Franchising for Dummies

Rating:
Summary: Thorough Overview of Franchising, Good and Bad
Review: A thorough overview of the process of evaluating, buying, running, and selling a franchise. Definitely read through this book (even if only in parts) before you start to invest yourself (time and money) into a franchise. It is a frank, and straightforward book about a complicated subject.

Some clues from the book:

1) As a franchisee, you buy "the right to use the franchisor's expertise, brand name, experience, methods, and support." (pg. 14).

2) Although you get a proven system, the business is yours.
It is work and it is not for everyone. Successful franchisees must be very good operators who stick to the rules.

3) Franchisors vary. Since you will be paying a royalty going forward, make sure you do the research and know what you are getting for your money. A contract can be a life preserver and a trap.

4) The evaluation, preparation, funding, and negotiation for the franchise is paramount. This book gives detailed lists, and questions to ask before you sign on that contract.

5) Top two reasons franchises fail: 1) not enough money going into the investment 2) absentee owners

6) Factors in assessing your location: population density, neighboring stores (cross promotion), anchor tenants, traffic patterns, speed of traffic, seasonal factors, day / night, competition, security, access to employees, size of property, zoning, landscaping, parking, landlord reputation, visibility, signs, environmental concerns, title, buy vs. lease, hidden costs.

7) Royalties vary according to franchisors. Wendy's is 4%

8) In the end, franchising is a relationship business with franchisor, customers, other franchisees, suppliers, attorneys, bankers, and family.

9) When selling the franchise to others, the franchisor often has the "right of first refusal" which means they can purchase it on the same terms and conditions as the offer you received from a prospective buyer. Check this clause prior to signing.

10) Use the International Franchise Association's webpage:
www.franchise.org.

Rating:
Summary: Thorough Overview of Franchising, Good and Bad
Review: A thorough overview of the process of evaluating, buying, running, and selling a franchise. Definitely read through this book (even if only in parts) before you start to invest yourself (time and money) into a franchise. It is a frank, and straightforward book about a complicated subject.

Some clues from the book:

1) As a franchisee, you buy "the right to use the franchisor's expertise, brand name, experience, methods, and support." (pg. 14).

2) Although you get a proven system, the business is yours.
It is work and it is not for everyone. Successful franchisees must be very good operators who stick to the rules.

3) Franchisors vary. Since you will be paying a royalty going forward, make sure you do the research and know what you are getting for your money. A contract can be a life preserver and a trap.

4) The evaluation, preparation, funding, and negotiation for the franchise is paramount. This book gives detailed lists, and questions to ask before you sign on that contract.

5) Top two reasons franchises fail: 1) not enough money going into the investment 2) absentee owners

6) Factors in assessing your location: population density, neighboring stores (cross promotion), anchor tenants, traffic patterns, speed of traffic, seasonal factors, day / night, competition, security, access to employees, size of property, zoning, landscaping, parking, landlord reputation, visibility, signs, environmental concerns, title, buy vs. lease, hidden costs.

7) Royalties vary according to franchisors. Wendy's is 4%

8) In the end, franchising is a relationship business with franchisor, customers, other franchisees, suppliers, attorneys, bankers, and family.

9) When selling the franchise to others, the franchisor often has the "right of first refusal" which means they can purchase it on the same terms and conditions as the offer you received from a prospective buyer. Check this clause prior to signing.

10) Use the International Franchise Association's webpage:
www.franchise.org.

Rating:
Summary: A good helping hand
Review: Despite my initial misgivings about a franchising book written by the late founder of Wendy's, I have come to like the book a lot, because it gives you exactly the information you need to (1) consider whether franchising is right for you, and (2) get started becoming a franchisee.

The book starts with a general discussion of what franchising is and what the different types and varieties are, then proceeds to discuss the most important topic of the entire book (and your decision-making process): is becoming a franchisee right for you. An entire chapter is devoted to this topic and it's an open and honest discussion with a focus on what *you* want out of franchising. After you decide yes, it's right for you, it's time to get your hands dirty, and the book gives you a lot of information on every aspect of establishing a franchise and running it. Luckily, the authors do not promote Wendy's blatantly, although there's little information on their hamburger franchising competitors.

I first read a library copy of this book but it was good enough for me so I bought my own copy. I'm considering joining the franchising army, even though the compenstation doesn't seem attractive esp. in the first few years. Maybe in 5 years I'll come back to this page and report my experience. :)

This book was published in 2000 but the information (except statistics cited) is quite up-to-date.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but not what I needed to find the right franchise
Review: I found this book to be adequate in some areas and lacking in others. The challenge that I had was when I had a question the book does not supply me with an expert to ask questions of and it tended to raise more questions for me than it answered.

With a little bit of research, and Google, I found an expert consultant, George Knauf who was able to help me understand franchising and find the right businesses to meet my goals out of the thousands of possible franchise choices in the market.

And, unlike the book, the advice didn't cost me anything!

Use the book to raise questions, then find some good advice. Don't go it alone when making this kind of decision, I didn't.

Rating:
Summary: From Duh! to Ahh!
Review: I'm the kind of person that needs to research something before I start doing it. I was contemplating purchasing a franchise, however I didn't know whether it was the right thing for me to do. Let me just tell you that this book was the right book for me. I've learned more than I needed to make my decision. I'm sure that it could also answer a lot of questions for you.

This was the first book that I've read from the "for dummies" creators and I must say I was very satisfied. The authors did a great job braking down the information into specific parts. Each chapter was thorough and well written. In fact, the book is so well written that you may just as easy use it as a reference book. For example, prior to purchasing my Fish Window Cleaning franchise, I often used the book as a reference guide to navigate through my UFOC or Franchise Agreement. I also used the book when I was searching for the location of my office and my employees.

I really can't stress enough how well organized this book is. You will find answers to most all questions regarding the franchising process. All together there are six parts to this book. These parts range from simple franchise facts to complex business transactions.

Franchising for Dummies also offers several important warnings. Although I agree with most of them, I must dispute one. The authors discourage the potential franchisees from working with franchise brokers. I actually think it's very important to work with a broker. However, before you decide to seek services of one, you should definitely investigate your choices.

In conclusion, this book is not only intended for the "to be" franchisees. It is also beneficial for the current franchisees, franchisors and even a regular small business owner. If you need a complete book about the franchising process, I suggest that you buy a copy of this book.

Rating:
Summary: Extremely good and very objective
Review: When I bought this book, I wondered: How objective can Dave Thomas be? Won't this just be a plug for Wendy's?

But, I was very pleasantly surprised. This book doesn't get boring with Wendy's references, because it talks objectively about a lot of different franchises. It does only reference McDonald's once, which I found amusing, but it is very objective.

And, this is a lot of good advice. It is a great first franchising book. It covers all of the bases. It's not going to give you anything, but then again, "Writing Video Games for Dummies" isn't the only thing you need to land a job as a video game programmer for Halo 3.