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Browse our selection of franchise articles and features to help further your knowledge in opening and operating a franchise business. Our exclusive features cover the , , , , , , and site of the franchise business. Written by the editorial team that produces Franchise Update Magazine and Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine, the franchise industries premier magazines.

Working from home. It sounds like a great idea to many people. A home-based business removes the need for a long and often frustrating commute through daily rush hour traffic. It can offer flexibility in your schedule like never before. No corporate red tape or office politics to bother with. You can exercise and workout from your home because the "office" is just in the next room. The list of positive attributes could go on. What's more, today there are literally dozens of home-based franchising opportunities for you to explore - depending on your interests, skills, and abilities. As if all of that were not enough, the initial investment for a home-based franchise is usually significantly lower than, say, a retail franchise that requires leasing space and purchasing expensive equipment and supplies.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 14,910 Reads 1 Shares
While some franchisees receive real estate assistance from their franchisors on their new locations, very few franchisees receive help from their franchisors on their lease renewals. Since 1993, I have been coaching franchise tenants and speaking at franchise shows regarding commercial leases and lease renewals.
  • Dale Willerton
  • 7,744 Reads 1,023 Shares
Non-traditional retail business locations such as airports, hospitals, and universities have become popular (and successful) business opportunities for some franchise brands that are actively on the grow. These types of locations usually offer plenty of customers and often only a few choices for food, beverage, and beyond. It's a perfect combination. Now add Bruegger's Bagels, Fazoli's Restaurants, Friendly's Ice Cream, Smokey Bones Bar & Fire Grill, and Timothy's Coffees of the World Inc., to that list of progressive franchise operators looking for new opportunities.</p>
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 3,752 Reads 7 Shares
Franchise Update Media Group (FUMG), the leading industry resource for franchise development, introduces "Multi-Unit Leadership-in-a-Box," an off-the-shelf, interactive, and multimedia franchisee training resource, developed in partnership with Sullivision.com. This program is based on three years of research that details the best practices and leadership insight of over 1,000 high-performing franchisees and multi-unit leaders. Customizable for any brand, Multi-Unit Leadership-in-a-Box is a complete leadership class that's instantly ready to teach and guaranteed to boost sales at least 1% in each market.
  • PRESS RELEASE
  • 4,562 Reads 14 Shares
After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania and Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, Danny Sonenshine quickly found himself working as a litigator and transactional attorney at major firms in Orange County. It didn't take long for the Laguna Beach native to realize a few things about himself--realities that led him to leave the practice of law after six years for the very different field of franchising and restaurants.
  • Debbie Selinsky
  • 14,348 Reads 2 Shares
Franchise Update Media Group (FUMG), the leading industry resource for franchise development, today announced that registration is now open for the 2010 Multi-Unit Franchising Conference, where keynote speaker and former Super Bowl winning coach Mike Ditka will share his "Playbook for Success." The conference will be held March 24-26 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
  • PRESS RELEASE
  • 3,821 Reads 7 Shares
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) have been an instrumental component in franchising over the past two decades, particularly as a growth vehicle for expanding companies. Historically, most transactions in franchising have concentrated more on the "A" than on the "M." Some of the primary drivers for this have been cultural and business trends deeply entrenched within franchising. However, the current global financial crisis and franchising's own changing dynamics may alter this.
  • Dean Zuccarello
  • 5,966 Reads 1,014 Shares
Franchise Update Media Group (FUMG), the leading industry resource for franchise development, today announced that registration is now open for the 2010 Multi-Unit Franchising Conference, where keynote speaker and former Super Bowl winning coach Mike Ditka will share his "Playbook for Success." The conference will be held March 24-26 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
  • PRESS RELEASE
  • 3,248 Reads 1 Shares
It sounds cliched, but leadership really does begin at the top. It's the attitudes and behavior of the CEOs, VPs, and other executives who set the tone for how well the franchise brand operates and grows. What's modeled at the top trickles down to all other areas of the brand. Optimism, integrity, teamwork, and recognition are all characteristics of strong leadership. Amazingly, leadership and a culture of healthy productivity are not that difficult to create. As you review franchise brands - talking to both franchise executives and franchisees - keep an eye out for the following signs.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 19,787 Reads 1 Shares
When people chat with Dustin Winkle about the economy's effect on their business, he doesn't say much. He doesn't want to make anybody feel bad. Because the truth is that the economic downturn has been very good for his 11 dry cleaners in the Boise, Idaho, area. "Dry cleaning is pretty recession-proof, so we're doing fine money-wise," Winkle says. "When I bought the company two years ago, the economy was already starting to slide down. Things have been a little slower, but not a lot."
