Why reinvent the wheel?
1 May, 2006 By: Sean Gallagher Landscape ManagementGreen Industry franchisors say they have systems that build profitable companies, but only if owners follow the plan and work hard.
Franchising has been a part of the lawn service industry almost since its beginning a half century ago. Many entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs still find it attractive. There are compelling reasons why.
When starting an independent business, you're investing completely in yourself and hoping you'll either know what you're doing or figure it out along the way. With a franchise, however, you plug into existing proven systems.
"Primarily, a franchise offers an upstart business the opportunity to take advantage of a recognizable brand," says Scott Frith, CFE, vice president of marketing and franchise development for Lawn Doctor, Inc. "With that advantage at the outset, the business reaps the benefits of immediate credibility. Additionally, a franchise allows someone new to the industry to benefit from time-tested support systems that reduce the learning curve. Essentially, a franchise mitigates risk and accelerates growth in many cases."
U.S. Lawns' Vice President Paul Wolbert agrees that operating a franchise opens the door to additional opportunities that wouldn't readily be available to most upstart businesses.
"In starting a franchise your background and previous experience doesn't matter," Wolbert says. "We can bring the technical side of the business."
Of course, franchising doesn't guarantee success. And it doesn't mean you won't work hard at building its success. When you acquire a franchise, you're not buying a job.
 Not for everybody |
"You have to market your business," Frith says. "There's no storefront to work with in our industry, so don't expect to put out a sign and see business start flowing in. Actively pursuing customers is a must. However, one of the great advantages that a Green Industry franchise has over many other franchise opportunities is that it allows franchisees to profit from a recurring revenue stream."
Don Dankowich, president of Weed Man, agrees and adds that the key to success in any industry is people.
"Ultimately, it still comes down to the people," Dankowich says. "It comes down to being good managers and a sense of having good skills in terms of finding the right people, training and motivating those people. You're only as good as the people around you."
How it works
In essence, franchising works like this: Once an interested party finds the franchise opportunity that seems to be the perfect fit, exercising due diligence to investigate all opportunities available, there's an upfront cost that usually covers licensing fees, the rights to use the brand and the franchise support systems, as well as a period of training.
All systems have unique models. For example, Lawn Doctor and U.S. Lawns operate as primary franchisors, awarding and supporting each franchise location from their respective corporate headquarters. Weed Man, however, awards and support its franchise locations through sub franchisors who develop specific regions of the country. That's not to say that the formerly mentioned models don't offer local support. Rather, most of the established systems will offer regional meetings, regular training opportunities and field visits from corporate staff, among other things, to support franchisees locally.
Consider all costs
Some of the things to consider when investigating opportunities include initial costs, vehicle costs, equipment and material costs, miscellaneous expenses related to the business, as well as personal and household expenses. But the tangible costs aren't all you should be thinking about when looking to open a business, franchise or not.
"Look for something that you're going to enjoy doing, because this is going to be a lifestyle change if you're not necessarily from the industry," Wolbert says. "You have to understand what the business is about and spend some time with the business."
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