Monday, May 7, 2007

Franchisor Ethics; Do You Have the Right to Sell Your Concept as a Franchise?

Most reasonable people will a still that if a franchisor is selling franchised outlets to the public then they have a viable business concept that is profitable. However, this may not always be the case and to assume this is risky if you are a franchise buyer. I would agree that if you are a franchisor and you have perfected your business model then absolutely you have the right to sell it to others to help them achieve their American dream of owning their own company or franchised outlet.

Although as a retired Franchisor and now consultants I have in the past had new franchisor entrants want me to consult them and I ask them how long they have been in business and they have maybe 3-years total including the day they got their business license before opening? You think to yourself what? How can anybody and thickly with two sell franchises when they have not perfected their own business or prototype model?

But then comes the real kicker and one, which just makes me cringe as a franchisor consultant; then these would be Franchisors tell me when I ask how much capital they have they say that they have approximately $35,000 available.

This is a scary thought indeed; why you ask, well it takes a million really to franchise a concept and you burn thru it fairly quickly unless you do not mind eating Top Ramen, putting in lots of hours and treating the money like you earned it washing dishes at $5.15 per hour. If you are thinking about franchising your current business please consider all this in 2006.