Franchise Masters

Mathis Young left the banking world in 2008 to launch his Aussie Pet Mobile franchise. He had no experience grooming dogs. He didn’t know the financial crisis was about to paralyze the world’s banking system and economy. But he didn’t really care. Perseverance and ambition pushed him forward. Today, he’s scaled his business to 24 mobile grooming vans on the road. He’s built his own training center for groomers and has a management team in place to run the day-to-day. Mathis walks us through his journey as he’s built a monster of a business in a surprising niche. He also talks about how Vistage and EOS played a big part in his success. And how the Doodle boom helped.

When Scott Tobin joined one of the early Burn Boot Camp locations as a trainer, he never dreamed that one day he would own 12 locations. Scott joins Dru Carpenito to walk us through his journey and how he has built a fitness empire with over 4,000 members and 200 employees. He also shares how he plans to grow to 20 locations. Through the highs of adding more locations under his belt to the lows brought on by different challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic, Scott paints a great picture of what it takes to be a successful multi-unit franchisee owner. Tune in now for more wisdom and insights!

Connor Groce is a multi-brand multi-unit franchise owner with Smash My Trash and Shine, who is growing through acquisition with plans to roll up franchises.

Connor takes us through his journey starting his first franchise while still an undergrad at UNC during COVID, building it to a manager-run level, moving halfway across the country to acquire his first Smash My Trash unit, and how he’s growing through acquisition via roll-up with funding through his hold co. 

The Wolf of Franchises joins Dru Carpenito, and they get real and raw about the realities of what it takes to succeed as both a franchisee and franchisor.

What does semi-absentee really mean, and what do prospective franchise owners need to beware of when they hear this word?

Why do the minority of franchisors share profitability metrics in their Item 19?

Why do only the small majority of franchise systems successfully scale nationally?

And more.

This is a fun and informative episode.  

If you’re an emerging franchise brand trying to figure out how to find high-quality franchise owners, this episode is for you.

Dru is joined by long-time franchise insider, Andrew Horton. Andrew and Dru dive into 20+ years of experience in the emerging franchise development world. They share a number of different approaches emerging franchises have used to find the right franchise owners.

From recruiting franchise owner #1 to scaling to 100+ units across the country, this episode covers the entire spectrum of growth.

They also get into the realities of what it takes to grow sustainably, responsibly, and financially. 

Jasmine and Xan Carr got an early look at KidStrong before it skyrocketed and sold 400 units. Interestingly, when they heard about it, the KidStrong business model was being prototyped and hadn’t been franchised yet. They knew it was unique and special. When KidStrong began expanding through franchising, they eagerly joined as Area Developers. They left their W2 jobs, moved their young family to Louisiana, and started building their KidStrong business.

Today, Jasmine and Xan have five KidStrong locations open with plans to open many more throughout Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.

During this episode, they share their journey of building a successful multi-unit operation and share some insights into getting in early with an emerging franchise.

Masterminds are the rocket fuel for entrepreneurial success. Welcome to an enlightening exploration of the dynamic world of mastermind groups, where we uncover the extraordinary potential they hold for catapulting your entrepreneurial journey to unparalleled heights. In this episode, we are privileged to be joined by Kurt Graves, an accomplished Vistage Chair who presides over a multitude of mastermind groups. Kurt's role revolves around facilitating peer-to-peer learning and collectively addressing the formidable challenges that his clients encounter on their quest for success. Drawing upon his extensive experience working closely with countless entrepreneurs and franchise owners, he shares the driving forces behind their triumphs, often defying conventional expectations. Discover how the art of skillfully posing the right questions and ingeniously reframing opportunities or challenges can catalyze breakthroughs that transform your business endeavors. Don't miss this opportunity to gain priceless insights into the secrets of success from a true expert, Kurt Graves. Tune in now.

Success in youth sports isn't just about scoring goals; it's about finding the right team, nurturing passion, and creating champions in life. Join us as Brittany Bennett takes us through her journey of building a multi-unit, multi-brand empire under the Youth Athletes United franchise platform. Brittany shares her and her husband’s story, from their humble beginnings as personal trainers striving to make ends meet to becoming a dynamic force in the youth sports industry. She reveals her strategies for finding the perfect coaches, scaling a business empire, and more! Tune in now to learn, be inspired, and embrace the power of passion, hard work, and unwavering dedication in the world of youth sports.

When is it time to transition out of the game and focus on being a franchisee or even further your growth as a franchisor? During this episode, we take a deep dive into all things exit strategy with Brian Alas, Managing Director at Boxwood Partners. Boxwood is a mid-market mergers and acquisition firm with a keen focus on franchising. Brian shares sell-side insights and from-the-trenches perspectives, helping multi-unit franchisees and growing franchise systems sell to institutional investors. From operating a franchise system and thresholds for exits to next-level strategic growth for franchisors, Brian gives us a show full of great insights that you don’t want to miss. So tune in and learn more tools for success in the franchising world.

Jay Palmer is a 14-unit franchisee of Floyd’s 99 Barbershop with locations across multiple non-contiguous states. During this episode, Jay takes us through his journey of how a chance encounter on a bike in Colorado led him to become a franchisee in 2006. Right now, he runs a multi-unit-multi-state operation with locations in Colorado and Kentucky managed by 250 employees. He shares some great advice around scaling multi-units, funding his growth, engaging with his growing number of employees through a daily email, structuring his company, and more.