Jeff Shaffritz on Franchising, Lifestyle Alignment, and Balancing Business with Family Life

1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:06,080 This is the Beyond Business Podcast with your host, Katherine Martin Fisher. 2 00:00:06,399 --> 00:00:10,480 Real entrepreneurs, real pressure, real decisions. 3 00:00:10,719 --> 00:00:15,644 We unpack what helped them turn a company into a business worth having without losing the life 4 00:00:15,644 --> 00:00:16,765 they actually want. 5 00:00:17,164 --> 00:00:20,925 We'll leave each episode with practical takeaways and action steps you can use right 6 00:00:20,925 --> 00:00:21,404 now. 7 00:00:21,804 --> 00:00:23,404 Let's go beyond just the business. 8 00:00:28,940 --> 00:00:31,739 Welcome to the Beyond Business Podcast. 9 00:00:31,739 --> 00:00:36,619 I'm Katherine, your host, 10x certified business coach, founder of Rocket Growth 10 00:00:36,619 --> 00:00:37,820 Business Advisors. 11 00:00:38,219 --> 00:00:44,734 And today I am so excited because we don't just go beyond the day to day operations of 12 00:00:44,734 --> 00:00:45,215 business. 13 00:00:45,215 --> 00:00:50,655 We dive into strategies, mindsets, and opportunities that help entrepreneurs create 14 00:00:50,655 --> 00:00:57,339 greater success, greater impact, and ultimately a legacy that lives beyond future generations. 15 00:00:57,739 --> 00:01:00,460 I'm excited to introduce you to Jeff. 16 00:01:01,259 --> 00:01:07,979 Jeff Shaffritz has spent more than three decades helping aspiring business owners 17 00:01:07,394 --> 00:01:14,275 navigate the world of franchising and identifying opportunities that align with their 18 00:01:14,275 --> 00:01:16,754 goals, lifestyle, and financial vision. 19 00:01:16,754 --> 00:01:20,435 So for many people, business ownership feels overwhelming. 20 00:01:20,435 --> 00:01:26,290 They want the freedom, the flexibility, and the opportunity to build wealth, but they don't 21 00:01:26,290 --> 00:01:28,689 necessarily want to start from scratch. 22 00:01:29,090 --> 00:01:36,115 And so that's where franchising can become a powerful avenue, providing proven systems, 23 00:01:36,115 --> 00:01:41,954 established brands, and support that can help entrepreneurs accelerate their journey. 24 00:01:42,355 --> 00:01:46,275 Jeff, welcome to our show, and thank you so much for being with us today. 25 00:01:47,170 --> 00:01:49,409 Catherine, thanks for that introduction. 26 00:01:49,409 --> 00:01:51,489 It's much appreciated and I'm really excited. 27 00:01:51,489 --> 00:01:55,090 Thanks for having me on the show and can't wait to talk to your listeners. 28 00:01:55,090 --> 00:02:01,025 So for those who do not know you, have not met you, why franchise? 29 00:02:01,025 --> 00:02:02,545 Tell us a little bit about your journey. 30 00:02:02,545 --> 00:02:06,465 What got you to this place of wanting to get into the franchise business? 31 00:02:06,465 --> 00:02:09,504 So it's the journey started at a very young age. 32 00:02:09,504 --> 00:02:11,745 This is the only thing I've done really. 33 00:02:11,745 --> 00:02:15,900 And I I got into franchising completely by accident. 34 00:02:16,939 --> 00:02:23,980 I was wanting to be in sports and sports management and had a a a internship in college, 35 00:02:24,379 --> 00:02:27,180 at the arena in Washington DC where I lived. 36 00:02:27,954 --> 00:02:33,474 And I was selling season tickets, and I ended up selling season tickets to an athlete's foot 37 00:02:33,794 --> 00:02:34,835 franchisee. 38 00:02:35,394 --> 00:02:39,314 And I let the person know I was moving to Atlanta with a bunch of friends after college 39 00:02:39,730 --> 00:02:41,409 and was looking to do something. 40 00:02:41,409 --> 00:02:41,969 He said, hey. 41 00:02:41,969 --> 00:02:43,330 Call these guys at the athlete's foot. 42 00:02:43,330 --> 00:02:44,770 That's where their corporate office is. 43 00:02:44,770 --> 00:02:46,129 And I went out. 44 00:02:46,129 --> 00:02:46,689 I interviewed. 45 00:02:46,689 --> 00:02:50,129 I thought I was gonna be selling franchises to professional athletes. 46 00:02:50,129 --> 00:02:54,625 I figured that was my in with the athletes, and there was none of that. 47 00:02:54,625 --> 00:02:56,064 But I I learned franchising. 48 00:02:56,064 --> 00:03:00,465 I fell in love with it, and and, I've been doing it since I was 23 years old. 49 00:03:00,465 --> 00:03:05,504 So one thing that I would love for our audience to know is what are some of the maybe 50 00:03:05,504 --> 00:03:08,705 misconceptions that people have about franchising? 51 00:03:08,705 --> 00:03:09,025 Yeah. 52 00:03:09,025 --> 00:03:11,370 That's a great question actually. 53 00:03:11,370 --> 00:03:16,810 I'm gonna there's a couple of misconceptions that I think people may have heard before. 54 00:03:16,810 --> 00:03:22,170 And then there's gonna be a couple of things that I say that I think are, you know, maybe a 55 00:03:22,170 --> 00:03:22,810 little bit different. 56 00:03:22,810 --> 00:03:31,584 And the first is the brand is, or the opportunity is the most important thing. 57 00:03:31,584 --> 00:03:33,985 And I argue that it's not. 58 00:03:33,985 --> 00:03:38,384 It's the person, is the most important thing who's buying the franchise. 59 00:03:38,949 --> 00:03:46,629 Because there are a lot of high quality brands that if you put the wrong person in place, it 60 00:03:46,629 --> 00:03:48,229 is not gonna succeed. 61 00:03:48,469 --> 00:03:54,235 And the wrong person might be an excellent business owner, but they but the business is 62 00:03:54,235 --> 00:03:55,034 not a fit. 63 00:03:55,435 --> 00:03:59,995 So the biggest misconception is you buy this franchise, you're gonna make a lot of money, 64 00:03:59,995 --> 00:04:03,754 but a lot of people mistake the fact that it's not just about that. 65 00:04:03,754 --> 00:04:07,490 It's about the person running executing that that that franchise. 66 00:04:07,889 --> 00:04:13,970 The second thing is, this is the one everybody thinks is franchising is just fast food. 67 00:04:14,530 --> 00:04:19,425 And franchising is absolutely not just fast food. 68 00:04:19,425 --> 00:04:23,345 It's a method of doing business that a company chooses as its growth strategy. 