Franchises...If it Ain't Broke...

By Barry Jark

If you have been searching for a franchise opportunity, undoubtedly you have run across many adjectives such as “unbeatable”, “unparalleled”, and “unsurpassed”. Everyone thinks that their “people make the difference”. Or that their technology is “cutting edge”. They advertise that they are “innovative” or the “industry leader”.

In my opinion there are few new novel ideas. Most franchisors have a business model that is very similar to others. Very few are really very innovative. They have a twist on a proven business model which was designed and proven by someone else. For example, how many different types of coffee shop franchises are there? Everybody sees the success that Starbucks has had (sorry, they are not a franchisor). So, naturally it makes sense that there are many copycats. Another example is all of the pizza franchise opportunities available today (the only thing that is “cutting edge” about the pizza industry is the really cool knife that they use to cut the pizzas). But even a copycat can have a successful business model.

Often times a franchisor will take a proven business model and add additional products or services. They will put a twist on it. For example, Maui Wowi is a Hawaiian coffee franchise that also serves smoothies. While the coffee industry is very saturated with many players, the smoothie industry is largely untapped. While the two products may not seem to go hand in hand, it obviously works as Maui Wowi has 320 franchised units.

An example of a really nice pizza franchise opportunity that I like is Villa Pizza. They have over 40 years of operational knowledge and over 300 locations. They have a high awareness of industry trends and they emphasize mall, airport, outlet center, and casino locations. Once again, this is not your typical Pizza Hut. They have taken a proven business model and customized it to fit more unique locations. Is it a novel idea? No, more like a twist on a proven idea. But it works.

What I am trying to tell you is that “boring” can be a good thing. A proven business model is very important. Of course a franchise that has many current locations gives you another advantage. Name brand recognition.

If you are seriously considering starting your own business, buy a franchise. And when you start looking at franchises, look for franchises that have a proven business model with many current locations. Maui Wowi and Villa Pizza are great examples.

While a new franchise that really does have a new innovative idea can sound enticing, be wary until it is proven. Let someone else take the risk.
 
If it “ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, right?

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