It is most fascinating to study how entrepreneurs spot opportunity in the market place. "My name is Lance Winslow and I am a serial entrepreneur, I admit I am addicted and need help." ..."Hello Lance." Let me explain how I formed one of my companies which became a franchise system in itself and became a module under the umbrella company I had formed many years the prior. I at first saw it as another business to fit into our growing niche of cleaning businesses. It was to be called the Awning Wash Guys. This is an interesting case study in how businesses form and how companies seek, find and exploit opportunity in the market place. Here is the story:
Many years back I got a call last from my franchisees in Denver, who had been doing very good after signing up all the John Elway Car Dealerships for car washing. My franchisee was a Car Wash Guys Franchisee specializing in car washing for car dealers at the time:
http://www.carwashguys.com/dealershipdiv.shtml
He told me that Auto Nation bought out the 46 Dealership Chain in the Denver Area and they continued our services and have actually added tons of new dealerships in other franchise areas for us to wash. Every car gets washed 2 Xs per week at $1.25-1.50 each. Some of these dealerships have almost 1000 cars on the lots. Needless to say with this big account this franchisee became our quickest success story that year.
Then they were approached by Brian Stillmock, who just happened to be one of two of the leading awning washing companies and experts in that field. As luck would have it, he wanted to sell his business. But he loved his company and would only sell it to a professional out fit, because his customers had a ten + year following. Our Denver franchisees had the $90,000.00 to buy the business due to great sales, and the fact that I also hired them at $2,000.00 per new franchise to train the new team members. They asked if they could buy the Awning Wash Guys Business, I said yes but I wanted to see the books, and warned them about cash flow in a only billed customers type business.
Most franchise agreements have clauses, which are quite specific as to what types of businesses franchisees are allowed to participate in. We sat down and made a plan and cash flow strategy, and I knew if things didn't work out I would have to financially bail them out otherwise they might also go out of business due to cash flow with their Car Wash Guys franchise. Brian the seller agreed to stay on board with me as a co-founder. His books were immaculate and scary. Never seen such well-documented books; great business and incredible revenues almost $160-200 per hour; gross.
So we built a web site and offered it as a co-brand to new and existing franchisees of car wash guys, with the understanding that it was a totally separate business and they would need to pay Brian for proper training and buy his patented equipment. Before that Brian was a BIZ OP and sold about 24 units and did not understand franchising. I did, having just co-authored Franchising 101 and joined the Board of Directors for the AAFD-American Association of franchisees and Dealers. We decided that once we formed the WashGuy.com franchise all 24 Biz Ops including an operator and manufacturer of awnings in Canada would join our network and we would agree to never sell those territories as long as those prior Biz Op buyers were in businesses that had previously bought from Brian. Brian also had manufacturers who he networked with doing 50+ million in sales per year, who referred jobs to him and some of his BiZ Ops people. So what the heck. We join forces and go after a totally untapped market.
It worked.
I regret that that business is a higher generator per hour than washing and detailing cars in an industry, which is dominated by 1000s of independents and price competitive. A little bit of an ego breaker it was for me, but the numbers did not lie, and if a door is open that wide I will damn well run through it; especially with Brian's network of manufacturers, repairers and our team to back us up 110%. We knew if this thing grew too big too quick that Brian and I could split our time and hire another Biz Op out of Florida called Awning Rejuvenation Systems to help with training, marketing and product distribution. Brian holds 4 patents on Awning Cleaning devises and I know franchising very well. And our first prototype was our Denver franchisees that were sticklers for quality and consistency.
Brian also had several tri-state contracts he had been unable to service, TGIF and Block Buster Video that would be in regions we could service without other franchisees until things were finalized as far as a franchise was concerned. This site contains mega data about what we do. Instantly we became the best assembled awning wash team on the Planet. This one was obvious and simply fell right in my lap and it took me less than three hours to decide to go for it. We did and it works. I would like to have 1 franchisee in every one of the 240 DMAs in the next ten years. The day we started we were the number one Awning Washing Franchise in the World; albeit the only one. I like that scenario, as an entrepreneur it has a nice ring to it indeed; I can certainly use that.
