Access To High-Quality Emerging Non-Food Franchises
What do high-quality franchises look like?
The answer is typically behind-the-scenes of the franchise brand and includes characteristics such as:
Figuring out a niche that is fragmented and fueled by massive demand in your area
Creating a rock-solid business model with strong margins and economics
Delivering outstanding support for their owners
Having assembled a talented and dedicated leadership team
Providing cutting-edge tools that their franchise owners use to run their businesses more efficiently (which allows more money to hit the bottom line)
Building an amazing culture, and, most importantly
They have a boatload of happy and profitable franchise owners
Different ownership models and investing strategies
Emerging brands
These are typically first-to-market franchises with the potential to become the brand name in their industry.
Brand name franchises
Semi-absentee franchises
Executive businesses that can scale
Home-based, low-cost franchises
Multi-unit franchises
Here are some examples:
Who became a franchise owner?
Steve and Stacey H. in Charlotte, NC.
Why did they start a business?
Steve was a successful executive with a Fortune 50 bank for over 20 years. While he was successful in climbing the corporate ladder, he wanted more out of his career and knew that is he could apply his ambition, energy, and skills to his own business, he’d be happier and more fulfilled.
Stacey had a background in nutrition and was primarily CEO’ing their household and family.
Creating a safe exit for Steve from the corporate world was an important piece to their strategy.
Why did they start a business?
Steve and Stacey decided that StretchLab was the right fit for them. StretchLab was an emerging brand at the time and was backed by a proven parent company that had successfully created a leading franchise brand in a similar space.
The due diligence was a bit tricky because of how early StretchLab was in its growth.
But, the ownership model was a strong fit. StretchLab offered a manager-run model which would enable Steve to keep his day job while they built the business.
After a thorough amount of due diligence, they decided StretchLab was the right it and moved forward. Today they have four studios open and plan to open another five locations. And most importantly, their plan to create a safe exit from the corporate world for Steve worked and he’s no longer living the corporate life – only the entrepreneurial life.
Who became a franchise owner?
Vic S. in Charlotte, NC.
Why did he start a business?
Vic had risen through the ranks of a Fortune 50 bank as a project manager across various functions in this financial institution. He had a hunger to do more and put his skills to use in a more direct way where he could have more impact and control, and ultimately, more opportunity – both financially and lifestyle-wise.
Which franchise did he invest in?
After looking at a number of different franchises across various industries, Vic decided that buying a CertaPro painters franchise was the right fit. CertaPro offered a unique opportunity – it’s scalable, low overhead, proven, and is a marketing machine – and a legacy franchise owner who had been running the business as an owner-operator for 20 years was ready to exit.
Vic saw the opportunity to acquire this franchise and grow it considerably simply by fully implementing CertaPro’s business model.
Who became a franchise owner?
Byron J. in Louisville, KY.
Why did he start a business?
Byron spent most of his career in the education field as a teacher. While he loved the rewarding parts of his career, he became frustrated with the bureaucracy of a public school system.
Like many, he had the entrepreneurial itch but didn’t have the idea, so he turned to franchising.
Which franchise did they invest in?
After looking at a number of franchise businesses, Byron decided that Concrete Craft was the right fit for him. Concrete Craft is a unique business – it transforms all types of living spaces and surfaces through decorative concrete (stamped, resurfacing, staining, etc.).
Like many quality franchises in the home services space, it’s a relatively low investment and requires low overhead to operate. Once Byron validated with the existing franchise owners and learn more about the economics and margins, he was impressed.
Another factor that played a key role in Byron’s decision was the fact that Concrete Craft did not require a large number of employees to operate. He also liked the fact that there is a large parent company behind the franchise.
Who became a franchise owner?
Sabrina D. in Kansas City, MO.
Why did she start a business?
Sabrina was a franchise owner and was ready to sell her business and find a new franchise to build and grow.
We had many discussions and talked through different strategies to sell her franchise for a strong premium while at the same time starting the hunt for her new brand.
Which franchise did she invest in?
Sabrina pulled off the strategy to a tee. She sold her original franchise successfully and found her next venture which was opening an Exercise Coach franchise.
Sabrina was looking for a more contemporary franchisor that leveraged technology better than her original one and could be scaled to a point where she was working on the business and not in it.
After performing a thorough amount of due diligence on a number of franchises and talking to franchise owners, Sabrina decided The Exercise Coach was the right fit for her.
She had a passion for helping others. The Exercise Coach aligned with her passion and their business model and its potential aligned with her goals.
Who became a franchise owner?
Dwayne D. in New Hampshire
Why did he start a business?
This is actually Dwayne’s second franchise venture.
He and his wife, Karen, were successful Orangetheory Fitness Area Developers and multi-unit franchise owners. They got in early with Orangetheory before it became a unicorn franchise and built an amazing business that was eventually acquired by a private equity company.
After cashing out of Orangetheory, Dwayne and Karen were looking for another franchise to build and scale.
Which franchise did they invest in?
Dwayne and Karen decided Restore Hyper Wellness would be their next venture.
Being seasoned franchise operators and entrepreneurs, Dwayne and Karen knew what to look for in a franchise. After learning about Restore and conducting a thorough amount of due diligence, they concluded that Restore was positioned well and resourced properly to offer a unique opportunity to align with the right company in an emerging space.
They decided to open multi Restore locations in the New England area.
Who became a franchise owner?
Dave D. in Greenville, SC.
Why did he start a business?
Dave had a successful corporate career building sales teams and growing market share, but he always had the entrepreneurial itch. He had started a few side businesses but nothing scaled to the point where he was happy.
