March 11, 2010
Topics:Industries:
|
Your Recreation Franchise News SourceFranchise News Watch brings you the latest in recreation franchising news from around the web. As a news aggregator for the recreation franchise industry, Franchise News Watch streams the latest ground breaking franchise articles, features, guides, blogs, news and more directly to your desktop.  Recreation Franchise NewsStepping Up!Merely two years after launching its franchise program, Flip Flop Shops is continuing to expose its toes and "flip-ping out" about the signing of its 50th franchise agreement. Games2U Entertainment Reaches 100th Franchise MilestoneNational party franchise Games2U Entertainment announced this week the signing of their 100th franchise in Naples, FL.
First Gamer Doc(R) Video Games Store in Delaware Celebrates First AnniversaryGamer Doc(R), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, announces the one-year anniversary of its first store in Delaware, located at 1132 Pulaski Highway in Bear. Store owner and manager Steve...
BounceU of Sarasota Hosts "Families Helping Haiti" FundraiserThe tragedy of the recent Haitian Earthquake has touched the lives of thousands and individuals around the country are looking for ways to help. Local business owner of BounceU of Sarasota has taken it upon herself to make a difference by working with...
How to Talk to Young Athletes about Sports Scandals, National Youth Sports Franchise, i9 Sports, Offers Expert AdviceWith recent national news and tabloid gossip swirling around the scandals of Tiger Woods to Gilbert Arenas and Mark McGwire, young sports fans have become over-exposed to the misconduct of once idolized professional athletes. i9 Sports, the world's... AmericInn Welcomes 2010 With New Leadership, New DirectionAmericInn(R) is poised for growth in 2010, as the company welcomes another key addition to its leadership team. Gamer Doc(R) Video Games Announces Sale of First Stores in Two New StatesGamer Doc(R), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, today announced the sale of its first stores in two new states. Gamer Doc franchises will open soon in Huntsville, Alabama and Katy, Texas. The Business of the Body Takes Shape: Max Muscle Sports Nutrition Shows Strength in 2010More people are leaving the office and starting their own business thanks to the exponential growth of the Sports Nutrition & Fitness industry. Max Muscle Sports Nutrition continues to be one of the most sought after franchise choices as another year.
The Forzani Group Ltd. and Alberta Alpine Launch Innovative Partnership That Looks Beyond 2010Looking to build on the momentum of alpine skiing in Alberta, The Forzani Group Ltd. (TSX:FGL), Canada's largest retailer of sporting goods, and Alberta Alpine announced an innovative five-year partnership to ensure Alberta remains a leader in... Leading Kids Party Franchise Hires New VPs to Head Operations, DevelopmentPIU Management, LLC, franchisor of the Pump It Up and BounceU brands, announced two new appointments to its senior management team, including Vice President of Operations Scott Keppel, and Vice President of Development and Real Estate Sean Bock. Entrepreneur Magazine Ranks The Little Gym No. 1 in Children's FitnessThe challenging economy has taken its toll on businesses nationwide in the last couple of years. But as hundreds of businesses have struggled to stay afloat, one franchise company continues to show signs of success.
Gamer Doc(R) Video Games - Making Winners in 2010Gamer Doc(R), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, finishes the year upbeat, and is looking forward to continuing its winning ways in 2010. Raleigh Gamer Doc(R) Video Game Store's PTA Family NightKim and Jim Hamilton, owners of the Raleigh Gamer Doc video games store at 10251 Little Brier Creek Lane, hosted a PTA Family Night on November 18th for Brier Creek Elementary School parents, teachers and students. Activities included playing... Investors & Entrepreneurs Choosing Max Muscle Sports Nutrition In Record NumbersThe year 2009 underscored a national trend showing that Health Care and Exercise taking center stage ranging from the American Medical Association issuing a nationwide directive that every American needs a daily multivitamin supplement... TAF(R) Launches Brand-Exclusive adidas Shoe for the HolidaysTAF(R), previously known as The Athlete's Foot(R), announced today that it is launching a brand-exclusive adidas shoe in two color-ways for the holidays. The newly rebranded TAF continues to focus on addressing the needs of today's... Gamer Doc(R) Video Games Helps Fill Every Gamer's Wish ListGamer Doc(R), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, is helping to fill every video gamer's wish list. According to a recent poll conducted by KRC research on behalf of the ESA... AmericInn Is First Iowa Hotel to Host Electric Car Charging StationThe national hotel chain AmericInn(R) announces the opening of a public electric vehicle charging station at its Elk Horn, Iowa, property located off of Interstate 80 between Omaha and Des Moines. This AmericInn location is the first official...
