Author Topic: Any thoughts on Franchises  (Read 4928 times)

nic1

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Any thoughts on Franchises
« on: August 21, 2017, 06:34:23 PM »
A little background...My sister and I are looking into possibly starting a franchise in our area.  Looking at a couple possibilities, but my top idea is in the pet care/food industry. 
Neither of us has business experience, but I would love to get into something that we can scale up.  I am currently a 1099 employee, so essentially self employed in a way, looking more for a business I can run and get away from clocking in a 40 hour week.

My main concerns are how much time will we have to commit upfront and cost.  We both need to keep our current jobs, so adding another commitment is daunting. 

Any feedback from anyone that has gone with a franchise I would love to hear your thoughts. 

SC93

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #1 on: August 21, 2017, 07:50:17 PM »
In order to give a real answer I have a few questions. What type of 1099 employee are you currently? Are you already doing this type of thing? If so, do you already use your own tools and all of your own everything? All your current 'employer' does is basically furnish the jobs, which I guess in this case would be pets? Or do you currently do something with food? If so, how does it work currently? Give us some back ground.

nic1

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #2 on: August 21, 2017, 08:06:05 PM »
I see where my previous post was a bit confusing.  I am a 1099 employee in a completely different field where I am paid hourly.  What I do now would have nothing in common with the franchise I am looking at.  I only mentioned that I am a 1099 employee to give background on my current career situation. 

bwall

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #3 on: August 22, 2017, 04:29:34 AM »
Here is a good place to read up on the joys of franchise ownership:

http://www.unhappyfranchisee.com


SC93

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #4 on: August 22, 2017, 12:42:43 PM »
I always question 1099 work. Most of the time it is not 100% legal but that is a whole other post. Like the person above said..... kinda..... if you want to work from the time you get up until the time you go to sleep for the first few years then this may be the right thing for you. If you think owning your own business means you can choose your own hours you are mostly wrong unless you mean you have the choice of working from 7am till 10pm or maybe you want to choose working from 6am till 9pm. That's about the only choice you get. lol There is an old saying..... in order to own your own business you choose to work 80 hours for yourself to keep from working 40 hours for someone else.

Now I know that is not true if you have plenty of money and a great plan. But for most it's more work than a 40 hour work week. As far as the franchise, which are you looking at? If you need to send me a private message feel free. If you are looking to open a Burger King type of place then I'd say go with a franchise. My buddy owns 36 of them and only works about 10 hours a year in meetings. If you are thinking about franchising a Scooby's Dog Wash from Scooby himself I'd ask..... WHY?

SeattleCPA

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #5 on: August 22, 2017, 01:28:02 PM »
I've blogged on this topic a couple of times... specifically about Liberty Tax franchise:

First post here (basically about all the good stuff): http://evergreensmallbusiness.com/lessons-from-liberty-tax-service-part-1/

Second post here (basically about the bad stuff): http://evergreensmallbusiness.com/lessons-from-liberty-tax-service-part-2/

General comment/conclusion considering both good and bad: I think a good franchise is a worthwhile option to consider. Especially if business owner is new to industry or new to business ownership.

SC93

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #6 on: August 22, 2017, 05:02:37 PM »
^^Key word 'GOOD' ^^ There are way more bad ones than good.

Plus, let's say someone wants to groom dogs. You already know how to do that and getting customers is fairly easy so why pay tens of thousands of dollars to get a name. Names don't really mean much unless it is something like Burger King or Petco or some big name like that. I mean who has heard of Wags & Wash? 15 people at most.... so why pay their $200,000 for their unknown name? What exactly are you wanting to do? Pets and food leaves a wide range of things. The real answer to your question as it is stated is.... it depends.... what are you wanting to do?

nic1

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #7 on: August 22, 2017, 05:49:45 PM »
Thanks for all the feedback, it really is appreciated.  The franchise I am considering is newish, they only started franchising in the last 2 years.  It is a dog food that is freshly made and delivered.  It caters to dogs that have skin or digestive issues, plus the convenience of delivery.  There is one franchise  in the area I live in that is doing really well and expanding. 
I know two people that have started a franchise and are doing well also in a different area (fitness), so I have some bias, but I have done research and I know that they can be a losing proposition as well. 

I guess the question is if it is worth it to me.  I currently make six figures, usually around 120k per year, working 30 hours a week, am I really foolish to think that trying to do something different is a good idea?

The appeal to me is the fact that it would be scalable.  At this point I likely will not make any more than I am right now, unless I work more hours, I feel like with a successful business after you have worked to get processes in place and regular clients and employees you can make money while you are sleeping.  That is attractive to me.  I also honestly love dogs and would love to get into something that I would be able to work with dogs and their owners, which is what attracted me to this particular franchise.

ElleFiji

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #8 on: August 22, 2017, 08:21:52 PM »
I was an employee at one franchise, and am currently a contractor exiting a completely different franchise.

Both franchises were in the business of selling franchises. They took a good small business, a few offshoots, and then got in a team who turned them into money making machines. In both cases, the franchisees ended up losing big time.

If you're considering it, ask employees and contractors of the sample franchises for their personal contact info and ask if you can talk to them privately. I'd also be surprised if you can match or beat your current income:work ratio.

Have you considered researching dog food and delivery costs and starting a competitor? Without paying hefty franchise fees, you may be able to beat their profit or prices

SC93

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Re: Any thoughts on Franchises
« Reply #9 on: August 22, 2017, 09:44:54 PM »
I completely agree with ElleFiji.

If you make $120k a year you better start something small on the side and make damn sure you want to quit your current gig before you get in to something that you will regret. Loving dogs has NOTHING to do with business. And, how would you be able to work with dogs and their owners? You will be doing all the other things in a business. You will have others selling and delivering dog food (and working with the dogs and owners)..... you get stuck in the office until 11pm doing paperwork alone wishing you would have stuck to your 30 hour work week because you have to find a new distributor and now people have stopped buying the dog food because something bad happened to 1 dog and it is all over social media so people are now scared to buy it. Yes, 2017 and beyond will be hell for lots of businesses. Just throwing out what could be real life...... But other than that, owning your own business is GREAT!! :)