If you’re a professional in your 50s (or even your mid- to late 40s), you’re probably starting to think about the final lap of your career. You might be in a job you love, where you feel fulfilled, secure, and amply rewarded for your work. But that’s probably not the case, if you’re on my blog. Maybe you’re just starting to explore the idea of becoming your own boss, but you’re not quite ready to take the leap. Or maybe you know you want to buy a franchise but are putting it off for financial or other reasons. Whatever your situation, I’ve got five solid reasons to buy a franchise now.
Reason #1: You Have Transferrable Skills
If you’ve been working in any kind of leadership role – whether in a company, a nonprofit, education, ministry, or the military – you have skills that can make you successful as a franchisee. These are the core responsibilities from those roles that translate directly to franchise ownership:
- Leadership. Managing a team of white-collar workers, guiding a platoon of soldiers, or helming a charity: they all translate to the team-building and -leading skills you need as a franchisee. If you’re an owner-operator, you’ll work directly with your team every day. Executive franchisees take a manage-the-manager approach. Pick whichever fits your skillset or interests.
- Money management. Corporate middle managers and executives, school principals and district administrators, nonprofit directors: they all have to anticipate and plan for expenses, avoid running out of cash, and know when something is worth the money. Franchisees use those same skills.
- Revenue generation. Whether you’re leading marketing or sales teams, fundraising for a nonprofit, or petitioning the top brass for equipment and supplies, you’re bringing in the bacon. You’ll use the same skills of persuasion and communication in your own business.
- Operations and/or strategy. Depending on your role, you might focus more heavily on day-to-day operations (COO, middle manager, executive director, or lieutenant) or on top-down strategy (CEO, VP, nonprofit director, colonel). Either of those skill sets will serve you well in franchising. If you lean more toward operations, you might want to start as an owner-operator. Strategy-focused? consider executive franchising. Good at both? The (franchise) world is your oyster!
Reason #2: You Can Start Small
I often encounter candidates who want to become franchise owners, but they think they need $1 million-plus to get started. Or they think only multi-unit contracts are available. Both are false. Quality franchise options are available at franchise fees as low as $50,000, with total startup costs of around $200K. And plenty of franchisees, especially new or regional brands, are willing to consider applicants for single-unit contracts. If starting big is the only thing holding you back, forget about it – starting small is absolutely an option and one of the most attractive reasons to buy a franchise without waiting.
Reason #3: Financing Is Available
While franchisors prefer applicants with good liquidity, they typically don’t expect franchisees to have all their startup funds in cash. It’s very common to seek out financing for some of your expenses, and plenty of low-cost options are available. Even with recent changes in the federal government, the Small Business Administration is still around and offering low-cost loan programs for new franchisees. You can also tap your retirement accounts or find private funding through general or specialized lenders. Some franchisors even offer in-house financing to qualified candidates.
Reason #4: It’s the Best Option In This Economy
Especially for older workers, this is not a friendly economy. A May survey found that fully 90 percent of workers over age 50 had faced ageism in the workplace. In addition, hiring has slowed down dramatically, with many companies choosing not to fill vacated roles. And thanks to recent mass layoffs, hundreds of thousands of workers have flooded a job market that has fewer open positions to go around. The solution? Employ yourself. As a franchisee, you control your wealth-building potential and growth opportunities.
Reason #5: You Can Get Started Quickly
A new franchise launch usually takes 5-18 months, from first inquiry to opening your doors. Not very long in the scheme of things. If you want to keep your timeline on the shorter end of that range, there are several levers you can pull:
- Buy a single-unit, home-based franchise. These have the shortest setup time. Bonus: they’re also the least expensive in terms of startup costs.
- Have your ducks in a row. Know what you’re looking for and have your finances sorted out before you start approaching franchisors.
- Get help. Franchise consultants provide guidance and support to make the franchise process more efficient. We can help you narrow your list more quickly, connect with financing experts, and get your application right the first time.
Need to move even faster? Consider a turnkey franchise. These are generally more expensive than other franchises but are ready to go in just a few weeks to a few months.
Bonus Reason: Help Is Available – and Free
The franchising landscape can be overwhelming, especially if you’re trying to do your search on your own. After all, you’ve got literally hundreds of industries and thousands of franchisors to choose from. A franchise consultant can help you make sense of it all.
We help you conduct a self-assessment that teases out the most useful information about your goals, resources, and skills. Then we match you with several quality options from a pre-vetted list of trustworthy companies. We also help guide you through the awarding process, and we’re just a phone call away for advice or encouragement as you’re launching your business.
The price tag for this personalized support and guidance? Absolutely nothing. We get paid by the franchisor when a successful candidate signs a contract, so you get to access our help for free.
Ready to move? Hopefully, I’ve convinced you that there are plenty of reasons to buy a franchise now. Don’t put off your future. The opportunity for fulfillment, freedom, and wealth are just around the corner.
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