Best of the Best in Franchising

In this episode, I talk with Frank Fiume, founder of i9 Sports about the start of his franchise, how he grew his business, lessons he learned from challenging times in the business, and key lessons that he shares in his excellent book Running with My Head Down. This is a fascinating discussion about what it takes to be successful in franchising and lessons from a veteran franchise leader who now hosts the Emerging Franchise Brands Podcast.

In this episode, I talk with Barbara Reguero about her transition from working on Wall Street for 23 years to owning a Maid Right franchise with Premium Service Brands. Barbara shares her story about how she has grown her business since she started it in February of 2015, her thoughts on being awarded the Franchisee of the Year in 2020 during a challenging year with COVID, what she does to ensure her team members know they are all looking out for one another (and how she has such incredible retention with her cleaning crews in her business), as well as the benefits for working within a franchise system to get support for training, marketing, ongoing support, and the tremendous value of working with incredible peers who are also in the same franchise.

In this episode, I talk with Matt Skellan of Kitchen Tune Up and Bath Tune Up in Columbus, Ohio. He acquired an existing Kitchen Tune Up franchise in June of 2022, added a Bath Tune Up franchise and has grown the business significantly from then until now. Matt shares his story about how he decided to get into franchising and why he chose to join Kitchen Tune Up and Bath Tune Up franchise family. He also shares numerous lessons he has learned over the years about scaling, leadership, and evaluating everything in his business to make the best decisions to grow his business to the next level.

In this episode, I talk with David Chapman on key lessons in franchise marketing and his thoughts on the future of marketing in franchising. David is the founder and board chair of Tidehouse (formerly 919 Marketing) in Holly Springs, North Carolina and has held key executive leadership roles, including CEO and EVP of Marketing for venture-backed companies, as well as Global Account Director for the world's largest advertising agency network. David is a contributing writer for both INC. and Forbes. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences, where he shares insights on sales, marketing, and brand growth. You can learn more and contact him at www.davidchapmanonline.com

In this episode, I talk with Kirk Allen, who is the Chief Operating Officer of Reshift Media on emerging trends in franchise marketing and AI and what franchisors and franchisees should be paying more attention to as they market and expand their businesses.

In this episode, we talk wtih Ewan Salter of Caring Senior Service about practical uses of AI in franchising and how their franchise uses these tools to improve the user experience for their clients and team members.

In this episode, I talk with Betsy Hamm, who is a the CEO of Lifted Studio and host of the Loud and LIfted Podcast. Betsy shares her story about how she went from working in marketing at Hershey Entertainment to becoming involved in franchising. She worked with the founder of Duck Donuts, became its COO and then CEO and led the franchise from about 20 locations to over 200.

Today, Betsy partners with founders, executives, and leadership teams to fuel smart, sustainable growth. Betsy shares lessons that she has learned on enhancing and improving performance, how to define and get others to buy into your vision, and the key ways that executives can better lead and strengthen their teams for long-term success.

With 15 years in marketing and brand leadership at Hershey Entertainment & Resorts and as CEO who scaled Duck Donuts from 20 to nearly 200 locations worldwide, Betsy knows what it takes to build a brand with staying power. In this insightful episode, she shares valuable lessons and insights that will benefit you to build a meaningful strategy and vision with her coaching and expertise. Learn more at www.betsyhamm.com.

In this episode, Richard Yoerk of Express Employment Professionals shares his story about how he and his wife got into the staffing business with Express Employment Professionals and build a multi-unit operation starting in Champaign, Illinois in April of 2008. Today, they have five territories and nine offices. Richard shares lessons he has learned as he has scaled his business, mistakes he has made, the importance of leadership in growth, and just an incredible story of growth and success.

In this episode, we talk with Barb Volk and Doug Birer, who run a multi-unit KidStrong operation in Florida, North Carolina, and New York. They talk about how their partnership started, lessons they've learned as they've been scaling their business, leadership advice on growing a team, and what they love most about being a part of the Kidstrong franchise organization.

In this episode, I talk with Ben Kiser, who owns a Fireside RV franchise in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Ben shares his story about how he got into franchising, why he chose Fireside RV, lessons he has learned that help him minimize his time in the business so he can spend more time working on it, what he enjoys most about business ownership, how he maximizes revenue on each rental, how he anticipates and minimizes long-term challenges, and what he is most excited about for the future of the growth of his rental business.