FAQs about Franchises

There are many questions that go along with getting yourself into a franchise operation. If you are the owner of the franchise then you particularly want to know all the specifics about owning a franchise, so here are some questions and answer that many people will typically ask the company directly in order to know where to begin first.

Franchise Question #1: How Much Capital Do You Need?
Answer: The most obvious concern that one should think about before approaching a company for one of their franchise businesses is how much startup capital they will need. Most of the time this answer will be laying right out in the open, but it's okay too if one decides to approach the company directly and ask how much he or she will need.
Many times the company will have a startup capital requirement, but then again some companies are only concerned about getting their fees that are associated with a franchise being able to use the company name, logo, and reputation. On the same note, it would be a good plan to pay the startup or initial fees of the company with cash instead of relying on a business loan for the money. Considering the fact that many franchises will need to get business loans anyway for all types of supplies and other necessary furnishings the best route to take would be to essentially pay for your franchise with cash!

Franchise Question #2: Where Will You Get Supplies?
Answer: Perhaps the next thing that a franchise owner will want to know before he or she actually starts opening the business is where the supplies will come from. When dealing with company headquarters there are many different rules and regulations that are associated with each type of franchise. Some companies will require the franchise owner to purchase the supplies, such as seating, chairs, and cash registers from a specific company that furnishes all of their company's store branches, but there may be other companies that have real loose guidelines about the whole issue. One must make sure, though, that he or she knows all the ins and outs of furnishing the store with supplies before any agreement is ever made!

Franchise Question #3: Am I required to Advertise?
Answer: This is a very important issue in and of itself. Many would-be franchise owners don't realize this, but the advertising that is done for the franchise is actually done by the company itself! Some of the fees that are required to be paid by the franchise include advertising fees, and these advertising costs and fees are supposed to be used by the company in order to generate advertising and marketing for the franchise itself.
Such advertising methods may include special discounts that are given on a monthly basis, coupons that are placed in newspapers, and customer appreciation days. Of course, if the franchise is allowed to advertise in whatever way the owner sees fit then no advertising fees may have to be paid, but knowing what exactly is required is of utmost importance before advertising for the franchise itself! …Read more >>

Choosing a Franchise

There are hundreds of options to choose from when it comes time for you to decide to open up a franchise of your own, but there are some important considerations that one must think about prior to doing so. Even though it may seem important to you to jump right into a franchise opportunity with both hands tied behind your back, being so careless about owning a franchise is just one way to enable a failing franchise from the outset!

Nevertheless, many people do jump into purchasing a franchise of a company before they really think about what type of a franchise they truly should be running. If you are one that is prone to quick thinking decisions then here are some things about choosing a franchise that you should consider:

Your Interests

Even though you've probably heard over and time again that it is very important to think about your interests when opening a franchise, this could very well be an indicator and predictor of whether or not your chosen franchise will sink or swim! Do you want to own a restaurant franchise? Is opening up a restaurant franchise something that you will be able to keep up for years on end? Even though franchise opportunities, such as upscale restaurants like The Olive Garden, The Golden Corral or another company may seem like a very profitable direction to take, you may not feel like owning the franchise is ten to fifteen years, although many franchise contracts usually require a minimum of twenty years.

Indeed, then, it is truly important to think about what you like doing in your spare time that should lead you to what types of franchise opportunity that you want to open up. For example, if you love watching sports games on television than you may just think about opening up your own sports memorabilia franchise so that you'll be able to watch and be surrounded by the things you love all day long. On the other hand, if you love working with cars then perhaps opening an automobile accessory franchise is the thing for you. In the end, spending time with things that you are passionate about is very important so as not to get too burnt out on the work that you have to do each day in order to make the franchise survive!

Opening your own Store!

Even though owning a franchise can seem like a tempting option to choose, another avenue that many people overlook before heading to the franchise aisle is to open up their own business. There are many advantages to owning your own business rather than having a company franchise, and some of the benefits include being able to dictate what you will do with your own store, as well as how you'll decorate the company store you've created!

All in all, these are some of the most important things to think about when it comes to opening up your own franchise and possibly starting a company of your own. Many people open up franchises everyday with the intent to succeed only to find out later that they are about to close up shop! Finding a franchise opportunity that is good for you will definitely help you in the long run!
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Popular Franchise Companies

Owning franchises in the United States is just one way to raise capital for yourself and for your business. There are all sorts of reasons why one might want to invest in a franchise on their own, and there definitely are some popular franchises in the United States. If you have ever wanted to know about what's required when owning a franchise of a certain company then here is the information that you need.

Here's a trivia question that you can take home to your family, though: what franchise has been ranked #1 many times over? You probably could very well guess what it is, and if you were thinking McDonald's Restaurant you were exactly right. There have several times when McDonald’s Restaurant has been ranked #1 for the food category it's been placed in, but here are some other interesting facts about owning a McDonald's franchise:

The McDonald's Franchise

Did you know that there are more than 11,000 McDonald's franchises all over the United States? Indeed, McDonald's has seen tremendous growth in the restaurant level over dozens of years and it has essentially created a world filled with Chicken McNuggets, Big Macs, and Ronald McDonald characters. But it's actually easy to see why owning a McDonald's franchise is popular, and it's actually not as expensive as everyone would have thought.