  • Debbie Selinsky
  • 6,669 Reads 1 Shares
Whenever I speak at a franchise convention, I inevitably meet many struggling franchisees leasing commercial or retail space. These tenants desperately need a rent reduction ... right now. The recession is taking its toll on all industries including franchising; sales are down, business expenses are rising, and the high cost of leasing space is closing in on tenants. Your monthly rental payment to the landlord can be one of your biggest monthly expenses. Therefore, reducing this monthly lease payment is imperative for businesses like yours to stay viable.
  • Dale Willerton
  • 9,431 Reads 747 Shares
The Human Bean
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Last issue we began the discussion of how buying assets out of bankruptcy court is time-consuming but usually easy - when done properly. But if you try to pick and choose, it can become more difficult. It's hard to determine a fair value for such assets. If you're not careful you could find yourself back in court fighting angry creditors who think you've cheated them.
  • Barry Kurtz and Nevin Sanli
  • 5,375 Reads 169 Shares
Gaining access to and securing capital is more important for franchisees today than ever. Every week we talk with multi-unit franchisees about how they are growing and the kind of financing it takes for them to achieve their goals and objectives. It's an important topic and sometimes we get some very candid responses.
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 6,371 Reads
Let's face it, if you are looking into franchising, there's a pretty good chance that one of the reasons is that you are in search of a "culture" or leadership style that is a better fit than your career has been providing you thus far. Maybe you're coming from a background of working for a heavy-handed boss or a system that rejected forward thinking. You're beginning to see that strong leadership and a good cultural fit are important for your personal and professional success. Many franchise brands can offer this. When you begin searching for a franchise that might be a good fit for you, you will definitely want a sense of the system's culture and its leadership style. For example, when you begin dealing with the sales person, take careful note of their attitude, tone, and overall personality dynamic. Do they seem to really believe in the brand? Do they seem truly interested in telling you about the brand and determining if you would be a good fit? Chances are these "gatekeepers" are a reflection of the entire system.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 17,783 Reads 4 Shares
Cell phones have become big business and the competition in the market can be fierce. Not surprisingly, social media tools are finding a niche in this industry, too. One example is three young entrepreneurs in the Northeast who have found a way to use Facebook and other social media tools to give them a competitive edge.
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 7,349 Reads 105 Shares
There's a year-end ritual I've always hated. No, it's not those standard resolutions to eat better, exercise more, and clean the piles off my desk. Worse. It's being asked to forecast where "X" will be in a year, "X" being the level of the Dow, the price of gold, the yield on short-term Treasuries, etc.
  • Carol Clark
  • 4,262 Reads 1 Shares
Anand Gala never planned on getting into the family business of operating franchised fast food restaurants. What he had planned on was medical school. But as he was working his way through his med school interviews, it dawned on him that he just wasn't all that interested in medicine. He's never looked back.
  • John Carroll
  • 11,352 Reads 1 Shares
Each year at Franchise Update we survey franchisees across the U.S., toting up their brands, units, and locations, and ranking them by size for our annual "Mega 99" list. And, since not all franchises are created equal in terms of initial investment and ongoing support, we also compiled a second list, ranking the largest franchisees by industry. Numbers are important, of course, but they don't tell the story of the struggles, false starts, and failed endeavors each successful multi-unit operator has overcome in building their organization. Many have spent decades building their companies, brand after brand, unit after unit.
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 9,576 Reads 11 Shares
Bret Hooppaw, Luihn Food Systems' director of operations, had an "Aha!" moment when his 19-year-old daughter said she'd applied online for a summer job. When he asked, "Why don't you just go over there and apply in person?" her response was, "Nobody does it that way anymore, Dad." That's when Hooppaw, who helps oversee 90 KFC and Taco Bell locations, realized instant communication technologies are second nature to the Millennial generation--those who make up most of today's frontline employees--who will be his managers 5 years from now and who will be the organization's leaders in the next 5 to 10 years. "I knew I had to find a way to meet them on their ground," he said.