69 00:04:23,345 --> 00:04:24,944 So we're not gonna open a model ourselves. 70 00:04:24,944 --> 00:04:26,785 We're gonna we're gonna franchise it out. 71 00:04:27,105 --> 00:04:29,264 And it can be applied to any industry. 72 00:04:29,264 --> 00:04:37,419 So there's 75 industries in franchising, b to b, senior care, pets, fitness, wellness, you 73 00:04:37,419 --> 00:04:39,419 know, obviously food, but automobile. 74 00:04:39,419 --> 00:04:45,345 So home services, there's just so many different categories and people people aren't 75 00:04:45,345 --> 00:04:45,985 aware of that. 76 00:04:45,985 --> 00:04:52,785 You know, I love that you started with the people part portion of this because so how do 77 00:04:52,785 --> 00:04:54,944 you help a business owner? 78 00:04:54,944 --> 00:04:57,105 So if you're saying people is important, yes. 79 00:04:57,449 --> 00:05:01,930 They have to have do they have to have already knowledge of how to run a business? 80 00:05:01,930 --> 00:05:06,729 Should they have had a proven track record first before they decide to go into a franchise 81 00:05:06,729 --> 00:05:07,129 business? 82 00:05:07,129 --> 00:05:08,810 Because business is business is business. 83 00:05:08,970 --> 00:05:15,004 And if you are not if you don't have the tools in order to properly grow and and, you know, 84 00:05:15,004 --> 00:05:20,444 and expand a business, then even if you're in the franchise business, how do you provide that 85 00:05:20,444 --> 00:05:23,644 kind of support for the person that's gonna start a a franchise? 86 00:05:24,089 --> 00:05:24,490 Yeah. 87 00:05:24,490 --> 00:05:25,850 That's that's a really good question. 88 00:05:25,850 --> 00:05:31,689 And I think it's the the first thing you have to do when you're thinking about opening a 89 00:05:31,689 --> 00:05:36,889 business is kinda define what your life wants to look like. 90 00:05:37,129 --> 00:05:43,564 Because if you pick the business and and didn't define what the life looks like and the 91 00:05:43,564 --> 00:05:48,764 business doesn't give you anything that that you want out of life, then you might be 92 00:05:48,764 --> 00:05:50,524 extraordinarily frustrated. 93 00:05:51,165 --> 00:05:55,759 And and so I sit down with people and and try to get an understanding of what their goals 94 00:05:55,759 --> 00:06:01,519 are, what success looks like for them, you know, what their lifestyle is, you know, work 95 00:06:01,519 --> 00:06:06,240 life balance, what they're passionate about doing from a work perspective. 96 00:06:07,654 --> 00:06:14,055 And it's less about what the widget is and more about what the widget can do for you. 97 00:06:14,055 --> 00:06:21,014 So if I know what all of these criteria are and we build a model of this is what you want your 98 00:06:21,014 --> 00:06:26,790 life to look like, I can go find a business that fits that model that it it really 99 00:06:26,790 --> 00:06:29,589 shouldn't matter what it is that the business is. 100 00:06:29,589 --> 00:06:30,150 Right? 101 00:06:31,029 --> 00:06:36,389 And and so so that's the first step is is understanding that and then going to find the 102 00:06:36,389 --> 00:06:37,029 business really. 103 00:06:37,814 --> 00:06:43,654 And I think that's the biggest mistake people make is they see cookie franchise or a burger 104 00:06:43,654 --> 00:06:45,095 franchise, and they're like, wow. 105 00:06:45,095 --> 00:06:46,375 This thing is awesome. 106 00:06:46,375 --> 00:06:47,415 The line's out the door. 107 00:06:47,415 --> 00:06:48,855 If I ran this, I'd make a killing. 108 00:06:49,629 --> 00:06:54,430 What they don't realize is it it has none of the characteristics that they would want in a 109 00:06:54,430 --> 00:06:55,069 business. 110 00:06:55,149 --> 00:06:59,790 And and so if there's no alignment, it's it's not gonna be successful. 111 00:06:59,790 --> 00:07:06,324 You know, it's interesting that you said that because one of the things that I do find in in 112 00:07:06,324 --> 00:07:12,004 my training and Grant Cardone always says to us is you start with the target. 113 00:07:13,044 --> 00:07:20,750 And if you start with the target, then you find the avenue that's gonna lead you to the target. 114 00:07:20,750 --> 00:07:27,725 And most people start with a well, this is a good business idea and then they just go out 115 00:07:27,725 --> 00:07:31,965 trying to get to this target that's almost impossible for the model. 116 00:07:32,845 --> 00:07:37,004 And so you want to reverse engineer that and start with the target. 117 00:07:37,085 --> 00:07:41,404 So how do you help people identify what's going to be best for them? 118 00:07:42,350 --> 00:07:49,230 If let's say they just came to you with the idea already, how do you help them to navigate 119 00:07:49,709 --> 00:07:51,069 to a different idea? 120 00:07:51,069 --> 00:07:57,664 Well, you know, I have a process for how to investigate a franchise so that you you can 121 00:07:57,664 --> 00:07:58,384 follow this. 122 00:07:58,384 --> 00:08:04,944 And and if you do, the steps necessary, you'll be able to make an educated, decision. 123 00:08:05,185 --> 00:08:10,370 So when someone comes to me, if they have an idea, but we sit down first and we we talk 124 00:08:10,370 --> 00:08:15,810 about exactly what they're looking for, in in a business, and I understand everything. 125 00:08:16,290 --> 00:08:17,170 I'll say, listen. 126 00:08:17,170 --> 00:08:23,544 Take that idea and put it in the mix with these two or three other ideas that I think you would 127 00:08:23,544 --> 00:08:27,064 have never thought of because they wouldn't have crossed your mind. 128 00:08:27,464 --> 00:08:28,904 Maybe they're not sexy. 129 00:08:28,904 --> 00:08:32,585 Maybe they're, you know, a different industry than you would have thought of. 130 00:08:32,985 --> 00:08:37,080 And go through the process of evaluating these opportunities. 131 00:08:37,159 --> 00:08:40,600 And if your idea comes out on top, then great. 