Becoming a Franchisee—Is it Worth It?
Evaluating whether becoming a franchisee is worth the effort and investment is a must before you commit to ownership of this type of business. If you enter into a partnership with a franchisor having done your homework on buying into the right business, your chances of succeeding as a new business owner increase exponentially.
Below are several steps to take as you consider if owning a franchise is worthwhile.
Evaluate your talents and the experience you will bring to your franchise business.
Consider the skills and talents you have gathered in your personal and professional life. Which have you enjoyed using the most? Which have delivered the most success for you? Are you great at managing people? Do you have significant technology skills? Do you enjoy mentoring people? With an understanding of the activities you enjoy, and those that have helped you succeed in the past, you will see these skills are likely transferrable to business ownership in many different industries.
Know your vision and goals and whether the franchise you are considering will support them.
Consider how you see yourself using your talents to achieve your business and life goals because you will want to select a franchise system that aligns with your vision of future success. To find out which will meet your needs, take a close look at whether the franchises you are considering have philosophies and values that align with yours. Ask yourself some questions:
- Can I envision partnering with the management team for this brand?
- How do I feel about integrating into the community of franchisees?
- Will I feel supported by the management team and other franchisees as I work to succeed?
Research the industry and market you are considering franchising within to understand their profitability now and the chances of their remaining profitable in the future.
You will find plenty of this information from US government sources such as the Census Bureau, Small Business Administration (SBA), and local market economic development groups. Market research firms also offer in-depth analysis of industries and markets along with local colleges and universities. To find information on the more than 3,000 different franchises in the US, view the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) Franchise Opportunities database and Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500 rankings.
Understand the advantages of owning a franchise rather than starting a business from scratch.
Owning a franchise takes a lot of the risk out of starting your own business. You are buying into a concept that has been proven successful and will receive the systems, technology, support, and products of this tried-and-true business concept. By going through the franchise process, reviewing information provided by the franchisor, talking to the franchisees, reviewing the Franchise Disclosure Document and attending Discovery Day, you will have seen proof of how well its business plan and marketing support have delivered for franchisees. You also receive the benefit of the franchisor’s experience and training. In fact, the chances of your succeeding with a franchise are so much greater than starting your business from scratch that banks are much more willing to lend to franchisees than start-up entrepreneurs.
Choosing the RIGHT Franchisor
The right franchisor will be able to demonstrate its solvency, success, growth, potential, and significant support for its franchisees. Successful and profitable franchisors have:
- A Proven Successful Business Model that is both resilient and flexible, designed to withstand any challenges.
- Best In Class Training that equips you with the knowledge you need to succeed in your new venture.
- Business Coach Driven Mentorship that supports you not just when you open your franchise, but along every step of your business journey with the franchisor.
- Operations Support to Boost Sales which means you don’t have to be the sole driver of every sale for your business.
- State of the Art Technology that helps you run your business effectively and efficiently.
- Exceptional National Brand Recognition and Marketing that puts the name of your business top-of-mind when it comes to your industry.
At College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving, we have all of these attributes and more. We are the only full-service residential and commercial company that offers moving, junk removal, donation pickups, and labor services in the United States as well as Canada. Started in 2005, College HUNKS was created by two college buddies and their beat-up cargo van. By the following year, College HUNKS expanded into franchising efforts and took off across the United States and into Canada. Today, we are in the top 3% of best franchises to own and strive to be a symbol for high-quality moving and junk removal services that are fast, flexible, and dependable.
With a forward-looking, smart business plan that is flexible as well as proven to be recession- and pandemic-proof, our track record of profitability and success speaks for itself. Even during the most challenging days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the average College HUNKS franchise revenue sales were $1.31 million in 2020. Our franchise system has more than doubled in size since 2010 and has experienced 500% systemwide revenue growth since 2013. We have more than 150 franchise locations operating nationwide in a network that reached $100 million in system-wide revenue in 2019 and is expected to hit $220 million in 2021.
The right franchisor will offer in-depth training and a steady stream of support for their franchise partners. For example, College HUNKS offers:
- Extensive Training and Ongoing Support for Your Store – College HUNKS’ comprehensive franchisee training is unparalleled in the industry—it includes 10-12 weeks of initial build-up training including a 150-point checklist and weekly calls. Franchise partners spend one week at Brand Central, our corporate headquarters, for training and three days on-site with a high-performing franchise location. This is focused on helping franchisees develop the skills needed every day to run and grow your new business.
Because coaching is a huge part of our company culture, you will receive your own dedicated Franchise Business Coach in addition to a Marketing Coach who will work with you regularly to maximize your growth and success. Ongoing coaching will help you improve operations and profitability and monthly coaching calls will help you analyze your business performance. Your coaches will also regularly visit you at your store to provide you with the opportunity to ask questions in person, and you can participate in momentum groups that provide opportunities to learn from other College HUNKS franchisees in a structured setting.
The College HUNKS Performance Team is available to all franchise partners in the form of ongoing training and support that includes site visits to ensure goals are being met and profits are maximized.
College HUNKS also provides operations manuals, videos, an online knowledge library, and webinars, on all of the topics that running your own business entails. Our internal social media platform is a great forum for franchise owners to communicate, share ideas, and solve issues.
- Operations Support Designed to Boost Your Sales – The College HUNKS Sales and Loyalty Center (SLC) is there to support your business by taking calls from customers and scheduling jobs for every location. This takes the pressure off as you and you will not need to worry about answering every call or missing a potential job because you were serving a customer, and your employees weren’t available to take a call.
Due to the huge demand for our services, we have added 50 agents this year and now have 200 agents in our call center with both in-bound, out-bound and online teams booking jobs for our franchise owners. In a recent week, the SLC booked over 12,700 jobs for about 150 open locations. This is priceless for our franchise owners who can focus on getting jobs done and ongoing team training.
The right franchisor’s mission, culture, and values will sync with yours.
As you research various franchisors, consider asking them to explain their vision, mission, culture, and values – any brand worth considering should be able to explain these without hesitation. At College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving, we are clear on all of these guiding aspects of our business. In our partnerships with over 150 franchisees, we are a launchpad for entrepreneurs who either start their own College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving businesses or who use the lessons learned at College HUNKS to launch other concepts and power the economy. Our mission is to help people live the American dream of owning a business and making a positive impact.
We have four core values that have been critical to the phenomenal growth of our business since 2005. They drive the success of each of our franchisees because everything we do at every level of the company goes back to these core values. The College HUNKS mission and purpose—to move the world (both literally and figuratively)—combined with our core values make things happen around here.
- Building leaders
- Always branding
- Creating a fun, enthusiastic team environment
- Listen, fulfill, and delight (the WOW effect)
Our culture at College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving is rooted in mentoring, business coaching, support, and community. Our mentoring program for franchisees is instrumental in our success. It makes our business stand out when compared to other franchise brands and truly supports the franchisees as they work each day to grow their business.
Is Franchising Worth it for You?
The answer to that question is likely YES—if you choose the right one. College HUNKS Hauling Junk & Moving currently has territories available in the US and Canada with options in some major cities such as Memphis, Cleveland, New Orleans, Phoenix, and more. We would love to have you join our team!
Learn more about how profitable your junk hauling and moving franchise business can be by requesting our free College Hunks Hauling Junk & Moving Franchise Information Report or contacting us today.