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book excerpt from...
WHAT NO ONE EVER TELLS YOU ABOUT FRANCHISING: Real-Life Franchising Advice from 101 Successful Franchisors and Franchisees
by Jan Norman (chapter 50 is reprinted below with permission of the author)
 For more than 12 years, Calvin Yu worked in his family's business-to-business technology company in Dayton, Ohio. When his parents retired, Calvin remained with the business for 18 months to help with the transition. Although he has a college degree in computer science, Calvin wanted to move to Southern California in 2004 and try working in a non-technical field. He considered looking for a job, but having been a boss and an employee, Calvin decided he wanted to own his own company. "Either way, I always give 110 percent, so in the long haul I might as well work for myself," he says. Calvin investigated buying an independent business, but thought it was financially riskier than he wanted. "In a private business, you're completely on your own," he says. "With a franchise you're not really an entrepreneur. The products and services are laid out for you."
Before investigating franchises to buy, Calvin weighed both his own strengths when he worked in the family business and his long-term goal. "I'm strongest in operations and management," he says. "My five-year goal is to get married, buy a house, and have kids. A franchise is riskier than a job but the financial rewards are better."
He wanted to find a franchise that capitalized on his operational strengths, required few employees, and had more reasonable operating hours than restaurants. He intentionally avoided technology franchises and those selling to businesses with which he had prior experience. He wanted experience in a business-to-consumer sector.
Many franchise buyers
are most comfortable looking at franchises in industries in which they have prior experience. Some strike out in a completely different field without weighing whether they have any transferable skills to run such a business. Franchising attracts large numbers of former managers and executives who know how to work with employees, write a budget, market, or plan strategically. The most successful franchisees are those who match not just their experience, but their strongest skills to the franchise most in need of those particular skills.
Calvin almost surprised himself that the franchise that rose to the top of his list was Cash Plus Family Financial Service Centers, which provide check cashing, money orders and transfer, and loans of two weeks to a month for people faced with an unexpected expense before payday. He thought about some auto-related franchises because he is passionate about cars, but decided Cash Plus best matched his skills and plan. Calvin bought the rights to a Cash Plus location in Fullerton, California, in 2005.
"What Cash Plus offers is light-years easier to operate than retail and the hours are shorter. Its services are used by a lot of immigrants and middle-income people, and it gives me experience in the consumer sector, which is different from business to business," he explains.
"I intend to open three to five Cash Plus locations and own several different types of businesses," Calvin says. "My ultimate goal is to go back to technology, but experience in other fields with different customer segments will broaden my perspective. Already, my research before buying Cash Plus has opened my eyes to other segments I wouldn't have been aware of previously."
What No One Ever Tells You About Franchising © 2006 by Jan Norman and published by Kaplan Publishing, Chicago, IL 60606
More Cash Plus in the media...
ENTREPRENEUR MAGAZINE'S INTERVIEW
Read what Entrepreneur Magazine found
out about Cash Plus and it's passion for giving away money
— to charities and customers both! CLICK HERE
Recent Cash Plus News Releases...
CASHAWAY SWEEPSTAKES 12 WINNERS SELECTED
Read about the top three winners and their
favorite charities in the official News Release (11-25-11). CLICK
HERE
CASH PLUS LAUNCHES ITS HIT-A-HOME-RUN $25,000 CASHAWAY SWEEPSTAKES
GIVEAWAY
Read about the twelfth edition of Cash
Plus' popular, one-of-a-kind giveaway program for customers
and their favorite charities in the official News Release (06-22-11). CLICK
HERE
CASH PLUS TV IN-STORE VIDEO PROGRAM IS AN INSTANT SUCCESS
With its exclusive "smile-maker technology" Cash Plus TV raises the customer experience bar yet again. Read the official News Release for more details. CLICK HERE
YET ANOTHER NEW CASH PLUS STORE OPENS ITS DOORS
The Cash Plus retail network continues to expand across the country. Read the official News Release about
the opening of the latest store location. CLICK HERE
CASH PLUS RANKED #59 IN 2010 FRANCHISE HOT 100
Read about Cash Plus grabbing a spot in the Franchise Hot 100 rankings for 2010. (3-15-10). CLICK HERE
CASH PLUS OFFERS FREE BOOKLET ON THE FINANCIAL HAZARDS OF PUNITIVE FEES
In simple, direct language our free You've Got Choices booklet identifies many of the often hidden financial hazards we all face in our daily lives, how they work and what they really cost us. Now, there's a downloadable electronic edition (10-31-08) available. CLICK HERE
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