132 00:08:40,600 --> 00:08:42,360 You've done the research and it fits. 133 00:08:42,600 --> 00:08:47,154 But more often than not, it's not gonna come out on top because, you know, so many people 134 00:08:47,154 --> 00:08:50,514 want a business that it's Monday through Friday, nine to five. 135 00:08:50,514 --> 00:08:52,674 You're dealing with white collar employees. 136 00:08:52,674 --> 00:08:53,554 You're doing this. 137 00:08:53,554 --> 00:08:54,514 You're doing that. 138 00:08:54,835 --> 00:08:59,840 And they're then they're looking at a pizza shop, and it's not gonna give you any of that. 139 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:01,920 You're dealing with minimum wage employees. 140 00:09:02,080 --> 00:09:04,000 You're working weekends and evenings. 141 00:09:04,240 --> 00:09:10,160 You know, you've gotta have multiple units to to make nearly the kind of money you're making 142 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:11,279 in the corporate world. 143 00:09:11,679 --> 00:09:17,044 And to get to multiple units, you're gonna have to put a year and a half in of really learning 144 00:09:17,044 --> 00:09:20,404 that business and being there all the time, making a lot less money. 145 00:09:20,404 --> 00:09:23,924 And so, yeah, you know, once they start to realize that there's other types of 146 00:09:23,924 --> 00:09:28,620 opportunities that can give them the life they want, I think they start to gravitate to that 147 00:09:28,620 --> 00:09:29,100 point. 148 00:09:29,259 --> 00:09:35,420 Now why would you say it's maybe better for someone to look at franchising rather than 149 00:09:35,420 --> 00:09:37,420 starting their own business from scratch? 150 00:09:37,420 --> 00:09:37,660 Yeah. 151 00:09:37,660 --> 00:09:39,420 That that's a good question also. 152 00:09:40,725 --> 00:09:44,964 So let me first preface, and I'd like to say that franchising is not right for everybody. 153 00:09:44,964 --> 00:09:49,845 So there are some people that are true, true entrepreneurs and wanna create everything 154 00:09:49,845 --> 00:09:54,485 themselves and wanna run everything and pick the systems and do all that, and that's great. 155 00:09:55,029 --> 00:10:00,309 But the reason why people choose a franchise is because they're they're buying a system that's 156 00:10:00,309 --> 00:10:02,710 already been built and proven. 157 00:10:02,710 --> 00:10:03,110 Mhmm. 158 00:10:03,110 --> 00:10:08,629 And if they execute that system, it gives them a much better chance to succeed than if they 159 00:10:08,629 --> 00:10:10,230 tried to build it on their on their own. 160 00:10:11,065 --> 00:10:17,464 And and so you're you're shaving out years of trying to figure things out, and you're you're 161 00:10:17,464 --> 00:10:20,024 still gonna have to figure things out because it's a new business. 162 00:10:20,024 --> 00:10:26,179 But but you you've don't have to figure out how you're gonna brand it, who the customer is, how 163 00:10:26,179 --> 00:10:31,460 you market it, you know, who you market to, when to hire new employees, etcetera, etcetera. 164 00:10:31,460 --> 00:10:34,179 And so I think that's the the main reason. 165 00:10:34,179 --> 00:10:38,340 It gives you a huge head start to to, you know, start building your business. 166 00:10:38,340 --> 00:10:44,634 What would you say are the type of person that you feel are the most successful at franchise 167 00:10:44,875 --> 00:10:46,554 at having a franchise business? 168 00:10:47,115 --> 00:10:47,595 Yeah. 169 00:10:47,595 --> 00:10:52,875 I think that it's it's really important that you're you're coachable. 170 00:10:53,740 --> 00:10:57,980 That's first and foremost because there's a system, and and you're gonna come in and you 171 00:10:57,980 --> 00:10:59,980 wanna learn the system and be coached. 172 00:11:00,860 --> 00:11:04,220 I I think you you need to have leadership qualities. 173 00:11:04,379 --> 00:11:11,304 So you don't need to necessarily have industry experience, but you need to be comfortable and 174 00:11:11,304 --> 00:11:17,865 able to lead a team and motivate a team and, you know, you know, grow grow the business. 175 00:11:18,585 --> 00:11:24,220 And then depending on the type of business, you you might need sales skills or marketing skills 176 00:11:24,220 --> 00:11:25,740 or, you know, various things. 177 00:11:25,740 --> 00:11:29,820 But to me, it's coachability and leadership are the are the two criteria that's that's most 178 00:11:29,820 --> 00:11:30,460 important. 179 00:11:30,940 --> 00:11:33,259 That's with any business. 180 00:11:35,825 --> 00:11:40,945 That right there is the coachability piece is so important. 181 00:11:41,424 --> 00:11:46,704 And, you know, and having to fit into a model that is already set up, some people, you know, 182 00:11:46,704 --> 00:11:48,384 there are different types of people. 183 00:11:48,384 --> 00:11:52,840 And like you said, with the creative, sometimes creative entrepreneurs just wanna create 184 00:11:52,840 --> 00:11:53,720 everything themselves. 185 00:11:53,720 --> 00:12:00,679 But you do shave off years when a setup is already set for you, and then you just have to, 186 00:12:00,679 --> 00:12:02,840 you know, implement the processes. 187 00:12:02,840 --> 00:12:04,279 You have to execute. 188 00:12:04,279 --> 00:12:09,445 And so for for an executive or a business owner who's looking to diversify for argument's sake, 189 00:12:09,445 --> 00:12:14,004 you you don't have time to try to figure out everything of a new business, but you might 190 00:12:14,004 --> 00:12:20,899 have time to be able to, you know, put a manager in place and manage the manager and 191 00:12:20,899 --> 00:12:24,500 handle the administrative and build the culture of the organization. 192 00:12:24,740 --> 00:12:28,980 But you don't have time to get the first two years going where you're trying to figure 193 00:12:28,980 --> 00:12:30,419 figure everything out, basically. 194 00:12:31,325 --> 00:12:32,684 So let me ask you this. 195 00:12:32,684 --> 00:12:39,245 If you're someone who's in the corporate world, if, you know, is franchising only for people 196 00:12:39,245 --> 00:12:44,620 who are entrepreneur entrepreneurs, or is it someone who could be someone who has been in 197 00:12:44,620 --> 00:12:49,100 the corporate world for many years, but now has decided they wanna own their own business? 