The majority of Jalal Mir’s working life has been dedicated to working with pets. In his native Iran, he became a veterinarian and executive in the wholesale business, importing high-quality pet care goods and overseeing a team of more than 100 employees.

After immigrating to Canada, he brought that level of understanding to Pet Valu, being on the sales floor, rather than being “one man in a room with a laptop.”

The Richmond Hill, Ontario-based franchisee opened his location 11 months ago and is already looking to expand to multiple units.

On this episode of Franchise Canada Chats, we discuss:

-Balancing novelty, risk, and trustworthiness in the retail franchise industry;

-Creating trust when handling customers’ loved ones;

-Standing out in the booming pet care industry;

-And so much more!

Today’s guest on Franchise Canada Chats is B-Protek's Brian Lemon, based out of Winnipeg. After a 34-year career as a government relations specialist in the agriculture industry, he decided to retire and go into business for himself.

"The idea of being a franchisee, you're still a private entrepreneur but it brings with it all these other supports," says Lemon.

He breaks down his franchise search on this episode of Franchise Canada Chats. We also discuss:

"We always knew we wanted to do this on a large scale,” says Florence Gaven Rossavik of Fuzz Wax Bar. Since co-founding the company in 2012, she’s ventured on to seal her commitment to waxing as the brand grows. “We thought about franchising from the get-go, because it’s obviously a way to grow a bit faster,” says Rossavik. That growth relies on multi-unit franchisees like Dawn Flowers, who heads three locations across Ontario and B.C., and is the owner of the company’s top-performing location.

Florence and Dawn join us on Franchise Canada Chats to discuss:

-How the corporate and franchise landscape changed for women in the industry in the last 10 years;

-How the tiered membership base model benefits clients and franchisees;

-Being open to new revenue streams while remaining clear and consistent with the brand’s focus;

-And so much more!

In this episode, guest host Gary Prenevost from FranNet chats with Jordan Levine, chief operating officer for Sola Salons, and Larry Lloyd, a Whitby, Ontario-based franchisee. Sola Salons is a real estate rental concept for cosmetologists and other care providers. The brand recently expanded into Canada and Lloyd is only the fifth franchisee for the brand in the country.

Jordan and Larry join Franchise Canada Chats discuss creating passion in franchising, protecting the brand's culture, and the interdependence between franchisees and franchisors.

You can expect these key takeaways from this episode:

-The unforeseen benefit of opening multiple units in similar locations;

-Attracting interest from high-quality leads in prospective franchisees;

-How culture is the driver that sets a brand apart, even with a brand with strong offerings;

-And so much more!

Candice Parent joins us on Franchise Canada Chats to discuss how she took over her MOLLY MAID franchise in Windsor: with a lot of research, a lot of conversations with franchisors and with family members, and while applying her 20 years of teaching experience to creating a culture within her team.

Now she manages a team of 12 loyal and committed cleaners while meeting and growing her client base.

You can expect these key takeaways from this episode:

-Why demographics and knowing your territory is important for growth; 

-Teachers have soft skills that are perfect for franchising; 

-Imparting a wellness policy to protect staff members' free times and generating ideas in the downtime;

-and much more!

Jon Martin says he fell into franchising with both feet. About 20 years ago, he decided to expand his mother's health care business as a franchise model, building 50 locations over 15 years before deciding to seek out a new venture.   

He wanted something new, something lucrative, and something he could feel passionate about. Maverick’s Donuts was just the answer. With his years of franchise development under his belt, Jon now plays double-duty, perfecting the company’s franchise system and managing four locations in the Ottawa area. 

On this episode of Franchise Canada Chats, Jon Martin discusses the knead-to-knows about the donut business, including: 

-Refining the flavours and the concept to build a better brand system; 

-Developing connections with local organizations to engage the community; 

-Using online SEO to capture new attention; 

-Franchising to improve quality of life;

-and so much more!

Steven Vanloffeld was elected to his First Nation’s Council in 2016. “I looked at our government, our First Nation, and what our revenues and expenditures were, and where that revenue was going,” he says. Instead of having revenue go to outside communities and business, he challenged the big-box systems to keep revenue in the hands of Indigenous communities. eSupply was born from this thought. Vanloffeld wrote a business plan and launched it in February 2020.

Today, Vanloffeld is on the precipice of signing eSupply’s first franchisee. Moreover, he’s created an Indigenous community ownership model to stop the “economic leakage” and support community enhancement and development, on top of the opportunity available to everyday Canadians.

Vanloffeld joins us on Franchise Canada Chats to discuss:

-Reducing capital and storage costs to save value;

-Addressing economic leakage in Canada’s 50,000 Indigenous communities;

-Removing barriers for marginalized people communities to enter franchising;

-And so much more!

Juan Arboleda and Paola Montoya's first interaction with JDI Cleaning was through covering a couple of cleaning jobs. The local franchisee was so impressed by their work ethic that he offered them a franchise. They took that and ran with it, growing into multi-unit owners over the 20 years they've been with the company.

In their tenure, they've increased sales in their Milton, Brampton, and North Halton region by 300 per cent, including making the jump from franchisee to franchisor. Within the last six months, their son Simon began assisting them on cleaning jobs, making it a true family franchise.

Juan and Paola join us on Franchise Canada Chats to discuss:

- JDI franchises are in the communication business, not just the cleaning business;

- Engaging with cultural changes in a new country and how onboarding new Canadians reflects the franchisor/franchisee relationship;

-Splitting the workload and responsibility to divide and conquer, keeping family issues at home and leaving work at the office;

-and so much more!

Today's guest, Steve Geddes, parlayed his combined furniture repair and sales experience into a franchise business with Fibrenew. As Geddes found through the pandemic, there’ll always be a need for repairs. He took over a Kelowna-based Fibrenew location and began growing the business from a stagnant location to a top-ranking powerhouse.  

In moving from a technician role into an operational management role, Geddes found his life changing in more ways than one.

You can expect these key takeaways from this episode:

-The pros and cons of buying an existing franchise vs. a new build; 

-Appealing to the highly educated consumers through the brand promise; 

-Creating incentives and quality working environments in order to retain staff; 

-and so much more!

Everything was great for Jamie Berube, until it wasn’t. As a Wells Fargo banker, she was front and center for the 2008 market collapse that would define her career. Furthermore, she became the mother of a child with a medical disability, navigating a medical system with no precedent.

She needed a plan B, one that would recession-proof her if another market collapse ever occurred. She turned that life experience into a franchising journey through self-employment. Jamie joins us on Franchise Canada Chats to tell us how it happened. On this episode, we discuss:

- Developing confidence in new leadership roles;

- Knowing the value and limitations of passion in business decision-making;

- Overcoming the challenges of remote work with children;

- and so much more!