Gamer Doc(R) Video Games Works with Local School to Make Learning FunGamer Doc(R), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, has launched several initiatives with Brier Creek Elementary School, designed to make learning fun.
First Gamer Doc™ Video Games Store in the U.S. Marks One-Year AnniversaryGamer Doc(R), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, announces the one-year anniversary of its first store in the U.S. Jason Renfro is the owner of the Gamer Doc at 5917 N. Figueroa...
Gamer Doc(TM) Video Games Now Open in MichiganGamer Doc(TM), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, today announced the opening of its first store in Michigan, located in Grand Rapids at 5161 Northland Drive, NE. David Schroeter is the... Extra Innings Continues Growth in HoustonExtra Innings, America's premier indoor baseball and softball training center, is continuing its growth in our nation's 4th largest market, Houston, TX. The Middleton, Massachusetts based Extra Innings Franchise Company is proud to announce the signing... Games2U Franchise Delivers World's First Kid-Driven RobotImagine a child transforming themselves into a towering green robot in front of all their friends. From the simple controls of a joystick inside, the child can shift to the side, spin in circles, make laser sounds and beam lights and fog into the crowd. Flip Flop Shops Exposes New Fall/Holiday Footwear LineWith fall right around the corner, it's about time to start retiring the summer flip flops and sandals for more appropriate fall footwear. But Flip Flop Shops, the nation's first retail chain exclusive to flip flops and sandals, doesn't want people to...
AmericInn Hotel Chain Enters Wichita MarketThe national hotel chain AmericInn® announces the opening of the new AmericInn of Wichita South located on 4848 South Laura Street, near Interstate 35 and Interstates 135 and 235. This AmericInn property is the first location in the city of Wichita fo
Lady of America Shocks Franchise Community by Offering New Buying Opportunities for a Fitness FranchiseCelebrating its strong growth even during these hard economic times, Lady of America Franchise Corporation has created its own Buyers Stimulus Package. Gamer Doc(TM) Video Games Going StrongGamer Doc(TM), the retail video game store franchise that delivers a new and interactive customer experience, is going strong in 2009. The first Gamer Doc store in Raleigh, North Carolina recently opened for business, and franchises have been sold in...