198 00:12:49,100 --> 00:12:51,420 Would you suggest that that would be a good move for them? 199 00:12:51,820 --> 00:12:52,220 Yeah. 200 00:12:52,220 --> 00:12:54,139 I think it's a great fit for a lot of people. 201 00:12:54,860 --> 00:13:00,735 The there's a couple things which which is nice because it doesn't necessarily have to be 202 00:13:00,735 --> 00:13:01,855 either or. 203 00:13:02,654 --> 00:13:07,455 But there are a lot of people in the corporate world now that especially with AI and, you 204 00:13:07,455 --> 00:13:12,350 know, a lot of people gonna are gonna have to figure out new opportunities. 205 00:13:12,429 --> 00:13:17,629 And they've got the skills from the corporate world. 206 00:13:17,790 --> 00:13:19,470 All of the things we just talked about. 207 00:13:19,470 --> 00:13:20,750 They've led teams. 208 00:13:20,750 --> 00:13:22,029 They've managed budgets. 209 00:13:22,029 --> 00:13:23,470 They just haven't done it for themselves. 210 00:13:24,434 --> 00:13:29,795 And and and so I think there's huge opportunity to make a change. 211 00:13:30,035 --> 00:13:33,154 But there's also a big opportunity since the pandemic. 212 00:13:33,154 --> 00:13:34,995 There's so many people working remote. 213 00:13:35,715 --> 00:13:40,779 And there are a lot of businesses that can be manager run from the start. 214 00:13:40,779 --> 00:13:45,179 So if you're in the corporate world and you have flexibility, but you can't give up that 215 00:13:45,179 --> 00:13:49,179 short term income, there are some really good options available. 216 00:13:49,179 --> 00:13:54,695 And I don't wanna paint the picture that you're not doing anything because it's not a stock or 217 00:13:54,695 --> 00:13:55,975 a piece of real estate. 218 00:13:56,214 --> 00:13:59,254 But there are definitely businesses where you could keep a job. 219 00:13:59,254 --> 00:14:02,134 You don't have to be at the business Monday through Friday, nine to five. 220 00:14:02,134 --> 00:14:09,529 And if you have flexibility, can can build a multiple unit type business that allows you in 221 00:14:09,529 --> 00:14:11,049 three years to have choices. 222 00:14:11,049 --> 00:14:15,289 You can leave your job and focus on that, keep your job and keep growing it or leave your job 223 00:14:15,289 --> 00:14:18,809 and now you've replaced income and you can come find something else that you wanna do. 224 00:14:18,809 --> 00:14:18,970 So 225 00:14:19,129 --> 00:14:25,035 So if somebody wants to start a franchise, what would you say would be you know, how much would 226 00:14:25,035 --> 00:14:27,674 it take to get started in a franchise? 227 00:14:28,475 --> 00:14:31,514 Well, that's the that's the great thing about what I do. 228 00:14:31,514 --> 00:14:35,920 There's so many different types of opportunities and so many different options 229 00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:36,639 available. 230 00:14:36,639 --> 00:14:41,920 And I work with franchises that are a $100 total investment to get into, and I work with 231 00:14:41,920 --> 00:14:46,800 franchises that are $34,000,000 to get into and everything in between. 232 00:14:46,879 --> 00:14:54,154 And and so what I tell most people is you need about 25% of what the investment is gonna be in 233 00:14:54,154 --> 00:14:57,754 cash, and then there's bank financing for the rest of it. 234 00:14:58,475 --> 00:15:04,529 But there's a lot of great opportunities that are lower investment that I will put high 235 00:15:04,690 --> 00:15:09,410 income earners in because they're very scalable without having to have storefronts. 236 00:15:09,410 --> 00:15:12,129 You don't have to spend $500 to expand. 237 00:15:12,129 --> 00:15:16,929 You put another truck on the road, hire another salesperson, you know, those types of things. 238 00:15:16,929 --> 00:15:23,095 So so there are some really fantastic lower investment, lower overhead options out there. 239 00:15:23,574 --> 00:15:28,134 And then are there finance opportunities to start a franchise? 240 00:15:28,695 --> 00:15:29,014 Yeah. 241 00:15:30,100 --> 00:15:36,740 The the SBA finances a lot of franchises, and there's definitely lenders out there that would 242 00:15:36,740 --> 00:15:38,179 would love to finance. 243 00:15:39,139 --> 00:15:47,195 Again, there's they they probably want you to come to the table with 20 or 25% of cash and a 244 00:15:47,195 --> 00:15:50,154 good credit and all the things that you would need for any kind of loan. 245 00:15:50,154 --> 00:15:52,394 But, yeah, there's plenty of lenders out there. 246 00:15:52,394 --> 00:15:58,795 And that's one of the things that we do is there there's companies that have all kinds of 247 00:15:58,795 --> 00:16:00,860 different funding avenues. 248 00:16:01,340 --> 00:16:06,940 And I I love to put people in touch with them because there's a lot of different options that 249 00:16:06,940 --> 00:16:08,139 people aren't even aware of. 250 00:16:08,139 --> 00:16:11,740 There's ways to use retirement without being penalized. 251 00:16:11,740 --> 00:16:14,245 There's security backed financing. 252 00:16:14,245 --> 00:16:15,685 There's home equity lines. 253 00:16:15,685 --> 00:16:20,245 There's, you know, traditional SBA loans, but there's all kinds of different, you know, 254 00:16:20,245 --> 00:16:21,764 options and opportunities out there. 255 00:16:21,764 --> 00:16:28,289 So what would somebody need to know about fees or royalties in a franchise model? 256 00:16:28,289 --> 00:16:32,129 Well, the franchising is very regulated by the Federal Trade Commission. 257 00:16:32,129 --> 00:16:38,529 So ultimately, you every candidate and anybody looking at an opportunity is gonna get a 258 00:16:38,529 --> 00:16:39,570 disclosure document. 259 00:16:39,570 --> 00:16:43,855 It'll say what all the fees are and and where they all fall. 260 00:16:43,855 --> 00:16:46,975 And I teach people again where where to find that stuff. 261 00:16:46,975 --> 00:16:52,334 But I have a interesting philosophy on it because to me, the fee is irrelevant. 262 00:16:52,334 --> 00:16:56,730 It's what does the how does the fee impact the business? 263 00:16:56,889 --> 00:16:57,290 Right? 