Phillip Nelson ⋅ Tyrone, GA Global Franchise Consultants ⋅ 2 years experience

Consider working with a franchise consultant who can help you with finding a franchise brand that aligns with your ownership goals and investment budget. They can also save you time, money and resources and will put you in touch with the right people at a franchise who are responsible for awarding the franchise.

Every franchise has a proven business model and system. If you can follow the system, more often than not, you will be successful. What you will find is that the best franchise brands will have teams of people dedicated to helping you address all of those issues. The best brands will have market research and real estate teams who will help you scout locations, negotiate leases and provide guidance.

With over 4,000 franchise brands to choose from, finding the right franchise opportunity for you and your wife is the most important thing. Finding one that has a system that you matches your strengths is critical. I am an independent franchise consultant and I can help you through the entire process. My services to you are at no cost. When you are ready to take a closer look, it would be my honor to help you. You can email me at: phil@glofran.com or visit my website: www.glofran.com for more details.

Thanks!

Alexander Hildenbrandt ⋅ Jacksonville, FL STONEWORK Franchising ⋅ 2 years experience

Hi Bud,
I left the Army 3 years ago to become a franchise broker and mentor to others going through the life transition and wanting a franchise. Great decision on your part! There are a lot of things I love about franchising for vets. This has led me to digging into franchising like a tick. I am a broker, vet mentor, digital marketer, and development VP for 2 brands and co-founder of Cuppy's Coffee, Smoothies and More.

Yup I am a vet and even a franchisor now. It is crazy to think how things can go in three years. Ron Yu has the best feedback you should listen to. There are a few points that I would argue but the name of the game is research and transparency.

Veteran Programs are also a big deal for you. If you would like to know more about them and here about my franchises, give me a shout. I spent three years looking for the best franchise programs for vets within different systems.

Alex 912-271-5748

Jane Barratt ⋅ New York, NY GoldBean ⋅ 20 years experience

Hi!! Another great resource is Apple Pie Capital. They specialize in financing franchise businesses.
All the best!!
Jane

Terry Brassfield ⋅ Las Animas, CO CoreCivic ⋅ 29 years experience

These are all great advice. Do your homework on the type of business you want.
Ask around and see if the type of business would do good where you live. Ask
other business owners to find out more.

Donald Noble ⋅ Tampa, FL Accelebron, Florida CFO Group ⋅ 30 years experience

Jai:

I am CFO for a 126 location franchisee and I own 3 Edible Arrangements myself. I would be happy to be a resource for you or any veteran.

Don

Ron Yu ⋅ Cupertino, CA Denodo Technologies ⋅ 30 years experience

Hi Jai - I'll caveat my answer with I've never purchased/owned a franchise but looked at many types in the past. All the investigative steps suggested in prior answers are excellent. My suggestion to you and your wife is to do some internal housekeeping first. You'll have to first determine how much capital you have to invest in this venture. Moreover, you'll need to budget additional money for unexpected bumps in the road, start up, living costs while the business builds, etc. Regardless of which franchise you choose, you have to follow their formula and expect a slow ramp up of revenue/profit and ultimately, you'll see a break even ROI somewhere around 3 or more years. That's a rough rule of thumb so you need to research each one as unique opportunities. The money question is important because you'll essentially need to give yourself time to get yourself up and running and money flowing. Once you've done that and start researching - right away, you'll be able to filter the options based on capital required and net worth. Be wary that they are not all the same, some require multi-unit commitments, prior experience and large net worth (e.g. Panera) whereas others may not have large protected territories. Many franchises will ask you to attend a "selling" seminar with other prospective investors and pump you up with a rah rah selling pitch and tons of positive stories so just take it all in with a grain of salt and do your due diligence. Most research tools online or consultants will ask you the money question first so it's a good starting point. It's like buying a house or car, you can only shop for ones you can afford.

Before you even open the doors, you'll have to pay for things like franchise fee, territory fee possibly and build out (the actual lease and putting the storefront in place). The franchises will provide services like location selection, marketing, lease negotiation, etc. Most will take a piece of the action of your revenues immediately (franchise fees) along with advertising / marketing dollars. When you go through the motions of signing NDAs and getting disclosure documents be very aware they are not allowed to tell you how much you expect to earn (it's illegal). Look closely at the financial model where they spell out what it takes to start their franchise along with all the fees required. Most will also require you to fly to headquarters and get trained and have annual owner meetings.