So, he turned to franchising in search of a proven business model that could scale and help him create a life that is more fulfilling and rewarding than the corporate world.
Which franchise did he invest in?
Dave decided that a unique franchise called ShelfGenie was the right fit for him. ShelfGenie sells and installs custom glide-out shelving for kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets, and pantries. Once Dave peeled back the onion to learn how the ShelfGenie business operates, he discovered that he was not going to be selling and installing himself. Rather, he would be building a small team of sales reps and installers that would be working with customers and fulfilling the work. This role of the owner in this model was exactly what he’d done in his career.
Additionally, the labor force is all commission only which means variable costs. This variable labor strategy, combined with the low investment point, low overhead, and scalability he uncovered as he talked to franchise owners were the main drivers of his decision.
Who became a franchise owner?
Lynn and Adam B. in Austin, TX.
Why did they start a business?
Lynn and Adam’s main inspiration for starting their own business was to build a business that enabled Adam to leave the corporate world. Adam is a Harvard-educated executive in the healthcare space and had a very successful career in the corporate world but it’s required a significant amount of sacrifice. They wanted to explore franchise ownership as a way to create a safe exit strategy from Corporate America for Adam.
Lynn has a background in education and saw many transferable skills between running a classroom and running a business.
So, we connected and started exploring different franchise businesses.
Which franchise did they invest in?
Lynn and Adam decided that Heyday Skincare was the right fit for them.
Heyday is a premier brand in the skincare and facial market and recently started franchising its business after taking on a sizable investment from Level 5 Capital Partners (a company I follow very closely in franchising).
After doing a thorough deep dive into Heyday’s business model and Level 5’s track record, they determined it was the right fit and decided to open three locations in Austin.
What do people have to say about working with me?
“Dru was (and continues to be) a huge help and sounding board to my wife and I through the franchise exploration and purchasing process. Excellent knowledge across various industries, keen insight into franchising logistics and solid local knowledge…all invaluable assets as we considered and eventually decided to dive into franchising.”
“Thank you Dru for getting us pointed in the right direction and finding a franchise that was a fit for us. Highly recommend anyone looking or wanting to start a business to contact Dru!!”
“Dru is very knowledgeable and personable along with bringing many years of experience in the franchising industry. He was very helpful in my process of buying a franchise and now I am a business owner! Dru is an asset!!”
“Dru did a fantastic job of identifying what I was trying to accomplish both personally and professionally. It is so important to have a guide while you are looking at a life changing opportunity like buying a business. Dru identified the things I wanted in a franchise and once that was in place it didn’t take long to find a company that was a great fit for me. Highly recommend Dru if you are serious about pursuing a franchise opportunity- he will be a huge benefit and save you a tremendous amount of time and effort by focusing the search.”
“As my franchise consultant, I must compliment Dru on his patience, knowledge, and diligence, especially with my particular desires. He was extremely professional in his methodical approach in introducing me to a variety of franchising options. He was very knowledgeable in a variety of areas, but above all, he actually listened to what I wanted. I would recommend him to anyone interested in starting a franchise. He was a great coach in navigating the entrepreneurial waters in the franchise world.”
“I had the opportunity of working with Dru prior, during, and after the process of acquiring and running my franchise. Dru was professional, a strategic thinker and always willing to help. Dru went above expectations to ensure the support and knowledge I needed to become a successful owner. Dru was a true pleasure to work with especially when you are making such a major decision and investment.”
“I cannot say enough about Dru. He is very knowledgeable about franchises and he has great people skills which will help him work with you in identifying your interests and which opportunities will be better suited for you. I got to know Dru very well when he was working with AdvantaClean. He is the primary person with whom I dealt when I was exploring the purchase of an AdvantaClean franchise, and during that acquisition process. If you are interested in exploring franchising, I highly recommend Dru to you. He will work hard for you in order to help you find the best opportunity for you.”
“Dru was the driving force getting me in line to purchase a franchise, his expertise and follow though is excellent. I would highly recommend his services to anyone looking at franchises.”
“I met Dru while researching and purchasing my AdvantaClean franchise. He is very knowledgeable about franchising and business startups. He was a key resource for me, not only during the onboarding process but throughout my training and during the early stages of my business. Most importantly, Dru has a servant’s heart. He was always there whenever I needed guidance or just needed to bounce ideas off of someone. My experience with Dru was outstanding.”
“Dru helped me through the discovery process while he was at AdvantaClean, where I currently am a franchisee. Dru was very professional and transparent through the whole process and it was clear he wanted to make sure moving forward would be beneficial for both parties. Dru is well informed in the franchise world and I would not hesitate to recommend working with him.”
Dru is an absolute pro when it comes to handling clients new to the franchise process. He walked me through every aspect of what it takes to be a franchise operator and the pros and cons of different models. He never pushed one model over another and challenged me to consider family and lifestyle choices when making a decision about a franchise. I haven’t written a ton of recommendations of LinkedIn, but recommending Dru is a no brainer.
Curious where I get my information?
I spend a few hundred hours a year and many thousands of dollars flying around the country and meeting personally with founders and executives from high-quality franchises.
I’ve done this for over thirteen years. I have a lot of connections in franchising including hundreds of successful franchise owners I’ve helped invest in, grow and sell (as in cash out) their franchise.
This is the information, experience, and insight I use to help people.
The depth of information that I have about high-quality franchises isn’t available on the internet or anywhere in print for that matter.
By working together, you get all of my experience, everything I know and a lot of my time for FREE. That’s a pretty good deal in my book. And you know what? I’m happy to give it to you.
The First Step is a Conversation
The first step is a pretty simple one: We have a conversation.
After we speak, we’ll be able to figure out if there is a good fit to work together.