If I enter an Industry, I want to be the leader in 18-36 months. If I can't I will collect all the data I can, read everything I can find and hire franchisees to do data searching. I read 160 magazines in every industry and collect articles and categorize them so when I am ready I will attack with the power of knowledge, this is what we did here. Richard Branson has 150 Brands, so 22 is a good start for a 35 year old who wanted to wash everything in the world and clean this place up. While Branson is flying around the World in a Hot Air Balloon, we are kind of had the fancy of washing the World below to better his view of things
This gives you a real live example of how co-brands are formed and how markets are won. It gives an entrepreneur a little insight as to how the real world works. Often enough if you listen to the college business professors, government brain dead regulators and lawyers giving you advice you would swear that building a business is something totally different indeed. As an entrepreneur you need to change the way you think and attack markets and how you seek, find and exploit markets. I hope this little story will help you see that point. Good Luck and continued success, think on it.
"Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
Traditional advertising methods are still being used for almost 90% of businesses today. The number... Read More
Commonly folks have asked me what the technical difference is between a contract and a... Read More
Those who are in the pressure washer business should not neglect the Hotel exterior cleaning... Read More
Whether you operate a chain of restaurants, a mom-and-pop convenience store, or a medium-sized retail... Read More
If you have a busy private practice, chances are you also have pockets of cash... Read More
Your on-line success is based on your efforts and yours alone. Sure there are many... Read More
Think of your business as a living, breathing, organism. It requires you to give it... Read More
Most of us remember going to at least one garage sale in our lives. It... Read More
Paper Shredding Business Opportunities are blossoming up everywhere because in recent years, privacy concerns and... Read More
Everyone is talking about small businesses. In 1993, when it was allowed, more than 90,000... Read More
Looking for ways to boost your cash flow? As a small business consultant, I make... Read More
Starting your own e-commerce business can be quite the adventure. There is nothing wrong with... Read More
After over thirty years advising small business it still comes as a surprise to see... Read More
Seventy percent of US households use the web when shopping locally, and about 25 percent... Read More
Perhaps you are building a new home office or you are redoing the one you... Read More
Small business owners can relieve a lot of their own cash flow problems, according to... Read More
Why do you need an account plan?When you first decide to approach a company through... Read More
How often has someone thought of starting a business based solely on the fact they... Read More
Everyday, customers and business owners are bombarded with billboards, logos, print and electronic ads from... Read More
In my 18 years of consulting I have heard it all. Everything from competition to... Read More
You know your prospects need what you sell. You know they want what you sell.... Read More
Essentially there are 5 tremendously powerful methods to make money online. These methods were not... Read More
Recently one of my customers told me the chaos swirling through his company was the... Read More
Providing high quality customer service is a must for any business to survive.Following up on... Read More
Just when the entire state was kissing Wichita goodbye, economically speaking, they turn around their... Read More
Shopping for a franchise is easy if you know what you are doing. You can... Read More
Would it help you as a real estate investor to be able to "Close For... Read More
It has been discussed allowing Franchising companies to electronically disclose franchise documents to the public... Read More
American small business is again in transition. Many employees, now working from home, are no... Read More
Treat your business as a serious, full-time business and be serious about making it work.... Read More
At first blush this idea might be difficult to wrap your brain around. That's because... Read More
The choice of financing is an important determinant of whether a product reaches the market,... Read More
The Customer Analysis section of the business plan assesses the customer segments that the company... Read More
Do you sometimes find yourself just going "through the motions" of your business from day... Read More
Quality control in franchising companies is paramount and all franchising companies must have strict guidelines... Read More
Many pressure washing companies will be glad to take on additional work when a company... Read More
