Where Is The Best Location To Open Your Franchise?
One critical factor to consider when you are thinking about opening a franchise is whether your location is suited for a franchise and which franchise suits your area the best. One thing that makes this consideration slightly easier is the notion of franchise territories. Most, but not all, franchises in the US are set up so that they grant exclusive territorial franchise rights to their franchisees to help prevent the issue of geographic competition.
The technical specifications for how a territory is allocated can vary from franchise to franchise. Some define them by geographical boundaries like streets, counties, or states, but others will have them simply defined as a radius surrounding each location. Regardless of how the territories are setup the general role of territories are the same. You as the franchisee have exclusive rights to the brand within that area. In doing so the franchise is suggesting that the territory you are granted has enough potential customers to allow your business to thrive. While it ensures you a protected area during the growth stage of your franchise it can also create pain points in the future.
As a franchise expands and the majority of its original territories are accounted for a risk begins to emerge. They can either stop expanding, or they can instead expand into pre-existing territories. This is beneficial for the franchise as a whole because they can service more customers, but for the old franchisees it cuts into their potential customer base. This is a cause of frustration for some older franchisees who have seen their territories cut away.
By and large exclusive territory agreements are extremely beneficial for both franchisees and franchisors. However, just like the other major factors of the franchising agreement they are issues that need to be discussed and negotiated during the application and decision process. As a potential franchisee you should make sure you understand what your territory agreement means and any recourse you may have if your franchisor decides to expand a new franchise into your territory.
Franchise Hurdles
The first point I made ties into this, but you need to make sure you’ve done your research before you go ahead and sign a franchising agreement. And that doesn’t just mean from a financial perspective. There are so many other aspects in running a franchise that you need to understand before you get started. Most of this information can be found in the Franchise Disclosure Documents. Some of the most important things you should take a look at would be any legal issues the franchisor might have and the churn rate of franchises. Both of those could potentially be pretty significant red flags that might make you want to reconsider whether or not you want to open that franchise.
What Industry Should I Explore In 2020?
It’s already a month into the new year and 2020 new year resolutions aside, it is a good time to take a look at your business plans for the year, whether you’re looking to start a new business or buy a franchise. Many budding entrepreneurs still have the big question of which industry has the most potential for them to dive into looming over their heads. If you are one of them, fret not - take a look at some of these insightful trends we have discovered.
Franchise Ownership in your 50's
It may feel like a magical moment, but it is anything but a parlor trick. In fact, business ownership for those in the 50+ age cohort is largely one of the fastest growing and most stable demographics, owing to several key factors that are strongly correlated with increase in age.