264 00:16:57,290 --> 00:17:04,410 So if you have a 5% royalty with a franchisor that's in a low margin business, 5% might be 265 00:17:04,410 --> 00:17:05,369 way too much. 266 00:17:05,609 --> 00:17:10,534 And if you have a 10% royalty with a franchisor giving you fantastic support and a very high 267 00:17:10,534 --> 00:17:14,375 margin business, 10% might be great. 268 00:17:14,375 --> 00:17:15,815 Everybody's making a lot of money. 269 00:17:15,815 --> 00:17:21,335 And so too too often, I think people look at like, oh, they're charging a lot of royalty or, 270 00:17:21,690 --> 00:17:24,490 the franchise fees a little higher or things of that nature. 271 00:17:24,490 --> 00:17:29,369 And those things are an important component, but not you gotta look at how it affects the 272 00:17:29,369 --> 00:17:31,210 business and what you're getting in return, basically. 273 00:17:31,210 --> 00:17:35,690 And how long would it take, would you say, for someone to start seeing a return on their 274 00:17:35,690 --> 00:17:39,244 investment when from the time that they've started that franchise? 275 00:17:39,484 --> 00:17:39,884 Yeah. 276 00:17:39,884 --> 00:17:41,325 That's a that's a good question too. 277 00:17:41,325 --> 00:17:44,525 And it it it's so hard because it depends on the business. 278 00:17:44,525 --> 00:17:50,045 It's almost like saying if you owned a business, how how long would it take for a 279 00:17:50,045 --> 00:17:50,445 return? 280 00:17:51,039 --> 00:17:57,359 And some businesses are gonna take more time because you're building, you know, up an asset. 281 00:17:57,599 --> 00:18:03,680 Some businesses, there are b to b business coaching or expense reduction franchises where 282 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:07,804 you could be the only employee and you you pay a franchise fee, you go out. 283 00:18:07,804 --> 00:18:10,365 And if you land an account the next day, you're making money. 284 00:18:10,365 --> 00:18:17,804 So I I usually tell people that the first twelve months, you know, go into it, figure 285 00:18:17,804 --> 00:18:22,319 you're not gonna make any money, plan for that, you know, make sure you've got living expenses 286 00:18:22,319 --> 00:18:24,079 covered if you're leaving your job. 287 00:18:25,759 --> 00:18:31,039 Then if things happen sooner than that and you're you know, that's that's a nice surprise. 288 00:18:31,119 --> 00:18:35,724 But what you don't wanna do is go into it and, you know, expect to start making money right 289 00:18:35,724 --> 00:18:39,085 away, and then it takes a little longer and and you put yourself in a bad position. 290 00:18:39,085 --> 00:18:39,244 So 291 00:18:39,404 --> 00:18:47,130 Give me an example of someone that you've worked with that you just you know, every day, 292 00:18:47,130 --> 00:18:51,929 there are times where we go into things and then there's this moment. 293 00:18:52,250 --> 00:18:58,169 And you're so excited as to why you did this and why it was the best decision for your life. 294 00:18:58,329 --> 00:19:03,154 And you don't have to mention the person's name, but just, like, an example of someone 295 00:19:03,154 --> 00:19:04,994 that you've worked with that that's happened with. 296 00:19:05,474 --> 00:19:05,875 Yeah. 297 00:19:05,875 --> 00:19:12,914 I, you know, I recently just did a a deal with a gentleman who was in the corporate world, 298 00:19:12,914 --> 00:19:18,650 very high level executive with a major company. 299 00:19:19,049 --> 00:19:26,809 And he he was looking at different opportunities, and we ended up looking at a few 300 00:19:26,809 --> 00:19:30,730 things in the in the health and wellness and fitness category, and he moved forward with a a 301 00:19:30,730 --> 00:19:31,690 fitness franchise. 302 00:19:33,144 --> 00:19:42,585 But just the the the change on his life from the stress that he had in the in the corporate 303 00:19:42,585 --> 00:19:48,860 world for what he's doing to the pleasure he's having now being the face of, you know, 304 00:19:48,860 --> 00:19:54,539 something that he's passionate about as a as a person, but it's a great business model. 305 00:19:54,779 --> 00:20:01,644 And so he's gonna be developing at least three locations of this fitness business and taking 306 00:20:01,644 --> 00:20:06,204 all of the things that he's learned in the corporate world, but just the fact that he 307 00:20:06,204 --> 00:20:10,524 doesn't have to worry about, you know, job security anymore. 308 00:20:10,765 --> 00:20:15,359 He doesn't have to worry about corporate politics anymore, and he's doing something that 309 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:16,080 he loves. 310 00:20:16,080 --> 00:20:17,440 It it know? 311 00:20:17,759 --> 00:20:21,680 And this is coming up now because I've been recently chatting with him. 312 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:25,119 He's opened his first, and he's about to open a second, unit. 313 00:20:25,359 --> 00:20:31,994 And so when I look at changing lives and and helping people get out of situations that maybe 314 00:20:31,994 --> 00:20:35,515 they weren't even bad, they were making decent money, but they're just weren't happy. 315 00:20:35,515 --> 00:20:41,059 It's it's fantastic to see see people take control of their life and and and change their 316 00:20:41,059 --> 00:20:41,779 lives for the better. 317 00:20:41,779 --> 00:20:47,299 So a lot of times people, they make decisions because when they open a business, they want, 318 00:20:47,940 --> 00:20:50,899 you know, the freedom, financial freedom. 319 00:20:50,899 --> 00:20:52,579 They want the flexibility of time. 320 00:20:53,744 --> 00:21:01,025 What give us an example with does franchise ownership actually what does it look like in a 321 00:21:01,025 --> 00:21:01,664 day to day? 322 00:21:01,664 --> 00:21:02,065 Yeah. 323 00:21:02,065 --> 00:21:02,784 Absolutely. 324 00:21:02,785 --> 00:21:10,789 So I I think if you're gonna go full time in the business, I I it looks like I think any 325 00:21:10,789 --> 00:21:11,509 business would be. 326 00:21:11,509 --> 00:21:15,829 Meaning, you're you're out and you're and you're and you're building up the business. 