  • Mel Kleiman
  • 4,142 Reads 8 Shares
Glen Helton's lifelong career in franchising began as a teen with his first job at a Burger King in Fayetteville, N.C. Today the Texas native is president and COO of Strategic Restaurants Acquisition Corp. (SRAC), which operates 271 Burger Kings and 17 T.G.I. Friday's across 9 states. Helton, along with SRAC's CEO, Jerry Comstock (former Bennigan's CEO), have become known for turning underperforming restaurants into profit generators. They did it for the 226 Burger Kings they acquired out of bankruptcy 5 years ago, and they also have added 45 new ones. Today they're applying their turnaround skills to the 16 T.G.I. Friday's in New York and Florida that they bought out of bankruptcy in August 2008.
  • Debbie Selinsky
  • 10,796 Reads 1,189 Shares
It's not difficult to see the opportunities offered by co-branding. Teaming related concepts together in one central location can certainly offer benefits in many situations. But even if you don't co-brand in the same location, there's a related twist some franchisees have used effectively by turning to complementary brands. Portland, Oregon multi-unit operator Steve Foltz knows all about the technique. Foltz got into the franchising business almost by accident following college in the mid-1980s. He was working as an assistant manager at a restaurant while job searching when he realized the restaurant business might offer a future of its own. A friend of his was in franchising and looking for a partner. Within a year the new partners had opened three Cinnabon's in the Portland area.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 24,003 Reads 3 Shares
Movita Juice Bar
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Jason Shifflett learned early in life that Domino's Pizza could offer him the keys to a successful life--and that he plans you make in your youth don't always come to pass. "I started with Domino's at age 14 and worked my way up in high school," says Shifflett. In college, he was a biology student and planned to attend medical school. He continued to work at Domino's as a general manager--and learned a few things there too.
  • John Carroll
  • 4,214 Reads 71 Shares
David Timlin of Yakety Yak discusses the changes of technology and it's effects on the franchise industry.
  • Inside Franchising Podcast
  • 6,555 Reads 5 Shares
Ricky Warman already knew a lot about finance when he left his job as an investment manager for Prudential Securities in Miami to start a life in franchising in the early 1990s. Warman was a friend of Jenny Craig and started in franchising with nine Jenny Craig weight loss centers. He would go on to try other franchise brands, including Schlotzsky's. Today he's wholly committed to the Papa John's brand, operating 42 pizza locations. (He had 53, but recently sold 11.)
  • John Carroll
  • 9,459 Reads
Ben presented us with a situation common to many business owners who find out too late they are not in a position to exit on their terms. Ben had founded and built a very successful business supply business. He had customers across the country and was consistently earning solid profits under his management. He had decided he was ready to retire in the near term.
  • Nicholas K. Niemann and Andrew Horowitz
  • 5,683 Reads
Looking to open a new franchise location? You might want to consider using Facebook. That's what multi-unit franchisees like Adam Saxton are doing - and they're getting results. When the Saxton Pierce Restaurant Corp. was looking to open a new McAlister's Deli location in Texas last spring, the company called on Facebook.
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 6,407 Reads 279 Shares
Thomas "Tab" Broome has spent most of his professional life in the restaurant and franchise business. He's seen it all - learned a lot - and is one franchisee who knows how to manage a chain of restaurants. His professional story begins with a restaurant group in Raleigh, N.C. At the time, the company ran a string of Darryl's restaurants - a place that looked a lot like Applebee's, only with a little more variety and flair - a group of 11 Pizza Inns, and the Angus Barn. General Mills swooped in and bought the pizza places and family restaurant business and Broome got a chance to work for a large restaurant corporation.
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 3,944 Reads 32 Shares
Gaining access to and securing capital is more important for franchisees today than ever. Every week we talk with multi-unit franchisees about how they are growing and the kind of financing it takes for them to achieve their goals and objectives. It's an important topic and sometimes we get some very candid responses.
  • Multi-Unit Franchisee
  • 6,470 Reads
Buying assets out of bankruptcy court is time-consuming but usually easy. But if your target is a franchisee and you get choosy - meaning, for example, that you want to buy only 10 outlets in a bankrupt 20-outlet franchise restaurant chain - things get dicey. Why? Because it's hard to determine a fair value for such assets, and if you fail to do so, you could find yourself back in court fighting angry creditors who think you've cheated them.
  • Barry Kurtz and Nevin Sanli
  • 4,551 Reads 57 Shares
I love Tivo. At least, I used to. But then I had to interact with live people. Now this is not the beginning of a rant about bad service. It's the beginning of a rant about bad service design. Because when employees are directed to follow processes that drive customers crazy, that failure of service design is management's responsibility.
  • Jack Mackey
  • 5,203 Reads 340 Shares
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