Owning your own business is part of the American Dream for many, but many people need a franchise to reach that dream.
California Life interviews entrepreneur, businessman, and former NFL player tight end for the Titans Jimmy St. Louis. He is the founder of Franchise123, the perfect guide to starting a business with a franchise.
We ask Jimmy: What are the benefits of franchises to start a business from scratch?
“I believe that the benefit of starting a franchise or investing in a franchise really boils down to you have the chance to work with an existing brand that has existing operating principles. It’s already beginning to penetrate the market and you can go and really focus on hiring, site selection, and marketing.
Does it take a lot of money to become a franchisee?
“There’s over four thousand different franchise opportunities in America alone. What that means is you have everything from a McDonald’s that could be a million dollars of investment to mobile van businesses who go and fix the roof on your home or go and make your garage look nicer. So the cost of entry is significantly different based upon the ones you would select, ranging anywhere from a zero dollar cost of entry to millions of dollars to open up a facility.”
Where does Franchise123 come in? How does it work?
“Franchise123 is essentially Zillow for franchising. We’ve connected franchise buyers to franchise sellers. We’ve given the marketplace now the opportunity to go and research identify and decide on the best franchise for them based on a proprietary algorithm that allows us to pair them up with the best opportunities.
Tell us about your site: how does it narrow down your focus, place of interest, and the amount of money you want to invest?
“We’ve aggregated as much data as possible from the web and from legal documents that are publicly available and we’ve simplified that onto our platform so that you can compare side by side as many brands as you’d like to.”
How do you know if you have the right appetite or the right qualities to be a franchisee?
“We published a book called The Comprehensive Guide to Franchise Success. It’s available on Amazon. The first part is identifying you are a fit candidate for franchising. There’s a series of questions that we go through to see if the reader is qualified to be an entrepreneur, operator, or a franchisee?
If interested in starting your own business or seeking a franchise, go to www.franchise123.com