During your vetting process, be sure you get access to existing franchisees (deeper in the process). Of course they will connect you with the top performers and happy ones but use the opportunity to speak to someone live (they don't have scripts) and prepare good questions. For example, would you make the same choice again if you had to, what are you frustrated with, what can the franchise do better, do you get your value out of the franchise, how long did it take you to turn a profit and pay back your investment, what is your revenue, etc. Make sure you know what you're going to get for the fees - level of support, type and level of advertising and marketing, etc. Some national brands like Subway, you can personally see the advertising they do whereas other food franchises, for example, may not have enough dollars to put into TV or print advertising. Regardless, you want to pick one that has been around for a while and not a lot of closures or turnover of ownership and generally growing or large already. Also, put the time into investigating on your own. You know your area better than others so drive around, see what the competition is and know what the demographics of the area are. For example, if you decide to open a sandwich shop but there are 5 other brands nearby, will you be able to stand out? Or, if you're near a college, does the product appeal to students vs. professionals, etc.

To mitigate stress between you and your wife, maybe one of you can maintain a "regular" job until you get over the "hump". Also, as with any franchise, a retail one you'll have to be generally prepared for a certain lifestyle - for example, open 7 days a week, having high turnover low wage employees, etc. Doesn't mean it's bad, just know what you're getting into. Generally speaking, most franchises follow a formula and depending on your financial goals, you will probably want to open more than one unit over time. Once again generalizing, by my estimate, most franchises when running full tilt can generate $50K to $70K for a given location (exception to the rule would be something like McDonalds). At some point after owning one, more effort or employees will not incrementally grow the business and that's where you'll consider, a second location, etc.

Sorry for the long, rambling answer, just a stream of thoughts based on what I've considered or learned in past research. Feel free to message me with more specific questions and good luck! Hope that helps.

James Mingey ⋅ Oregon City, OR Veterans Business Services ⋅ 25 years experience

There are multiple ways to approach the mentoring and advice you seek. I would suggest you read E-Myth before you lock into any path or opportunity. That will help frame the strengths and aptitudes you have for the business.

If you are serious enough to complete that quick read then please contact me and I will help you form a strategy and action plan.

Good luck in all events!

Barron Evans ⋅ Ann Arbor, MI Customer Experience Change Management ⋅ 30 years experience

Foremost, thank you for your service. I encourage you to explore the broad-ranging assets on the International Franchise Association site ... http://www.franchise.org/ A lot of great resources, and the opportunity to network with those who've traveled your path before. Best wishes for success!

Richard Gauger ⋅ West Chester, PA ⋅ 35 years experience

Hi Jal,

You've gotten a couple good previous responses. Once you receive an FDD (Financial Disclosure Document) from the franchisor, you can review the details with a SCORE mentor or a franchise consultant. I would suggest that you and your wife discuss (if you haven't already) your financial goals. For example:
1. Can a single franchise unit meet your earnings objective?
2. Assuming the franchisor will give you exclusive rights for additional franchises in a geographic area, how many units would you expect to open? In what time frame? How will this expansion be financed?

Thanks for your service and best wishes for success.

Reed Benet ⋅ Birmingham, MI U.S. Marine Corps, Captain ⋅ 4 years served

Check out VetFran.com and HeroHomes.com. Note that with the latter one of your 2-5 unit properties can be commercial for your business.

John Green ⋅ Cary, NC Information Technology ⋅ 40 years experience

That's the point of paying the franchise fee. The people you purchase the franchise from are supposed to coach, mentor and guide you.

SCORE.org could be a source for more help regarding the creation of your business plan. The very first step, even before you purchase your franchise, is to write and vet your business plan.

https://www.score.org/business-plan-resources

You should do this before you take ANY OTHER STEP.

Michael Del Vecchio ⋅ Killingworth, CT U.S. Army, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 3 years served

Good Morning Chief,

Check out franchise opportunities with vetfran (http://www.vetfran.com/) and frannet (https://www.frannet.com/), Both are sanctioned by the SBA. The local SBA office does have a list of all franchises available to you - using a franchise consultant is a good move. Please be careful - run the break even numbers, an opportunity might not be as lucrative as you think as quickly as you think. A SCORE counselor can help (https://www.score.org/?gclid=CjwKEAjw07nJBRDG_tvshefHhWQSJABRcE-Z_xIkIaUL6PoXz8VwEhZ7_EAaeJWnVanvKYDaaldhcxoCpmTw_wcB).

Take care - welcome home.

