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There’s a lot of debate on what to do if an FDD doesn’t present franchisees with the financial performance representation or if they do and it’s something small. If the franchisor you’re working with doesn’t provide you with any information on it, another good source to go to is the earning potential information for the […]

The Cover Pages of the FDD Every formal document will always start out with a cover page. On this (these) page(s) you should look forward to this information:   Summary of the franchise’s offerings and initial investment required. State that no government agency has verified the information in the document. Remind the franchisee to read […]

During the meetings with your franchisor, you will hear them make promises and you are likely to verbally agree to things. You’ll also read the FDD and the franchising agreement and will have to sign parts of both. All these experiences culminate into the end result of owning a franchise, but later down the line, […]

You should feel some security in knowing the law requires franchisors to inform franchisees about the systems they run in their companies. The information that the law requires franchisors to share should be found in the FDD and if it’s not, back away from the company because they are not in compliance with the law. […]

In short, the information you’ll find in the FDD includes:     A directory of franchisees in the system Audited financial statements Company’s key staff and their qualifications Company-owned locations, how many are open, how many have closed Franchisor’s financial history, including any bankruptcies or litigations Information on system-wide growth Information on the franchise Legal […]

While all parts of the FDD are important to not only read, but to understand, you’ll want to pay particular attention to these sections:   Item 7: Because it talks about how much the business will cost and the initial investment, it should be 100% understood, especially that these costs are only estimates and not […]

Working from Home With some franchises you’ll be able to work from home. This can save money in real estate and building costs and instead just go to constructing or designing a home office—but these franchises can be very specific and are often much smaller operations as opposed to opening your own McDonald’s location. Some […]

As you and your franchisor survey for the best possible franchising location, here are some places that you may or will end up looking:   Malls Usually large, enclosed spaces (but they also come with roofless walkways or an outdoor courtyard), malls are a staple for shopping and a great place to put your business. […]

Dual branding is when two or more franchises set up shop beside one another or within one another. Can you think of any high-bred franchises you’ve seen? A&W + Shell, Long John Silver’s + KFC, Walmart + McDonalds (or Subway in some cases), Target + Starbucks, Barnes and Noble + Starbucks – these are just […]

Franchising only works successfully when every single chain or franchise is in line with all the others, providing consumers with the same reliable services or products they are used to. However being consistent isn’t always that easy for the big chain or franchise. There are small design specifics that might work well in one place, […]

It all comes down to numbers. You’ll need to know how much is going and how fast so you can maintain your franchise inventory with as few things as possible going bad. During training with your franchisor, you should learn some things about keeping your inventory stocked and fully functional. If your franchise doesn’t have […]

Part of getting the ball rolling for your store is ordering the merchandise and supplies. You’ll have to have the shelves set up with anything you’re hoping to sell, or if you’re not a retail or restaurant business, you’ll have to stock yourself with the equipment for the job as well as the office supplies […]

By the time you’re receiving merchandise, you should have an office to keep your paperwork in. Before you have an office, you should be working on some sort of organizational system for any and all your paperwork because by this time you will already have a small collection of it from the franchisor, the contractors, […]

Now that you’ve located your place, it’s time to look into the process of securing it. The first thing to note is the landlord that you will be renting from, if you are renting and not purchasing. Some landlords might have a predisposition to not liking your franchise for personal encounter reasons or for having […]

Hiring a contractor can be very hit or miss. If you’ve ever done renovations on your home, you’ve probably had an experience with a contractor already and it might not have been the greatest. If you’re looking for a contractor, consider having a checklist available. Here are some good places to start:   Ask your […]

Any good franchisor will insist on training their franchisees prior to them opening. They will want to teach the franchisees any tools of the trade that they know to make their business successful because a successful franchisee means a successful franchisor. All franchisors will have different training programs, many use officers of some kind, some […]

Every franchise has a very specific design. While some may feature slight differences in layout or where something is located, they all more or less have the same look or feel to them to provide the customer with the same experience whether they’re walking into a your business in Wisconsin or New Zealand. When you’re […]

When looking into real estate whether it’s for your home or your business, the first thing you should always do is create a list of what is important to you and what it must have.  This can include details that are very specific to the type of business that you will be opening. Remember that […]

An effective leader is critical to the success of your business. Your employees will look to you as a leader when things go wrong or when they don’t have answers. A confident and effective leader also leads to more confident and effective employees so it’s important that you know your role and you take it […]

Discrimination, a scary word for managers, franchise owners, and hiring agents. Thanks to the law on discrimination, employers must be more careful with what they say and do. Discrimination practices through hiring, firing, promotion, and job assignment are not acceptable in the US ever since the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) created the law and […]