Franchise Interviews

We are meeting with Felipe Martinez, who serves as the Director of Franchise Development, to discuss the Estrella Insurance franchise opportunity. Estrella Insurance has been delivering outstanding service and maintaining a professional environment for over 40 years. With a presence in more than 200 locations across Florida, California, Arizona, Colorado, Texas, Massachusetts, and North Carolina, and plans to expand to New York and Illinois by 2023, Estrella Insurance is committed to supporting the ongoing success of its franchisees. Comprehensive assistance is provided to franchise owners throughout the pre-opening process, and continuous support is offered by our dedicated management staff. Periodic extensive training is also provided to enhance owners' capabilities in maximizing income potential.

Estrella has cultivated robust partnerships with numerous major insurance companies, giving us a competitive advantage and enabling franchise owners to deliver high-quality client services. Moreover, Estrella Insurance excels in Marketing and Advertising efforts in both Spanish and English across various media channels, including TV, radio, outdoor, and notably, the internet. Despite these efforts, our most successful campaigns often stem from referrals by satisfied customers.

In part two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.

Frank Milner, President of Tutor Doctor, and Ollie Rogers, Tutor Doctor Franchisee, will be talking with Marty and Don about the Franchisor/Franchisee relationship. They also will explain the business model of Tutor Doctor, its history and the services it provides to students of all ages throughout North America and abroad. About Tutor Doctor Tutor Doctor was founded in 1999 as an alternative to the "one-to-many" teaching model most extra-curricular learning centers offer by providing a personalized one-on-one, in-home tutoring service to students. The company quickly grew and in 2003 turned to franchising as a way of expanding the company's impact and meeting the vast market demand. Now with offices internationally in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, the Tutor Doctor vision is becoming a reality as the lives of students and their families are being positively impacted throughout the world.

We are meeting with Neil Hershman, CEO of 16 Handles. 16 Handles opened its first store in Manhattan’s East Village in 2008, becoming the first self-serve frozen yogurt shop in New York City. Since then, the brand has expanded to over 45 locations with a menu that includes frozen yogurt, ice cream, vegan soft serve, endless toppings, drinks, and other treats and snacks. Each shop’s full menu is available in-store and via the 16 Handles app. In addition to creating irresistible desserts, 16 Handles works closely with local and national organizations in partnerships and fundraisers. Neil will also discuss how he met and partnered with social media influencer Danny Duncan. 

In Part two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.

We are meeting with Bob Johnston , CEO of The Melting Pot. Established in 1975, Melting Pot has offered a unique fondue dining experience for over 45 years. As the premier fondue restaurant franchise, Melting Pot has 94 restaurants in 31 U.S. states and Canada. Known for offering a variety of fondue cooking styles and unique entrées, Melting Pot’s menu also features cheese fondues, salads, fine wines, spirits, and chocolate fondue desserts. Fondue fans can join Melting Pot’s Club Fondue for exclusive promotions, special events, and advance holiday reservation privileges. Melting Pot is an affiliate of Front Burner Brands, a restaurant management company headquartered in Tampa, Florida. 

Every Business Has A Story

Bob will discuss how America’s favorite fondue concept dominates the experimental dining industry with new innovations as it plans nationwide expansion into new markets. CEO is not the first title Johnston has held with the idea – Bob initially started as a dishwasher in high school when his two older brothers opened a location.

Great Quotes in Franchising Podcast - Why franchising? A Great Quote In Franchising from Derek Henze, Franchise Business Owner to Topper's Pizza - In this podcast, Derek gives a great response on why franchising was a match for his goals and personality. Derek served in the US Army for eight years as a Field Artillery Specialist and Army Paralegal, serving one tour in Iraq from 2003-2004.

Hi everyone and welcome to a very special edition of Franchise Interviews, where for 17 years we have been asking the frantrepreneur who owns one.  I am your host Marty McDermott and I am the president of Franchise Interviews. We have a great show. Well it seems like yesterday, but it was 17 years ago today that we launched our podcast Franchise Interviews. I will speak like an older man, but our podcast was live-streamed on WorldTalkRadio in the old days. That meant anything could happen, and there was no room for error. Nevertheless, there were many mistakes. Most of them I laugh at today. Here is our very first show with a franchise called PBLoco. I was incredibly nervous. Don was calm and collected and brought a lot of knowledge and humor to the show. We will start off with a clip of an interview I did with Jaimie Jay of Stop Riding the Pine, which was one of my favorite podcasts. To date, Franchise Interviews has conducted over 800 interviews. Thanks everyone for your support and friendship.