|
Features & Special ReportsMeasuring Performance: Multi-unit Franchisees Utilize Unit Economics to Help Run a Tighter ShipMulti-unit franchisee Todd Pulley knows all about measuring unit performance and profitability - even though he had no prior financial background before becoming a franchisee. Over the last 15 years though, he has developed and refined his own system for measuring his unit economics at his four PuroClean locations in New Jersey and Delaware. The effort is paying off. Is it Time for an Operating Cost Audit?: Franchise Tenants Unite!When was the last time you challenged a landlord or property manager about the operating expenses or common area maintenance (CAM) charges? Probably not recently or never, right? To clarify, operating costs are the day-to-day management and maintenance expenses charged to the tenant; examples include asphalt repairs, snow removal, property insurance, and so on. Franchise tenants pay a proportionate share of these costs based on the space they occupy. Therefore, if a franchise tenant occupies 12 percent of a building, he or she will pay for 12 percent of the operating costs. Paying by this said ratio is the industry standard but, of course, there are deviations for special circumstances like free-standing buildings and so on. "Old School" Communication: Cell Phone Texting Builds Customer TrafficConsidering the wide-ranging abilities of today's smartphones, simple text messaging may seem passé, but it's a basic social media tool that's working wonders for Chris Kramolis' franchise operation. He's been using text messages to build business and compile a database of his customers--and he doesn't see any reason to deviate from something that's working. Discovering Oil: Multi-unit Operator Strikes it Rich with Oil Change FranchisesDarrell Lamb remembers toiling away in the heyday of the mid-90s stock market. He was always searching for new investors, and on the lookout for hot investments. One day some of his advisers told him about an opportunity - a chance to invest in the Express Oil Change franchise. He had reason to trust the advisers since they were his uncle, who was president of the company, and his dad, an Alabama optometrist who was always interested in investing in growing ventures. Capital AccessDustin Winkle was a victim of the dot-com crash a few years back. While pondering his next career move, he visited with family members who operated some dry cleaning stores. He liked what he heard and purchased his first Martinizing Dry Cleaners stores six hours away in Yakima, Wash. It was a long commute from his home in Boise, Idaho, but he loved the business. Three years later his family was ready to sell its dry cleaning stores and Winkle was more than happy to buy some units closer to home. Today he operates 10 Martinizing Dry Cleaning stores (and one non-Martinizing unit) in the Boise area. Multi-Tasking: What It Takes To Be A Successful Multi-Unit FranchiseeTwenty years ago, franchising meant buying the rights to and opening a single unit or business. But a changing trend has taken hold during the last two decades. Today, it's not uncommon for a single franchise operator to have 5, 6, or even dozens of units. FRANdata research notes the number of multi-unit operators now tops 34,000, and those operators control more than 155,000 franchised units in the U.S. It's a growth strategy that has proven effective but it should be approached with caution. Multi-unit operators are generally wired differently then their single-unit counterparts. Successful multi-unit operators are typically experienced, skilled, professional business executives who have chosen franchising as their business model. They possess the skills, training, capital, infrastructure, and vision to operate numerous units and have the ability to continue adding units to their portfolio--without stressing their organization or their stomach. Episode 006: The Benefits of a Franchise ModelFranchising provides benefits for both seller and buyer. For franchisors, the primary benefit is the ability to use other people's money to expand the brand more rapidly than they could either on their own or through investors or lenders. The initial franchise fee and ongoing royalties they collect allow franchisors to build their brand without sacrificing control to outsiders or the pressure of repaying lenders. Measure for Measure: Unit Economics Plays a Leading Role on Today's Economic StageThe most fundamental business strategy calls for black numbers on the bottom line. In simplest terms, it's proof the business is generating more cash than it is spending. All too often, though, entrepreneurs get involved in businesses without employing a proper system to help them keep a watchful eye on what they're earning and what they're spending. Managing day-to-day operations can be so time-consuming that it leaves little room for financial analysis. Or perhaps key individuals lack a basic understanding of how to read and interpret financial statements. Combine these factors with the down economy, and you'll likely wind up with a troubled business. Service Based Franchising: Where the Action IsLast week we ended our discussion of service concepts with the point that many of these businesses are based on customers making the choice to trade money (surplus) for time (deficit). The example we used was maid services, where time-starved customers spend money to buy time they can spend with their family and friends. Other examples of businesses built on services that customers could perform themselves but choose to pay someone else for include lawn and landscaping services, residential painting, oil change, and installation of home entertainment systems. Seven Steps to Fiscal Fitness: A "Fiscal Physical" Will Help Your Business Survive, Grow, and ProsperIn the few minutes it takes you to read this article, 40 businesses across the nation will fail--and that statistic was [i]before[/i] the economic downturn of the last 24 months. Tragic? Yes. Remarkable? Not at all. The road to business success is littered with the skeletons of companies whose owners--mostly brilliant and skilled individuals--failed to "take care of business" in the financial management of their enterprise.
|
