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A Whole New World

Today may be Halloween but this next story is far from scary…as a matter of fact, it’s pretty darn feel-good!

The Parker Chronicle reported that after facing constant layoffs as an executive in the corporate world, Tom Despres decided to set his sights on a completely new world. Along with his wife, Cindy, Despres used his business savvy to find success in a completely foreign industry – in-home care – and the decision has paid off, for people in desperate need of regular care are reaping the benefits of their business, Synergy HomeCare.

While searching for a new franchise opportunity, Tom and Cindy Despres settled on in-home care, a booming industry because of the demand from the aging Baby Boomer population. Their passion for helping people, combined with the experience of living in other countries for the better part of the last decade, prompted them to direct their focus on in-home assistance. Although the company does not handle medical care, it can provide critical care for disabled or senior clients. Synergy’s qualified staff of caregivers can help with showering, laundry, cleaning dishes, housework and meal preparation. For some, the value of such services is immeasurable.

“We will go provide companionship. We will be there for them. We will read to them, walk with them, simple services,” Despres said. “For someone who is incapacitated, that service is golden, especially when they can do it in the comfort of their own home. We don’t turn anybody away.” Clients have already seen how drastically their quality of life can improve with the help of a caregiver: Synergy takes care of an ALS patient and stroke victim, and is capable of serving autistic children and seniors who want to avoid living at a nursing home. The one-on-one care provides a level of service that often cannot be matched by senior living centers. More than half of the 20-member staff is a certified nursing assistant or medical assistant, and all of them have received first aid certification. Despres takes a personal interest in making sure each employee does not have a criminal history or drug problem, and possesses the skills and positive attitude necessary for in-home care.

Here's the Rub

This blogger can speak from experience in saying there’s nothing better than a great massage. Now, more people than ever before will be able to reap its many benefits thanks to this new upscale yet affordable concept.

MassageMag.com reported that MassageLuxe, a newly-launched St. Louis-based company specializing in massage therapy salons that offer high-quality, affordable massage services, is expanding nationally in a big way. Proving that even in a bad economy people want their affordable luxuries, MassageLuxe and its founder Todd Beckman have over 100 units in development throughout the United States since opening the first in April of 2008. According to Beckman – who also founded The Tan Company in 1994 – the company recently signed a 22-store agreement in St. Louis, an 11-store agreement in Memphis, a 22-store agreement in the Carolinas, a 22-store agreement in Chicago and a 33-store agreement in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. One developer has also purchased the rights for 22 locations in Kansas City for both MassageLuxe and The Tan Company – the largest dual concept deal in either company’s history.

“It’s an exciting time for MassageLuxe for sure and it’s only going to continue,” said Beckman. “People are seeking out affordable stress reducers now more than ever and through MassageLuxe, clients can have a luxurious yet extremely economical experience and while owners get a proven business model and a seemingly unlimited opportunity for future growth at a modest investment. These locations will pave the way for MassageLuxe to have 400 spas either open or in development in four years through a combination of area development and single-unit franchisees.”

You Think YOUR Business is Dead? Try This!

MSNBC reported that 1-800-AUTOPSY may give people chills but according to Vidal Herrera, it’s a business with a red-hot future: He and his wife Vicki, the owners and creators of 1-800-AUTOPSY, a mom-and-pop business that provides private post-mortem examinations, hear tales from the dead every day — tales of drug abuse, poisonings, violence and medical malpractice.

“If you don’t die peacefully, you die unexpectedly — you’re shot or you’re stabbed or overmedicated,” said Vicki. “Who’s going to talk for you? Families can’t do it. Only a doctor and the autopsy technician can do it for you. That’s it.”

When he opened his business in 1988, Vidal says he performed only 40 autopsies in the first year, but today he estimates that his company of three full-time technicians and one part-timer do over 700 procedures a year. Since starting out on his own, he estimates he’s done over 18,000 autopsies. The business of performing private autopsies is unregulated and largely made up of independent entrepreneurs like Vidal, and so hard facts about its size and revenue are hard to come by. From Vidal’s point of view, it’s looking like a growth industry. He now operates four franchises for his autopsy business in Orlando, Fla.; Portland, Ore.; Las Vegas and San Francisco. Several more franchises are under discussion, he said.

“Death is, in fact, a recession-proof business — it just never stops,” said Vidal. The U.S. death rate is currently 2.4 million people a year, and it’s projected to increase to 4 million as the baby boom generation starts to die off, he added.

So Young, So Ambitious

How does it feel to be under 30 and opening your first business? Ask David Thornton.

