You Don’t Have to Start from Scratch to be an Entrepreneur

Do you want to own your own business but talk yourself out of it because you have no ideas on what that business could be? Or you are not sure how to create the business model itself? Maybe you just think you are not creative enough. 

What if you could start a business in almost any category that interests you and the business plan is there for you? What if your creativity could come from designing a culture, hiring the right team and coaching them to success?

Well, you might be the perfect person to own a business through franchising. But wait, is that really entrepreneurship? YES it is. You invest in the business, build the business and manage the business. The best part is that the hard work of creating the concept and actual business model has been done for you. It has been said that entrepreneurship starts with inventing something, but what if that is simply not true?

Two Paths to Entrepreneurship

There are actually two paths to being an entrepreneur. The first is the traditional definition of an entrepreneur: You create the concept or product, test it out, build the brand, develop the systems and basically figure everything out. There are countless examples of success in this area including Colonel Harland Sanders. The Colonel invented the secret recipe and process for his fried chicken. He later created a business model called Kentucky Fried Chicken, which is what many of us grew up with. It’s a restaurant that serves chicken and all the sides to make a meal. But, the growth strategy? That is where the second path comes in.

The Colonel wanted to grow his business leveraging other smart entrepreneurs willing to invest in his concept. So, after he proved it, he began franchising, which is the second path to entrepreneurship. He created relationships with franchisees who invested their capital, leadership, risk and hard work into the KFC brand. Franchisees are also entrepreneurs, though they build from a proven brand and system. With their investment, they receive the brand and operating model. There is built-in support that does vary though every organization has other franchisees who prove to be solid mentors.

The Colonel knew that the fastest way to build the KFC brand and create generational wealth for others was through franchising. Leveraging this entrepreneurial model did grow KFC into a multi-billion dollar brand while creating many millionaire franchisees.

But wait…is the franchisee really an entrepreneur or are they just following the rules of the “real entrepreneur”? Franchise owners take on so much and even scholars agree that franchisees are true entrepreneurs. They invest their own money into the business, taking on the financial risk. They hire and manage employees as well as coach their performance. They negotiate leases, manage cash flow through careful attention to the Profit and Loss Statement and are responsible for the overall profitability of their franchise. They problem solve on a daily, if not hourly, basis. While they don’t own the “recipe,” they own the responsibility.

Entrepreneurship is more than the next best idea. It is spotting the opportunities, taking the risks, solving customer problems, leading people, making decisions daily and creating value. Franchising provides all of this.

But Wait…Isn’t Franchising Just Restaurants and SO Expensive?

There are many restaurant brands that are franchised; that is true. However, franchising is much more. There are many categories and price points for franchising. Some franchisees start with a smaller, less expensive brand and sell that after a bit and buy larger. Some stay with smaller and build more locations. The expansion capabilities are endless.

Here are some examples of franchising categories, but basically, almost anything can be franchised. 

• Home services such as window washing, cleaning service, flooring, plumbing, roofing and pest control.
• Health care such as chiropractic services or physical therapy.
• Fitness is a growing category and includes boutique fitness such as barre and yoga to large gyms that are full service.
• Senior care and childcare from in-home to a facility. Child education is also a big segment.
• Pet care, which has had explosive growth since the pandemic; we do love our pets!
• Real estate is on the move too.
• Lodging has always been a huge franchised area with about 98% of hotels of big chains franchised; the investment is large here.

Basically, if you go to a strip mall, about half of the businesses are probably franchised.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Instead of asking if you have the next best idea, ask yourself these questions:

• Do I enjoy being my own boss?
• Do I like leading people
• Am I strong at leading a team?
• Am I willing to take calculated risks?
• Do I enjoy serving customers?
• Would I rather work within a proven model versus build one?
• Do I have the capital to move forward?

Maybe the thing holding you back isn’t money or courage. Maybe it’s the mistaken belief that you have to have a brilliant idea versus work with a company that has a proven one. 

Need help getting started? 

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