In order to have a McDonald's franchise about the only thing that is required of the franchisee is to have a cash liquidity value of about $100,000. In addition, the franchise fee for owning a McDonald's is set right at about $45,000 and the total investment that one is required to put forth when creating a McDonald's franchise restaurant altogether is somewhere between half-a-million dollars and one-and-a-half million dollars!

On the other hand, owning a McDonald's franchise restaurant is well worth the opportunity, which is why many franchisees see it as a golden opportunity. Considering the fact that many McDonald's franchises make well over $1 million per year, having a McDonald's franchise under your belt may be just the thing you need. In return, though, be prepared to pay a hefty royalty fee to the McDonald's headquarters, which is currently set right at about twelve percent!

Burger King is Much More

You may be surprised to find out, however, that when it comes to owning a franchise, Burger King is more all over. The franchise fee is more, the total franchise investment is more, but the only thing that is less is actually the royalty fee, which is just around five percent! Who would have thought that owning a Burger King, though, would be more expensive than a McDonald's franchise? In fact, a Burger King franchise costs just about double what a McDonald's franchisee is required to have available and pay.

Nevertheless, these are two of the most popular franchises throughout the United States. The McDonald's Corporation is definitely raking in the dough, but the comparison up against their fast food restaurant rival, Burger King, is interesting as well.
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Learning to Manage a Franchise

There are many people who own franchises around the world. But if you have yet to jump on the franchise bandwagon there are definitely some things about owning one that you may want to consider. If you have ever dreamed of owning your own company or store, yet have lacked the talent or drive to create your own company from the ground up, a franchise is a simple store that will allow you to have the popularity that you want, but the experience of owning your own store.

Essentially, franchise owners are store owners, except that they're simply using the reputation of the company in order to succeed. There is nothing wrong with this practice, however, because millions of people throughout the world engage in the practice of buying and owning franchises of another company.

If you are set on owning a franchise, though, there are some principles about managing one that you probably should know! For starters, the first thing to realize about owning a franchise is that it is like your own mini-store that has been cloned from another one. You are the boss of the franchise and you are also able to hire out the managers, employees, and whole operation of the franchise altogether! Essentially as the franchise owner you are the one who will be responsible for the actions of the employees and you are also the one that others will go to with questions, concerns, and even emergency situations.

Managing a franchise, if you are the franchise owner, definitely requires patience and steadfast diligence. Starting any company is hard enough, but starting one that has already had years of experience to gain a reputation may be even harder simply because you have standards that have already been set. In other words, the expectations of the people that visit your franchise are no different from the expectations that they have at any of the other store locations!

Another thing that managing a franchise entails is the ability to trust. There are many people who buy franchises for the sake of having a revenue stream that they can count on, but this also involves hiring managers and assistant managers that you'll be able to trust to run the store. Assuming that you won't be there for much of the time as store owners rarely ever are, the head managers are the ones who will deal with employees, guests of the business, and other customers as well! This all goes back to hiring the right kind of people and you'll definitely want to hire the right people for the job of managing the restaurant if you choose not to be involved the majority of the time!

Learning to manage a franchise could be a great learning experience and there are all sorts of reasons why you may want to invest in one. As mentioned, franchises are essentially using the reputation of an already-established company in order to grow and earn money! In fact, franchise stores are the backbone of many different types of businesses in our society, and without them there would be many people at a loss!
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Researching a Franchise Opportunity

If you have ever wanted to open up your own store but simply don't have the talent or the patience to do so, one of the things that you might consider is opening up a franchise of a company where you're living. Chances are that you have been thinking about the lack of businesses or the needs of the consumer in your area that are not fulfilled right now, which is one reason that makes owning a franchise such a tempting opportunity.

Although there are plenty of risks associated with owning a franchise, if you are not accustomed to owning your own large store then there may be some questions, albeit a lot of questions, that you'll need help with in the beginning. In addition, if you are new to the whole franchise idea then some of your questions might be immediate. But there are plenty of places where you can go in order to find out more about a specific franchise opportunity. Here are some great resources, though, if you would like your franchise questions answered immediately:

An Independent Franchise

The first place that you could possibly direct your questions to is another franchise owner. Considering the fact that many franchise owners are not usually involved with the day-to-day operation of the franchise business itself then franchise owners may actually not mind speaking with you. These are the people, though, who are the most experienced with opening up their own franchises and can easily guide you and inform you with the correct information so that decisions will be easier. Some independent franchise owners may even tell you about whether or not owning a franchise is a profitable venture, but chances are that many times they will endorse the opportunity!

Authority Resources

Another place to go to if you want to know more about that Taco Bell or Wendy's Hamburgers franchise opportunity is the Entrepreneur magazine. The Entrepreneur magazine has both a print publication and an online version of their magazine that you can purchase. In addition, their website is filled with all sorts of good information about how to get started with franchises, the facts about how much money it takes to own a specific franchise you may be interested in, as well as the qualities and considerations that a prospective future franchise owner should make. In addition, though, the Entrepreneur resources will be able to give you the lowdown of virtually all the franchise opportunities in the United States. Entrepreneur is definitely a trusted resource for finding this type of franchise information.