327 00:21:15,829 --> 00:21:19,349 And it could be a lot of different things depending on what the what the business is. 328 00:21:19,865 --> 00:21:26,585 But the goal for a lot of people is as you build the business to be able to scale it so 329 00:21:26,585 --> 00:21:29,865 that you don't have to be trading time for dollars. 330 00:21:29,865 --> 00:21:30,184 Right? 331 00:21:30,184 --> 00:21:33,080 And so the day to day could be different. 332 00:21:33,080 --> 00:21:38,359 It could be you're inside of a retail store or it could be you're, you know, calling on 333 00:21:38,359 --> 00:21:42,200 customers or managing employees or or doing things to start. 334 00:21:42,519 --> 00:21:50,044 But I I think the biggest difference that people value in business is that you can build 335 00:21:50,044 --> 00:21:52,284 it to where you're not trading time for dollars. 336 00:21:52,684 --> 00:21:55,325 And the corporate world is great. 337 00:21:55,325 --> 00:21:56,845 You can make a lot of money. 338 00:21:56,845 --> 00:21:58,524 You get a few weeks of vacation. 339 00:21:58,524 --> 00:21:58,924 You know? 340 00:21:58,924 --> 00:22:03,539 You you hope that continue rising up or getting new jobs. 341 00:22:04,500 --> 00:22:12,100 However, you always have to work or you have no money coming in. 342 00:22:12,100 --> 00:22:17,525 And the biggest difference I think for the for the business, and I know we got off track a 343 00:22:17,525 --> 00:22:22,164 little bit, but when you say a day in the life, but the biggest difference in a business is it 344 00:22:22,164 --> 00:22:27,169 could be whatever you want the day to be to focus on, a, because it's your business, but 345 00:22:27,169 --> 00:22:32,049 you can build it to a point where you're just overseeing the business. 346 00:22:32,049 --> 00:22:35,569 And if you wanna go away for two weeks, you you can go away for two weeks. 347 00:22:35,569 --> 00:22:40,049 It's still your business, but, you know, you you you don't have to ask anybody for 348 00:22:40,049 --> 00:22:44,664 permission to leave, to take vacation, know, money's coming in without you being there all 349 00:22:44,664 --> 00:22:45,065 the time. 350 00:22:45,065 --> 00:22:48,984 And that's the goal is to build something that can run without you basically. 351 00:22:48,984 --> 00:22:55,544 And that's the goal in any business actually, is being able to have a model that you are and 352 00:22:55,544 --> 00:23:00,589 that comes with that leadership skills and people skills, adding people to the equation. 353 00:23:00,670 --> 00:23:04,910 When you add people to the equation, it actually gives you more freedom and being able 354 00:23:04,910 --> 00:23:06,349 to duplicate oneself. 355 00:23:06,349 --> 00:23:10,910 So franchising is no different from any other business and being able to grow and expand that 356 00:23:10,910 --> 00:23:12,269 business and have that model. 357 00:23:13,595 --> 00:23:24,555 Now, have trainings or are there So let's say, for instance, you let You can pick one and it's 358 00:23:24,555 --> 00:23:31,049 a specific franchise, would there be like quarterly meetings or ways in which to help the 359 00:23:31,289 --> 00:23:37,130 the owner continue in their leadership journey and being able to get better at doing business 360 00:23:37,130 --> 00:23:38,809 and being able to grow that business? 361 00:23:38,809 --> 00:23:39,369 Is that something 362 00:23:39,529 --> 00:23:40,329 There should be. 363 00:23:41,130 --> 00:23:46,595 And most franchisors have annual conferences. 364 00:23:46,674 --> 00:23:53,154 Most have various meetings, you know, that they do or platforms where franchise franchisees so 365 00:23:53,154 --> 00:23:54,994 the franchisees are the ones who own the franchise. 366 00:23:54,994 --> 00:23:56,754 Franchise or it's the parent company. 367 00:23:56,755 --> 00:24:02,829 So most franchisors have, you know, platforms where franchisees can can get together and 368 00:24:02,829 --> 00:24:06,190 share ideas as well, and and those things are really helpful. 369 00:24:06,190 --> 00:24:13,404 I would tell you that as you're looking at a franchise, asking the right questions, making 370 00:24:13,404 --> 00:24:19,484 sure that the franchisor has the a good system, support for that system, training for that 371 00:24:19,484 --> 00:24:26,089 system, ongoing training for that system, Those are important questions to ask as you're as 372 00:24:26,089 --> 00:24:27,609 you're learning about the franchise. 373 00:24:27,769 --> 00:24:32,329 But that's a huge advantage of a franchise is that you you get all that stuff with it. 374 00:24:32,329 --> 00:24:39,855 Now what would you say is the advantage to a person with a family in owning a franchise and 375 00:24:39,855 --> 00:24:43,294 how does that look different from being employed in a business? 376 00:24:43,294 --> 00:24:47,054 So I think that's a really interesting question. 377 00:24:47,054 --> 00:24:52,430 And, you know, again, a lot of it depends when when you're starting your business, you might 378 00:24:52,430 --> 00:24:54,269 not see your family quite as much. 379 00:24:54,590 --> 00:24:59,789 But but a few years in, you're gonna see your family a lot more probably than than you would. 380 00:25:00,509 --> 00:25:02,190 And you can control your schedule. 381 00:25:02,830 --> 00:25:14,734 What I what I think is that people who grow up in a family of entrepreneurs have such a 382 00:25:14,734 --> 00:25:20,170 different mentality than people who grow up in a family that worked in corporate America. 383 00:25:20,170 --> 00:25:24,890 So I grew up in a family that worked in corporate America, but my children grew up in a 384 00:25:24,890 --> 00:25:29,049 family that, you know, I I was an entrepreneur. 385 00:25:29,130 --> 00:25:33,065 And they have a a completely different outlook on life. 386 00:25:33,065 --> 00:25:39,384 I mean, it's amazing to me, what they're doing and how they started really young in their 387 00:25:39,384 --> 00:25:46,000 teens with baseball cards and all kinds of different things, you know, focusing on 388 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:48,000 business, and they love it. 389 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:53,680 And I and so I just I think it's a great thing to do for a family is is to be able to, you 390 00:25:53,680 --> 00:25:55,600 know, obviously, their struggles with the business. 