Hispanic Enterprise - June/July 2008 - (Page 35)

Producing a list with the Top 10, 25 or 100 of any category is a difﬁcult and inexact task. Because there are no adverse monetary consequences, picking the best movies, actresses or baseball players would be painless. Picking the top franchise opportunities, however, is extremely difﬁcult—especially with the foreknowledge that someone may naively take such a list and commit to an investment in excess of $200,000 without doing the proper due diligence. There are a number of critical variables that must be considered in their entirety before anyone decides which franchise is best for him or her. These include historical performance, brand identiﬁcation, market dynamics, franchisee satisfaction, the level of initial training and ongoing support, ﬁnancial stability and various other key areas that must be fully explored. Although some might advise otherwise, our suggestion is that anyone considering investment in a franchise should take at least four months to make the decision. Do not allow yourself to be pressured into making that decision prematurely—whether by franchisors, brokers, investors, or well-intentioned friends. The consequences for making the wrong choice can be severe—at best, you can make a poor investment, causing you to be both unhappy and ﬁnancially strapped; at worst, you can lose your self-worth, your investment in its entirety, and maybe your spouse. The secret is to do your homework at the outset. Also, keep in mind that while a wellchosen franchise that might meet one person’s personal needs and strengths, it may not be optimal for your needs and/ or experience. Every decision is individual and has to be made in light of your personal strengths, weaknesses, long-term objectives and tolerance for risk. Keep in mind that there are over 3,000 franchise systems in North America, many brand new and many tried and true. Unless you have a great deal of business HISPANIC ENTERPRISE experience in a particular industry, our recommendation would be that you stick with a company that has in excess of 40 or so operating units. These are the franchisors who have already learned from their mistakes, have made the necessary changes and have the staff to properly support you as a new franchisee. You should also favor those ﬁrms that have already demonstrated their intentions and efforts to aggressively recruit minorities, especially Hispanics, into their company, whether as managers or as franchisees. Each and every one of the companies listed as a Top 25 Franchise has made a concerted corporate commitment to recruit prospective franchisees from the Hispanic community over the past several years. This commitment is not motivated by altruism; it is based on sound business economics. The reality is that there are growing numbers of Latino immigrants and Hispanic Americans who have settled in areas currently underserved by the basic retail and service businesses prevalent in most other communities. Given the large and growing buying power within these underserved markets, Hispanic franchisees are the best candidates to run franchises within these communities. Progressive franchisors are taking full advantage of this reality. We feel conﬁdent that the companies noted below represent exceptional opportunities for those prospective franchisees that are committed to working hard, working smart and working within the system. 7-Eleven, Inc. Founded: 1927 First Franchise: 1964 Total Franchised Units: 19,992 7-ELEVEN stores were born from the simple concept of giving people “what they want, when and where they want it..” This idea gave rise to the entire convenience store industry. While this formula still works today, customers’ needs are changing at an accelerating pace. 7-ELEVEN meets this challenge with an infrastructure of daily distribution of fresh perishables, regional production of fresh foods and pastries and an information system that greatly improves ordering and merchandising decisions. Total Investment: Varies Minimum Net Worth: 12.5K Franchising Fee: 64K www.7-eleven.com jwebbj01@7-11.com The Athlete’s Foot Rob Bond and C. Everett Wallace are cofounders of the National Minority Franchising Initiative (www.MinorityFranchising. com), an effort to increase the number of minorities in franchising. They can be reached at rob@WorldFranchising.com and cwallace18@nc.rr.com, respectively. For additional franchise opportunities that are attempting to recruit minorities, please go to www.MinorityFranchising.com. Founded: 1971 First Franchise: 1972 Total Franchised Units: 609 THE ATHLETE’S FOOT, with stores in more than 45 countries, is the leading international franchisor of name-brand athletic footwear. As a franchisee, you can beneﬁt from headquarters’ support, including training, advertising, real estate and product selection. Total Investment: 200-525K Minimum Net Worth: 200K Franchising Fee: 40K Royalty Fee: 3.5-5% www.theathletesfoot.com franchiseinfo@theathletesfoot.com 35 June/July 2008 http://www.7-eleven.com http://www.7-eleven.com http://www.theathletesfoot.com http://www.MinorityFranchising.com http://www.MinorityFranchising.com http://www.theathletesfoot.com http://www.MinorityFranchising.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Hispanic Enterprise - June/July 2008

Hispanic Enterprise - June/July 2008 Contents Briefcase: BIZBUZZ: Business Briefs Briefcase: Dynamic Trends Briefcase: Q&A Briefcase: Trendsetters BizLife: BizTech BizLife: Travel Feature: Target: Hispanics Cover Story: A Legend in His Own Time Feature: Top 25 Franchises Success & Motivation: The Talent Scout Education: Success by Degrees Finance & Investing: A Tough Sell Social Events: Emerge Dallas Politics & Government: The Accidental Americans Managing: Deconstructing Networking

Hispanic Enterprise - June/July 2008

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