The Great Franchisees: Andy and Michelle Snyder, Footprints Floors, The Gulf Coast

Andy and Michelle Snyder know a good franchise opportunity when they see one. The married couple have worked for years as franchise consultants, helping entrepreneurs find businesses that suit their financial and lifestyle goals, and Andy has been a multi-brand franchise owner for more than 15 years. Now, the Snyders are expanding their business portfolio as one of the newest franchisee teams with Footprints Floors*, the 50-plus-unit flooring franchise. 

1851 Franchise: Tell us your story – what did you do before franchising?

Michelle Snyder: I’m currently a registered nurse, but I’m not practicing at the moment. Andy has been a franchise owner for over 15 years, owning two franchises in commercial cleaning and locksmithery along the coast of Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama. We’re also certified franchise consultants. 

1851: How did you initially find out about franchising and what was your perception of franchising before becoming a franchise owner?

Andy Snyder: I found out about franchising after seeing an ad 15 years ago in a commercial cleaning franchise. I called them up to buy a franchise and I’ve gone from there. Prior to franchising, I worked at Quicklubes, and it was my responsibility to open new locations, so that was part of the reason I got into franchising. They are great businesses to open up for yourself, but not by yourself. 

1851: How did you decide you wanted to be a franchisee?

Andy: I was working a hundred hours a week, and I was making other people millions of dollars. If I can do it for them, then I can do it for myself. I ran four Quicklubes at one time as an operations manager, so I decided it was something I could do myself. 

Michelle: Andy and I got married in May of last year, and he was the reason I got into franchising. 

1851: How did you perform your research?

Michelle: Through our consulting business. We are affiliated with FranServe, and we first learned about Footprints Floors on our support side. We represent it, and we heard the success of the brand as we were consulting. We dug in a little more through videos they shared.

1851: Why did you pick Footprints Floors? What excited you most about the potential?

Andy: I have some experience in maintaining flooring, so I was already familiar with the industry. I liked the model and now I don’t have to work on weekends. It brought me a full swing around from what I had been doing. 

Michelle: The corporate support was super helpful, and going to actually meet the team and their CEO Bryan Park was great. Everyone was so personable and down to earth. 

1851: What are your dreams with the business? What does the future look like?

Andy: My dream is to scale it eventually. I’m starting off with three territories, and I eventually want to expand it to 7 territories all along the coast from Baton Rouge, Louisiana to Pensacola, Florida. 

1851: What advice would you have for others looking at buying a franchise?

Andy: You’re in business for yourself, but not by yourself. Before I became a consultant, I was a mentor. But I consulted people to buy franchises before I even received commission for it. Pick something that you like and something you are comfortable with doing. If you pick something you enjoy, you’ll never work a day in your life. 

1851: What do you do in your personal time?

Michelle: We love to travel and camp. Andy likes to watch football, wrestling and loves to fish.