Eight and a half years ago, I started working with Michelle. She had three young children – ages 7, 4 and 6 months – and she had started two retail businesses in New York. While both businesses were very successful, the lease was up on one and she was not planning to renew it. She wanted to add a franchise to the mix because of the structure and the marketing support it would offer her, as those had been weak links in the past.
This business was for her and would be in her name. Her husband was going to keep his job to cover the family expenses and help out as appropriate. She ran her current businesses on “auto-pilot” so she wanted another business that would fall under that same category.
She admitted that during the first two years she made some mistakes, but she followed the franchisor’s guidelines and business plan – and by the third year, she was cooking! Revenues topped a million dollars and she maintained either first or second place in the franchisor rankings.
As her business grew, her husband was able to leave his job. They had not planned on that initially because it was a stable job with a big company, but the opportunity was now better as a business owner. During this time he also took some accounting classes and oversaw the books.
Fast forward to today…I received a call from Michelle. They had decided to sell their very successful franchise. Their prospective buyer was impressed with the effective operation they had created. The buyer liked that the business ran so smoothly, that Michelle and her husband did not need to be present 7 days a week. In fact, they were only there a couple times a month, which he realized was true when they met him at the business early one morning and neither of them thought to bring the keys, because they never opened up!
Michelle’s husband had their finances in order and their books were clean. They sold their business for $2.1 million! It made for a very happy Christmas.
Michelle and her husband are now in the market for their next franchise and we are working together to find their perfect fit. They are taking the time to reflect on their past success and to plan ahead for an investment that will meet their new goals.
These are the stories I like to hear, because it means I have put my expertise and years of experience to work helping someone achieve success in life. I love what I do and the people I am privileged to work with. If you are contemplating a change and would like to know more about owning a franchise, please contact me. I would like to help you design your own entrepreneurial success story.
Let’s start the New Year with a new plan!