Listen for those who think running a franchise company is easy let me tell you what. It would be easier to run the War in Iraq or Iran than to run a franchise company in 110 cities, 460 units in 23 states and 4 countries. In fact I bet the President’s job is easier than mine was. In fact I’d bet on it. You see each time you open a new market; you have new problems and just when you think you have it all figured out, there is another one. “Controlled Chaos” is more descriptive term than franchise management?

No wonder there are only 2000 Franchise companies in the entire United States of America. But you know what, it is fun as hell. I mean where else can you play at break neck speed with your balls to wall with afterburners blazing and the whole country as your playground. Whooo Ya! Indeed, what a friggin rush that was.

Here is an example of the kind of stuff that goes on in a franchise company, sure this is a more robust example of the controlled chaos I talk about, but it gives you the picture of what a franchisor founder must deal with in a small up and coming company. This is an email I got from a franchisee who was in New Jersey and moved his business back to partner with his brother in Colorado, they bought four territories. Read it and you tell me?

“We need suppliers in our franchise areas. Is there not a nationwide company that can supply us? Maybe each franchisee needs to be set up as a distributor so they can get products in bulk at wholesale prices. We had to pay over $50 for a box of Simonize truck and bus wash for fleet vehicle cleaning and the only reason we did it was we were in AZ and the trainers said it was the best. It works, but the price-OW! Who knows, maybe that’s a good price, but in the startup phase, picking products or pricing them is that last thing on one’s mind and its confusing. Added to this, we never got our start-up package, had to ask many times for items we were supposed to get with our franchise (i.e. sweatshirts, software). They shipped it to our house but we did not get the message on our home answering machine. To add to the confusion, Jason and Rand [fill in trainers regular trainer sent to Kosovo last minute National Guard Duty] weren’t using most of the products they got in their start up kit, though they dutifully explained what they got and then why they used something else and why they thought it was better. Too many choices.

Perhaps there is a time for experimenting when one has become a seasoned CWG, [car wash guys, our brand name] but not from the get go. You remember how stupid I must have looked standing there in NJ trying to clean a cement truck with stuff I wasn’t sure how to use properly. (By the way, I found a Malco dealer here. I like the products and we had better luck getting called back by him. The Auto Magic guy never even left a message in response to our calls.). [Malco and Automagic are major auto detail wholesale brands].

Meanwhile, while all this was going on, we were in WY in a snow storm with 7 people for a Blitz Marketing one week long sales campaign for their new start-up in the new territories in Colorado and were delayed a day in a near blizzard three days before in Illinois. So this is the hectic pace of a small franchising company starting out. Much like the books you read on the “Wild Catter” days of Oil Drilling. Anyway, thought I might share that with you. Think on this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

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