We are meeting with Chris Medhurst, COO of District Taco,the premier authentic Mexican fast-casual restaurant, bringing the flavors of the Yucatán to the masses. The franchise has grown to 15 locations in and around Washington D.C. and Philadelphia metro areas. Their mission is to serve quality – Yucatán style – Mexican food that is fresh, simple and healthful, with a fully customizable menu that includes vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. At District Taco, food is made fresh daily from the highest quality ingredients. They strive to limit their impact on the environment by serving in environmentally friendly packaging where possible.

Chris is help leading the charge for future growth with franchising and to increase more brand awareness throughout the East Coast. The brand originally stared in 2009 with Osiris Hoil and his neighbor, Marc Wallace and built on the American dream with only a taco truck. Hoil moved to the United States from Mexico in the hopes of becoming an entrepreneur. Today the brand has grown across the country and hopes to create more smiles with its authentic Yucatán style Mexican Cuisine. https://franchising.districttaco.com/

In Part Two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.

We are meeting with John Ramsay, VP of Franchise Sales for Noodles & Company. Since 1995, the mission at Noodles & Company has been to nourish and inspire every team member, guest, and community they serve. All these years later, these core values remain at the heart of everything they do. From their menu to their service to the way they do business, it's their fresh, unexpected, human perspective that sets them apart. They call this Uncommon Goodness.

Noodles & Company franchise locations are essential pillars in their communities and give back to the community in the following ways:

Mac & Cheese Trade-Up Events

Noodles & Company hosts Mac & Cheese Trade-Up events where guests donate a box of Mac & Cheese and trade it in for a free bowl of Wisconsin Mac & Cheese. Noodles & Company donates the traded-in Mac & Cheese boxes to local food banks.

School Fundraising Nights

Noodles & Company locations host school fundraising nights throughout the year, where schools receive a portion of sales from the night.

Participating in Local Cultural Events

Noodles & Company franchisees are proud to participate in local cultural events for holidays like Black History Month, Pride, and Hispanic Heritage Month to show the community, team members, and guests that Noodles & Company supports everyone in its community.

With more than 450 restaurants in 26 states and over 8,000 team members, we were named one of America's Best Employers for Diversity by Forbes two years in a row. And we have been recognized by the Denver Business Journal as one of the Best Places to Work. We believe these successes are based on our unique and caring culture that makes everyone who walks through our doors feel welcome and appreciated. In part two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.

We are meeting with John Ramsay, VP of Franchise Sales for Noodles & Company. Since 1995, the mission at Noodles & Company has been to nourish and inspire every team member, guest, and community they serve. All these years later, these core values remain at the heart of everything they do. From their menu to their service to the way they do business, it's their fresh, unexpected, human perspective that sets them apart. They call this Uncommon Goodness.

Noodles & Company franchise locations are essential pillars in their communities and give back to the community in the following ways:

Mac & Cheese Trade-Up Events

Noodles & Company hosts Mac & Cheese Trade-Up events where guests donate a box of Mac & Cheese and trade it in for a free bowl of Wisconsin Mac & Cheese. Noodles & Company donates the traded-in Mac & Cheese boxes to local food banks.

School Fundraising Nights

Noodles & Company locations host school fundraising nights throughout the year, where schools receive a portion of sales from the night.

Participating in Local Cultural Events

Noodles & Company franchisees are proud to participate in local cultural events for holidays like Black History Month, Pride, and Hispanic Heritage Month to show the community, team members, and guests that Noodles & Company supports everyone in its community.

With more than 450 restaurants in 26 states and over 8,000 team members, we were named one of America's Best Employers for Diversity by Forbes two years in a row. And we have been recognized by the Denver Business Journal as one of the Best Places to Work. We believe these successes are based on our unique and caring culture that makes everyone who walks through our doors feel welcome and appreciated. In part two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.

Great Quotes in Franchising Podcast - Marty McDermott, the President of Franchise Interviews on WVOX, Go Brand Yourself - Go Brand Yourself - Marty and John talk about franchising and branding. BrandTalk uses brand management principles and the outstanding personality, professional expertise and salt?of?the earth wisdom of Dr. John Tantillo to provide entertainment, comfort and much needed guidance to entrepreneurs.