391 00:25:55,600 --> 00:26:00,605 I don't wanna just paint a rosy picture for everything, but to, you know, to be able to see 392 00:26:00,924 --> 00:26:06,845 your your parents have flexibility to be there for all their your events to help them grow, to 393 00:26:06,845 --> 00:26:13,900 instill that kind of entrepreneurial attitude, I think it's a huge difference being being a 394 00:26:13,900 --> 00:26:14,779 business owner. 395 00:26:15,099 --> 00:26:19,579 And, you know, I one thing I would say is my kids are now older. 396 00:26:19,579 --> 00:26:21,179 They're 25 and 21. 397 00:26:21,740 --> 00:26:32,234 I got into franchise consulting after I got downsized because of 02/2001, basically 398 00:26:32,234 --> 00:26:34,794 happened, the the World Trade Center. 399 00:26:35,515 --> 00:26:37,835 My son was born first son was born August 29. 400 00:26:38,279 --> 00:26:39,960 September 11 happened. 401 00:26:39,960 --> 00:26:45,480 September 26, they downsized the franchise division, and I had to figure out my own way. 402 00:26:46,039 --> 00:26:49,240 And I probably wouldn't have gone into business at that point. 403 00:26:49,240 --> 00:26:51,080 And and I ended up going into business. 404 00:26:51,974 --> 00:26:57,494 I never missed any one of my kids' events ever. 405 00:26:57,974 --> 00:27:02,694 I'm not saying I didn't work hard or work harder or think about business, but I know you 406 00:27:02,694 --> 00:27:07,414 know, if I had something at 03:00, I somebody else thought I had a meeting at 03:00. 407 00:27:07,549 --> 00:27:15,230 So, you know, it it made you know, being in in business allowed me to to be available for my 408 00:27:15,230 --> 00:27:16,589 family when I wanted to as well. 409 00:27:16,589 --> 00:27:23,684 So what would you say is a lesson that you've learned from from helping hundreds of people in 410 00:27:23,845 --> 00:27:27,684 the franchise business, and what what do you feel that someone should hear? 411 00:27:27,684 --> 00:27:28,005 Yeah. 412 00:27:28,005 --> 00:27:36,190 I I mean, I I think the biggest lesson I learned is that money is very important. 413 00:27:36,190 --> 00:27:40,829 And to some people, it's the most important thing, but it's not the most important thing to 414 00:27:40,829 --> 00:27:41,789 a lot of people. 415 00:27:41,869 --> 00:27:46,989 And when I was younger, I think that's all in my mind I was focused on. 416 00:27:46,990 --> 00:27:52,294 And as I've gotten older, I realized it's it's building the kind of life you want and the 417 00:27:52,294 --> 00:27:55,414 lifestyle you want and the, you know, flexibility you want. 418 00:27:55,414 --> 00:27:59,254 And those are the the the criteria that are the most important things to me. 419 00:27:59,254 --> 00:28:05,700 So figure out what is important to you and what's driving you and then go find something 420 00:28:05,700 --> 00:28:08,099 that takes advantage of that basically. 421 00:28:08,099 --> 00:28:12,019 So that that's the the most, you know, I think the most important lesson I learned. 422 00:28:12,019 --> 00:28:18,365 What legacy do you hope to leave through the people that you've helped in becoming business 423 00:28:18,365 --> 00:28:18,845 owners? 424 00:28:18,845 --> 00:28:26,765 Well, I just hope that that the people I've helped will leave a legacy for their family and 425 00:28:26,765 --> 00:28:32,119 their kids and teach their children, you know, how to be self sufficient and become 426 00:28:32,119 --> 00:28:33,159 entrepreneurs. 427 00:28:33,159 --> 00:28:40,440 And so that's that's really the most important thing for me is is really helping people change 428 00:28:40,440 --> 00:28:42,359 their lives, you know, for the better. 429 00:28:42,679 --> 00:28:46,039 And listen, sometimes if the business doesn't work out, it still is better. 430 00:28:46,204 --> 00:28:50,845 People there are times where people go into a business and they don't work out, but they say, 431 00:28:50,845 --> 00:28:55,325 would never go back to corporate America and they go find another business that does work 432 00:28:55,325 --> 00:28:55,724 out. 433 00:28:55,724 --> 00:28:56,045 You know? 434 00:28:56,045 --> 00:28:59,164 So I I, you know, I try my best. 435 00:28:59,164 --> 00:29:03,619 Obviously, I want every every business to work out, but I think when you go off and you do 436 00:29:03,619 --> 00:29:08,980 something on your own, you you you rarely do I see people wanna go back to the corporate 437 00:29:08,980 --> 00:29:09,940 world, basically. 438 00:29:09,940 --> 00:29:14,900 They love that freedom, the flexibility, and just that the the ability to be able to be 439 00:29:14,900 --> 00:29:18,445 creative and and, you know, be who you're meant to be. 440 00:29:18,445 --> 00:29:19,085 Right? 441 00:29:19,164 --> 00:29:20,204 A 100%. 442 00:29:20,765 --> 00:29:26,285 So I wanted to ask you, Jeff, if your children and your grandchildren were listening to to 443 00:29:26,285 --> 00:29:34,339 this podcast in twenty years, what would you want them to know that you helped people create 444 00:29:34,339 --> 00:29:38,019 opportunities, freedom, better future through business ownership? 445 00:29:38,180 --> 00:29:41,059 What what is it that you would want them to know? 446 00:29:41,059 --> 00:29:45,700 What what message would you want them to to have gotten out of this podcast? 447 00:29:45,700 --> 00:29:47,174 It's a really good question. 448 00:29:48,214 --> 00:29:55,335 I I really would want them to know that I spent my life trying to help people better themselves 449 00:29:55,494 --> 00:30:02,500 and build the life that they want to build and and and have done it the right way base you 450 00:30:02,500 --> 00:30:11,139 know, ethically, morally, you know, in terms of just doing my best to put people in the best 451 00:30:11,299 --> 00:30:12,819 positions that they could be in. 452 00:30:12,819 --> 00:30:17,744 And I don't wanna say everything's always been perfect, but it wasn't for lack of of effort. 