt he could spend the rest of his life working with.

“Someone gave me some great advice,” Schelhaas said, “it was to find something I really enjoyed doing before retiring.”

Schelhaas worked with a franchise consultant and evaluated a handful of concepts ranging from services to restaurants. But after spending the majority of his career indoors operating the convenience store he owned for 19 years, Schelhaas wanted to take on the great outdoors. He looked into a handful of concepts before he found a match in mosquito-prevention franchise Mosquito Joe.

“I was attracted to the concept because it would allow me to enjoy the outdoors, yes, but that was taken a step further when I realized I would also be helping others enjoy the outdoors on a daily basis,” Schelhaas said. “I looked into a few concepts first, which was helpful for my research process, but when I found Mosquito Joe, I knew it was the right concept for me.”

Sometimes it takes kissing a few frogs to find your match. GYMGUYZ franchisees Kerry and Kindra Schutt worked with a franchise coach and evaluated three matches before picking GYMGUYZ.

The Schutts met in college, both studied exercise sciences, and they share a passion for fitness. They knew they wanted to utilize their shared skillset, so when mobile fitness franchise GYMGUYZ was presented as an option, they were intrigued.

“Because of our related backgrounds, we looked more into GYMGUYZ and saw a clear fit,” Kindra Schutt said.

That fit ultimately led the Schutts to narrow their options from three to one. They were excited to work with a company that shared their belief that fitness doesn’t belong to any one lifestyle.

“For parents who have full-time jobs, it can be hard to get to the gym. GYMGUYZ provides a solution, bringing exercise training to customers’ homes and helping them to get fit in an environment where they feel comfortable. It allows us to touch so many different types of people instead of just those who can make it to the gym.”