Franchise Brokers

On the other hand another valuable resource that you may have at your disposal is a franchise broker. Franchise brokers are certain individuals that usually get paid a certain percentage of the startup fees that you'll have to pay, but they can be a valuable resource in the fact that they can give you all the secrets about a certain company and what many franchise owners' opinions might be of them!

All in all, there are plenty of places to go to in order to thoroughly research a franchise opportunity. Even though there are plenty of other places to start rather than with another franchise owner, Entrepreneur magazine, and franchise brokers, these places are definitely good sources of franchise information! …Read more >>

Home-Based Franchise Opportunities

If you have ever wanted to own a franchise for yourself there are plenty of ways to go about doing so. Even though you may have previously thought that owning an actual store or restaurant franchise is not for you, there are actually some good alternatives to those traditional types of franchises. A few of the opportunities that are starting to actually catch on are in the home-based franchise arena and there are plenty of good opportunities that exist within this market if your whole goal is to create a decent income stream and opportunity that will last for many years on end!

Owning the Internet

Even though everyone knows that it was Al Gore who created the internet, there are actually many people who consider themselves internet owners. However, managing the internet is not what is being discussed here, but providing internet services to many places across your town and the surrounding areas is just one home-based franchise business opportunity that has gained popularity in recent years. This business opportunity is actually called WSI International, and this home-based franchise does just what was described above.

What franchise owners of the WSI International company do is to provide internet services to various businesses throughout the area. The low-cost options are perhaps some of the reason why this franchise opportunity has gained strength in recent years. But what better service could franchise owners perform than to provide businesses that already have too many expenses a way to actually save money on one of the resources that they frequently use, the internet?

Providing Bouquets

Even though a flower shop franchise might actually be a good investment for a franchise, a home based franchise opportunity that is actually quite different from other businesses is called Candy Bouquet. Instead of sending regular flowers and bouquets to your friends and family one possible option that you may have is to create a candy bouquet. These products were started by Margaret McEntire in 1989 and her joy of providing bouquets of flowers that were actually made out of candies and chocolate pieces brought her more joy than anything else. She was so successful with this venture that she started franchising her operations only 4 years later, but this is a great franchise opportunity to get involved with!

Of course, there are plenty of other franchise opportunities and businesses that are just great for home-based businesses and individuals who don't want to bother with the regular and traditional store-front ownership. In fact, a few of the most popular service franchise opportunities for home-based individuals is actually in the home-cleaning and commercial cleaning arenas, such as Jani-King, Bonus Building Care, as well as the Jan-Pro Franchising International opportunity. Who would have thought that a service that started out cleaning business professional buildings would be turned into a franchise at some point in time? However, these are some of the popular franchises that people can choose from.

Nevertheless, though, home-based businesses are perfect for pretty much anyone and offer many of the great benefits of owning any sort of franchise whatsoever! …Read more >>

What is a Franchise?

There are many different types of business opportunities but one of the opportunities that many people seize on a regular basis is the chance to create a genuine revenue stream by owning part of the company. These are actually most always called owning stock in the company, but there is also another way to look at this scenario as well. If you have ever wondered exactly what a franchise is, but have never really had the opportunity to explore everything that went along with it, here is the perfect chance to learn about everything you wanted to know about starting a franchise!

The Franchise Experience

What exactly is a franchise, though? Simply put, a franchise is an extension of another company; they use the same signs, advertising methods, products, and services of the company that it was derived from. Virtually any type of business is able to be franchised if the terms are set forth in the company contract. For example, restaurants such as McDonald’s, Burger King, and even Wendy’s have the ability to be franchised. Other stores, such as Starbucks, specialty retail stores, as well as plenty of other restaurants and stores have the ability to create a franchise of themselves. In other words, franchises are essentially clones of the company, but the franchise owner is able to make separate decisions apart from the company itself.

Owning a franchise, though, shouldn't be confused with owning an actual store of the business. Depending on what the franchise is and where it is located, one might have more luck owning an actual store of the business than he or she would with owning a franchise! However, that issue is debatable, but a franchise owner is able to experience all of the same situations as the company owners are.

Even though the company that had a franchise created of themselves still has some control over the franchise itself, such as the specific foods that are used if the franchise is a restaurant, there are some decisions that the franchise owner can make that will have no impact on the company as a whole. For example, franchise owners are typically allowed to change the seating style in his or her restaurant or store, as well as the prices of the products themselves. In certain cases, certain aspects about the products can also be changed with the consent of the company. If you own a franchise, though, the best thing to do would be to contact the company itself to make sure you are allowed to make changes without negating the whole contract!

All in all, franchises are great experiences to have and there are all sorts of benefits one can enjoy from owning one. They are definitely great opportunities to take advantage of if you have the capital to get started! Franchises are essentially clones of another company, and in this way franchise owners are able to make most of the decisions and experience the whole business on their own! …Read more >>