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How To Choose A Franchise
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Article 1: Is Franchising A Fit For You?
Franchises are successful businesses ($1.53 trillion annual economic output)—at least generally. Their sheer numbers (760,000) testify to their popularity and profitability—for the most part. Many former employees who worked for corporations or who ran their own companies found happiness and success as franchisees—with some exceptions.
Notice a pattern? Franchising isn’t for everyone. And every franchise isn’t for every franchise-minded person.
There is a wealth of material to help you understand how franchises are structured, what you can expect financially, operationally, the legal ins and outs and so forth. Check with the International Franchise Association, www.franchise.org, and the U.S. Small Business Administration, www.SBA.gov.
But before you go much further, it’s wise to first determine whether franchising is for you. Which type of franchise fits comfortably with your personal preferences, lifestyle and work style?
A successful franchisee is unlike other successful business people in important ways. If you’re a commander-in-chief personality with a my-way-or-the-highway work style, you probably won’t be a good franchise operator. If you feel stifled when following someone else’s game plan or consider yourself a loner, then you also probably aren’t prime franchisee material. On the other hand, if you’re strictly a nine-to-fiver at heart, franchising probably isn’t your cup of tea either.
The successful franchisee is a hybrid: neither too independent, nor the type that needs a boss hovering over the shoulder to get the job done.
Franchises typically are successful (with some exceptions), employing up to 10 percent of the U.S. workforce. That’s a good sign because failing businesses employ no one.
But a franchise also can be a nightmare if chosen for the wrong reasons. Make certain you are compatible with a franchise by avoiding incorrect and preconceived notions of what you are getting into.
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