Michelle Muckenthaler ⋅ Castle Rock, CO National CineMedia ⋅ 9 years experience

Do research on the industry, your local economy and stores you would share a name with. Determine if the food you're interested in is a trend or a staple. Look at the financial and menu history of the companies you're interested in, are they behind the curve for new offerings? Does that impact the (your) bottom line? What is the unemployment rate in your area? What kind of wage will you have to offer to entice good employees?
If you have a handful of franchises in mind, look for franchise owner forums. See how people feel about the relationship with the corporate entity. See if there is any pending legal action that could potentially impact franchisees in the future. If there are other franchise locations in your area, search for their Health Department reports. Failing inspections in one store could be a black eye for all stores.

James Bishop ⋅ Columbus, OH Morgan Stanley ⋅ 8 years experience

As said, there are many different types of franchises, franchise arrangements and capital commitments vary by each. A franchisor who makes sure you are well capitalized is making sure you can survive personally the start up time. There is enough other advice already that the only thing I will add is, a consultant of any value will put you through a personal evaluation of your abilities and interests to make sure that this will be a success.

I guess I feel need to add, remember food interests are changing. Look forward not backward.

Bill Blair ⋅ Holiday, FL Legacy Venture Group ⋅ 35 years experience

Jai:
I commend you on thinking about becoming an entrepreneur and getting your own business. I suggest you keep an open mind as you consider possibilities. Specifically I would suggest looking at existing businesses for sale. The advantages are:
1. proven history of success
2. proven cash flow
3.cash flow is immediate
4.existing customer base
5. business owner to act as mentor
6. seller pays commission on sale
7. opportunity to look at multiple businesses
I have been a business broker in Florida for over 10 yrs - have owned 3 businesses in over 20 yrs. I'd suggest you read all the "Buyer Articles" on my website www.imabusinessbroker.com it will give you good information about buying a business and selecting a business broker. The biggest advantage of buying an existing business is that it is currently creating a good cash flow for the owner. How much money you need to support your lifestyle, will determine the price you will pay. In Florida you can buy a business creating a $100k cashflow for less than $200k and the seller will finance a portion of the sale which gives you a mentor and leverages your initial investment. You need a good business broker to help you find some good businesses.
Contact me thru my website if you need some help.
Bill Blair
Realtec Business Brokers

Tim Gaughran ⋅ Gulfport, MS Real Estate ⋅ 20 years experience

Hey Jai,

Besides being a retired Marine, I was a Subway franchisee for twenty years. That franchisee is where the rubber hits the road. I can give you some insights into the actual management/ownership of a franchise restaurant or just a generic mom and pop restaurant. It is a tough biz, but you can do well. It's like anything else, some succeed,
some fail. The passion to work smart is the first step. You can email me any time at
tallahassee4@rocketmail.com and I would be more than happy to help.
Best,
Tim

Ted Mittelstaedt ⋅ Portland, OR Portlandia IT LLC ⋅ 20 years experience

I'm not sure if you are meaning that you want to buy a franchise and run a restaurant or whether you have a restaurant that you want to start franchising out.

My advice on this is if it is the former, unless you have 20+ years in food service - just say no! There's many other franchise opportunities out there than food service. Food service is cutthroat and requires utter dedication. Location is absolutely paramount, and most of the good locations are taken and the new ones that are opening up are usually grabbed by existing franchise holders who have been with the franchising organization for years and are "owed" If you have worked in the business for many years you will know all of the skeletons in the closet and you won't need advice, you will be able to go to a proposed location in advance and tell if it's going to work or not by gut feel.

If it's the latter - and you have a successful store that's generating money - then more power to you! For some reason there's an inexhaustible supply of people out there who want to run a restaurant and are sure that they are going to be successful where so many others have failed. You can make a lot of money from them and a few of them will even be successful.

J Rossman ⋅ Huntingtown, MD U.S. Navy, Petty Officer Second Class ⋅ 16 years served

There is a veteran who decided to become a franchise expert, Alexander Hildenbrandt.
If you are on linkedin, inmail Alex. Tell him that I sent you.

Cary Grossman ⋅ Houston, TX Shoreline Capital Advisors ⋅ 40 years experience

I have a lot of experience with starting and financing businesses and fair amount of experience with franchises. I'd be happy to schedule some time to visit with you and see if I can help.

I'm CDT. I could visit tomorrow mid-morning or anytime Friday morning. Let me know if either work or we can look at early next week.