When working properly, computers enable small businesses to make big business profits; however, get booted... Read More
The modern Franchise business model and the much different business opportunity are much different and... Read More
In this paper, I will:1. provide a framework for creating total system power at all... Read More
Canon City, Colorado is known for it's 6 Prisons; State and Federal, women's prison and... Read More
If you've been considering incorporating your small business, you've probably been confused about the difference... Read More
Q: I'm curious. What is the dumbest business question you've ever been asked? -- Norris... Read More
Just as you are about to say "good-bye" to your hair stylist, you get the... Read More
Many of us have noticed how some nearby communities seem to be "wealthier" than other... Read More
The story is told of a tiger chasing some goats to catch one for dinner.... Read More
Many companies wish to expand and a few wish to use franchising as a method... Read More
When do annoyances in a relationship become too much to bear?Have you ever worked for... Read More
You see it often in large shopping complexes. Customers seem to be flocking to a... Read More
In this series of articles I'm going to show you how to find out if... Read More
The American system of business management has been admired and emulated around the world. This... Read More
When should you create a foundation in order to solidify... Read More
Whether you operate a chain of restaurants, a mom-and-pop convenience... Read More
Microfiber cleaning towels have been around for about ten years... Read More
Where do you find the right people for a business... Read More
Last summer the FTC put forth a report and then... Read More
Is this you?You dreamed of owning your own business, doing... Read More
People will always stress that having a well researched business... Read More
There is a continual trend we are seeing which I... Read More
As a solo entrepreneur or small business owner, one of... Read More
You've heard marketing and advertising gurus quip, "Sell the... Read More
One thing I have noticed in my travels to different... Read More
Buyers want both online and local information about where to... Read More
When working properly, computers enable small businesses to make big... Read More
If you intend to franchise your company you will need... Read More
According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, since... Read More
In this series of articles I'm going to show you... Read More
10 Best Practices to consider as your SBIR negotiations approach... Read More
Concrete cleaning can be a lucrative business to start. Here... Read More
Why do you need an account plan?When you first decide... Read More
One of the simplest ways to expand your marketing... Read More
For really tough boat hull cleaning you will need to... Read More
Washing the exterior of a truck. Sounds easy right? Well,... Read More
You know what makes me really happy? Drinking a Starbucks... Read More
When you feel like you're always busy working on your... Read More
Everyone wants to succeed in life. Most people want to... Read More
Doesn't it frustrate you when you've given good service, sometimes... Read More
Every business starts with an idea or a dream. To... Read More
What kinds of things effect mobile service businesses P and... Read More
There is much competition in the mobile auto detailing business.... Read More
Most businesses accept checks as form of payment for goods... Read More
-- Beyond Cold Calling, "Warm" Calling and Sending E-mails --Many... Read More
As a business owner, you already know how important it... Read More
How do you make sure you have the business solutions... Read More
Continuing from the second article:6. About the aground mathematical model,... Read More
There's been a recent rise in the number of elderly... Read More
Last week we discussed the importance of performing an autopsy... Read More
We were more than excited. Our women's doubles tennis team... Read More
If you're serious about wanting to start a business, the... Read More
Are you a motivational speaker who consistently gets rave reviews... Read More
Due to the over regulation in the Franchising Industry and... Read More
This year, some 700,000 American businesses will be sold. Most... Read More
The Franchise Group at the Federal Trade Commission in all... Read More
In the Truck Washing Business every single type of vehicle... Read More
A common hazard faced by new entrepreneurs is a lack... Read More
Franchising is the fastest way to build small businesses, provide... Read More
Don't let your customer satisfaction research initiative collect dust on... Read More
The success of your business is critically dependent on how... Read More
How do you find the best business partners?Finding a good... Read More
For many small businesses, the "S" corporation is the business... Read More
Work smarter, not harderWhat is one of the best ways... Read More
Small Business Small Business |