The Fort Worth Business Press reported that Thornton, who turned 27 this month, is celebrating another milestone in the form of Figaro’s Pizza, which opened last week in Arlington, Texas.

“We started working on financing a year ago and had things locked up for this store, but I’m not certain that if we started in today’s environment if the lenders would be as available,” said Thornton, who has spent most of his adult life working for one or another restaurant operations for someone else. “I learned a lot, but the most important thing I learned was that it’s a lot better to be an owner than an employee.”

Figaro’s is a “take and bake” facility, where patrons can either order their pizza steaming hot out of the oven or buy them ready to go, but uncooked — good for parties, church events, whatever. The pizza business is big in this country, about $30 billion annually. All those deliveries in towns across the United States add up. There is also, of course, an enormous amount of competition but Thornton is already looking toward the future.

“I’d like to open the second store within six months and the third in less than a year, but a lot depends on whether banks will feel like the climate is right,” he said. “We’ll just have to see how things go.” Thornton has kept costs down for his startup store by making this a sort of family enterprise. His uncle, Bobby, helped with construction; his father, Jim, will assist with business matters; his fiancée, Kristen, will help manage; Kristen’s brother, Bret, will assist in operations; and Thornton’s younger brother, Jacob, will start his first job ever as a member of the Figaro’s Pizza team. His parents also are investors of sorts, co-signing loan notes. There’s a lot at stake but Thornton remains confident. “It’s going to work, I know it,” he said. “Figaro’s two and three are on the way!”

A Recipe for Success

Do you know every ingredient that goes into making Cousins Subs' Italian Special? Lisa Okke does.

The Forum reported that before she could take ownership of a Cousins Subs restaurant in Fargo, Okke had to memorize all of the chain’s East Coast-style submarine sandwiches and their respective ingredients – an experience she likened to going back to school.

“That was a lot of work,” said Okke, a former manager at two local retailers. In addition to learning the menu, Okke also spent three days in classroom training at Cousins’ headquarters in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin and 30 days of in-store training at her restaurant, which is located between North Dakota State University and downtown Fargo. Though Okke’s restaurant gets most of its sales from in-store and drive-through customers, sales from delivered food are growing, Okke said.

“We think that part of the business will keep increasing,” she said. And that’s not the only aspect of the business that’s poised for growth: Cousins currently has about 150 restaurants throughout the U.S. and hopes to grow to 220 restaurants by 2010.

They Did It…and So Can You!

Here’s a story about an entrepreneurial-minded family that proves if a new business can survive the current economy, it can make it through anything.

The Daily Chronicle reported the Kralka family – comprised of Rick, his wife Cheryl and their sons, Jason and Ryan – opened an AlphaGraphics franchise this past May in the midst of the economic downturn. Rick, who co-owned a direct mail business for 28 years, sold his share in that venture to invest in a concept he could run with his sons. While it’s been tough establishing a new store in a harsh business climate, the family says it’s not worried. The first month was a little scary, Rick said, but every month since then has shown an increase in revenue.

“It’s stressful. There are definitely sleepless nights, but it is how it is,” Ryan said. “There’s nothing we can do about the economy, so you learn to adapt, whether it’s making more phone calls or getting more creative to help customers. With the economy the way it is, this business definitely wouldn’t survive if it wasn’t structured the way it is. Getting it established means a lot of hard work and really long hours. Family are the only people you can count on to come through with that."

“If we can make it through this kind of a start-up phase, we’ll be fine,” Rick added, “everything else will be easy.”

Meet a WCFE Exhibitor: Carol Webster of Chocolate Graphics International Franchising

Company Name: Chocolate Graphics International Franchising
Representative: Carol Webster, Marketing Manager
Brief Concept Synopsis: Chocolate Graphics specializes in personalized embossed chocolates for any occasion.
Years Exhibiting: This is our first year at the WCFE!

Why does your company choose to exhibit at the West Coast Franchise Expo? We had really good success at IFE in Washington, D.C. earlier this year and were very impressed with how the show was run and the quality of potential franchisees that we met. We have no doubt the WCFE will be just as, if not more, beneficial; in fact, we're bringing our president and CEO in from Australia to meet with potential franchisees.

What is the company’s desired outcome of participating in this particular show?  We are certainly hoping to identify some new franchisees to come aboard within the next six months. We are also in the process of debuting a new retail aspect of Chocolate Graphics and, since we only started franchising about a year ago, we plan to use this opportunity to increase the company's brand visibility in the U.S.