453 00:30:17,744 --> 00:30:22,464 And I've changed a lot of people's lives for the better that we're stuck in situations that 454 00:30:22,464 --> 00:30:26,625 that they didn't wanna be in, and nothing makes me happier than seeing someone else, you know, 455 00:30:26,625 --> 00:30:27,265 succeed. 456 00:30:27,265 --> 00:30:33,690 So and then I hope my children go on to to to do their own things, and and build build a 457 00:30:33,690 --> 00:30:34,730 legacy for themselves. 458 00:30:34,730 --> 00:30:36,970 I love that you've you've shared that. 459 00:30:36,970 --> 00:30:43,554 And, you know, you've recently taken a family, trip, and I what are some of the things that 460 00:30:43,554 --> 00:30:49,075 you love enjoying with your family and because of the choices that you've made? 461 00:30:49,075 --> 00:30:56,910 Well, my kids actually had, I I love that I was able to give them a great life. 462 00:30:56,910 --> 00:31:02,910 They had a lot of experiences that allowed them to travel around the world when they were in 463 00:31:02,910 --> 00:31:06,029 high school and college and, you know, do all kinds of different things. 464 00:31:07,555 --> 00:31:09,075 And I didn't go with them. 465 00:31:09,075 --> 00:31:15,714 So in those cases so they they they they were able to go out and experience, different 466 00:31:15,714 --> 00:31:16,275 things. 467 00:31:16,674 --> 00:31:21,059 But we've been able to do a lot of things together like that. 468 00:31:21,059 --> 00:31:27,859 And my youngest son, you mentioned I was away, was in Spain for the semester studying. 469 00:31:28,339 --> 00:31:36,025 And my oldest son who lives in New York now, he flew in and took a week off and he went to 470 00:31:36,025 --> 00:31:37,625 Morocco with my wife and I. 471 00:31:37,625 --> 00:31:41,785 And then my younger son met us in a couple places in Spain and then we all flew together 472 00:31:41,785 --> 00:31:43,065 back to Barcelona. 473 00:31:43,625 --> 00:31:47,970 And I was gone for about two and a half weeks And it was amazing. 474 00:31:47,970 --> 00:31:52,529 Most people aren't in a position to be able to take two and a half weeks off and still, you 475 00:31:52,529 --> 00:31:54,850 know, run their business and keep everything going. 476 00:31:54,850 --> 00:31:59,329 And and so just the the the times we've been able to travel together. 477 00:31:59,650 --> 00:32:06,394 And then I would say both both my children are boys, which isn't as great for my wife, 478 00:32:06,394 --> 00:32:11,434 although she loves them, but, you know, I know she would she she gets overwhelmed a little bit 479 00:32:11,434 --> 00:32:15,660 with these sports discussions, but I've been able to, you know, just enjoy so many different 480 00:32:15,660 --> 00:32:21,099 sporting events and and cool experiences with with them that, you know, I don't think I would 481 00:32:21,099 --> 00:32:23,339 have been able to do if I hadn't been in business for myself. 482 00:32:23,339 --> 00:32:27,339 Well, Jeff, I am just so grateful for this conversation that we've been able to have 483 00:32:27,694 --> 00:32:28,414 today. 484 00:32:28,494 --> 00:32:34,254 And, you know, to our listeners, if today's episode sparked your interest in the franchise 485 00:32:34,255 --> 00:32:39,535 and or business ownership, I encourage you to continue learning, asking questions, and 486 00:32:39,535 --> 00:32:41,615 exploring possibilities available to you. 487 00:32:41,910 --> 00:32:49,269 Now, Jeff, I do wanna ask you, as I say that, how if someone is interested in learning more, 488 00:32:49,430 --> 00:32:50,789 how do they reach out to you? 489 00:32:50,789 --> 00:32:56,070 How do they find you in order for you to be the person that they connect with to learn more 490 00:32:56,070 --> 00:32:56,950 about franchising? 491 00:32:57,744 --> 00:32:58,144 Great. 492 00:32:58,144 --> 00:32:58,544 Thank you. 493 00:32:58,544 --> 00:33:02,065 The easiest way there's there's gonna be two things. 494 00:33:02,704 --> 00:33:08,224 One is my website, which is just www.franchiseguidance.com. 495 00:33:08,304 --> 00:33:10,384 Got a ton of information on there. 496 00:33:10,625 --> 00:33:12,865 You can contact me directly from there. 497 00:33:13,640 --> 00:33:18,920 But I also have a website just for this podcast and for the listeners of your podcast. 498 00:33:19,000 --> 00:33:25,559 They'll have, like, a survey on there about franchising, a quiz you could take, and and or 499 00:33:25,559 --> 00:33:26,839 you could schedule a call. 500 00:33:27,160 --> 00:33:34,335 And I I think you'll be able to just put that on top of the the the podcast, which will 501 00:33:34,335 --> 00:33:38,974 probably be easier than me trying to figure out what you know, the the website. 502 00:33:39,134 --> 00:33:44,549 But the franchiseguidance.com website, you can find me easily and and a lot of information 503 00:33:44,549 --> 00:33:45,990 about franchising as well. 504 00:33:46,309 --> 00:33:46,950 Alright. 505 00:33:46,950 --> 00:33:51,269 Well and for our listeners, you'll definitely wanna check our additional notes as well. 506 00:33:51,430 --> 00:33:55,910 It will give you all of the contacts and communication, a little more information about 507 00:33:55,910 --> 00:34:02,004 Jeff so that you can learn more about him and, and you have an opportunity to reach out. 508 00:34:02,325 --> 00:34:08,885 So the right opportunity could be the vehicle that helps you create the life, the business, 509 00:34:08,885 --> 00:34:11,045 and the legacy that you've always envisioned. 510 00:34:11,329 --> 00:34:14,530 Thank you for joining us at the Beyond Business Podcast. 511 00:34:14,769 --> 00:34:20,449 My name is Katherine, and remember, your voice matters, your business matters, and your dreams 512 00:34:20,449 --> 00:34:21,090 matter. 513 00:34:21,570 --> 00:34:23,250 Thank you for joining us today, Jeff. 514 00:34:23,264 --> 00:34:23,824 Thank you. 515 00:34:23,824 --> 00:34:25,344 Thank you, Katherine, for having me. 516 00:34:25,344 --> 00:34:27,184 It's been an absolute pleasure. 517 00:34:27,184 --> 00:34:30,464 I really appreciate the opportunity to be on with you. 518 00:34:30,545 --> 00:34:31,505 Well, you're welcome.