What sets your business apart from other concepts exhibiting at the WCFE? Right now could be considered an iffy time to start a business but people will always love chocolate. Unlike other confectionary franchises, we only offer products that are made with 100 percent chocolate and are certain that chocolate will continue its popularity no matter what the economy does!

Broken Hose in San Antonio? Help Is On The Way!

The last thing a company needs on the site of a big job is an inoperable hose sidelining their efforts. Countless hours and dollars are wasted going to a local hose supplier for a replacement but soon, that troublesome situation will be a thing of the past in San Antonio.

The San Antonio Express-News reported that PIRTEK USA is targeting Texas for franchise locations in San Antonio, Austin, Houston and El Paso, said Gwyn O'Kane, PIRTEK’s vice president for franchising; the company has plans for three locations in San Antonio alone and if the company doesn't find a franchisee right away, PIRTEK will consider opening the stores as company-owned locations and then sell them once they are established. Though it may seem curious for a company to launch an expansion in the midst of a recession, O’Kane said all of PIRTEK’s existing franchises are doing well because “it's a service that is a necessity, not a luxury.”

PIRTEK sells hydraulic hoses for industry from a storefront, but its specialty is responding to equipment breakdowns within an hour to get everything from auto lifts to manufacturing lines running again. Buses, cranes, manufacturing plants, garbage trucks and numerous other machines use hydraulic hoses that can shut down a job for days if a broken hose has to be ordered and a repair person scheduled, O'Kane said. PIRTEK aims to eliminate the downtime and lost revenue.

Ready, Set, Factor

You may have heard that the economy has seen better days. If not, please crawl out from under your rock, grab a WSJ and turn on CNN immediately.

It’s easy to assume that no business is immune to these economic conditions but consider this: Where are small businesses getting their funding now that banks are less apt to lend? From factors like Liquid Capital, an international network of franchise owners – Liquid Capital calls them principals – who help small- and medium-size businesses grow and succeed by providing immediate financing secured by credit-worthy account receivables.

According to recent Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones and Scripps Howard News Service articles, alternative factoring and non-traditional loans have become the difference between survival and extinction for those refused by banks. Factoring differs from traditional bank loans because the credit decision is strictly based on receivables rather than other criteria - how long the company has been in business, working capital and personal credit score, for example - that a bank would take into consideration. Factoring differs from equity financing in that factors don't take equity in the company. Since contracts are short term, the client could elect to stop factoring whenever they choose.

Though it's been around for centuries, factoring has attracted a wave of borrowers in recent months and Brian Birnbaum, a founder and director of Liquid Capital, said he thinks the next two or three years are going to be "great times for the factoring industry." The industry, noted Birnbaum, is set to grow again in light of current instability in U.S. markets related to credit lending practices among major lenders such as banks. More proof of Birnbaum’s claim: Liquid Capital reported a 55 percent increase in factoring volume for September, compared with the same month last year.

Meet a WCFE Exhibitor: Brian Spindel of PostNet

Company Name: PostNet
Representative: Brian Spindel, Executive Vice President, COO and Founder (photo: Spindel, left, with PostNet president and CEO Steve Greenbaum; Greenbaum is also the IFA Chairman)
Brief Concept Synopsis: PostNet’s worldwide network of full-service, diversified business centers serve the increasing business services needs of small, home-based and start-up entrepreneurial business ventures through digital copy and document services, printing and finishing services, computer/Internet services and more.
Years Exhibiting: 5

Why does your company choose to exhibit at the West Coast Franchise Expo? Larger shows with a broader advertising strategy make more sense as they attract a higher quality of attendees. Often, when I peek at the badges of those attending the WCFE, I see that a number of people are from out of state so I know that they came specifically for the show and are serious about finding a concept that’s right for them.

What is the company’s desired outcome of participating in this particular show? We want to meet qualified candidates and make an impact on those who are seriously interested in buying a franchise. PostNet wants to expose our brand and concept to the largest audience as possible so we make it our mission to be extremely visible and accessible at every show; we may not be the right concept for everyone but certainly don’t want to miss the ones we ARE right for.

Any interesting WCFE memories to share? In addition to meeting interesting prospects, it’s great to network with other exhibitors and meet up with our friends in the franchise community. It’s always nice seeing everyone and a good time is always had by all.

What advice can you give to first-time WCFE exhibitors? We have a rule in our booth that no one can sit down unless they’re with a prospect and to exude energy and warmth at all times. New exhibitors should understand that people walking the aisles are intimidated as is so it’s important to be as accessible as possible. Don’t let your body language scare people away!