Franchise Today

Gerry Henley is well respected and loved by all who know him.  His motto is, scale to get BETTER, before you scale to get BIGGER!  Gerry’s mantra is that Franchisor success is not only about systems – but that it is also about the soul of the people involved and he deploys the only proven franchisor roadmap that shows you how to drive unit level success across your entire franchise organization and its culture.  With the firm belief that the success of the franchisee, is what dictates the success of the franchisor, he has created Launch to Growth, a consultancy that helps emerging franchisors get it right, building Win-Win Franchise Models and creating pathways for defining, aligning and achieving sustainable growth, for franchisees and franchisor alike.  

Gerry believes that a Franchisor's success is not just about systems – but that it is also about the soul of the people involved.  Utilizing the System and Soul system platform and tools, he deploys the only proven franchisor roadmap that shows how to drive unit level success across an entire franchise organization, strengthening its culture.

Peter Holt is the President and  CEO of  the JOINT, the nation's largest network of chiropractors, The JOINT Chiropractic prides itself on providing convenient and affordable chiropractic care focused on the unique needs and goals of their patients. Whether its pain relief or preventative care, patients of the JOINT can expect their patient-centric approach to be new and different from any healthcare experience they’ve encountered before. With more than 600 Locations, 1.000 plus licensed Doctors of Chiropractic, and greater than 12,000,000 patient visits, these guys must be doing lots of things right.  

Peter himself, has been active in the franchise community for some 35 years, helping iconic companies such The UPS Store, Tasti D' Lite and Planet Smoothie manage their franchise systems in both domestic and overseas markets.  For the past several years, he has been at the helm of The JOINT, guiding the growth and prosperity of the NASDAQ  traded brand and the largest franchised network of Chiropractic clinics in the world. 

 

Peter Holt, this week on Francise Today.

Our show opens with a quick visit from Wing King Drew Cerza, Founder and Promoter of The National Buffalo Wing Festival, the world’s largest chicken wing festival,talking about this year's Festival and my induction into the NAtional Buffalo Wing Hall of Flame.  Then, my guest is Stacy Peterson, Chief Technology Officer for WingStop, the world’s largest chicken wing restaurant chain. There’s no wingin’ it there, when it comes to their investments in technology.  Just as their more than 1,400 restaurants deliver great take home value for their guests, as my guest, Stacy does the same here today, with many nuggets of take home value.   

Please forgive the puns... Like their wings, they were simply irresistible!

The IFA has a new President and CEO, but Matt Haller is hardly a stranger to any of us that have known him in his Government Relations roles at IFA, for the past many years.  Who better asked the IFA Board, to assume the role vacated last year by Robert Cresanti.  The answer to that speaks for itself.  As President & CEO of the IFA, Matt will be responsible for the overall leadership and management of the association, working  closely with the Board, committees and staff, to further develop and implement IFA’s strategic vision, policies and programs.  All this, to advance the  interests and protect and promote the organization’s reputation as the preeminent representative of franchising, across the country and around the world.

This week I present an encore performance with my friend Brian Sanders, Chairman and CEO of i9 Sports, the nation’s largest multi-sport provider focused solely on high-quality, community-based youth sports programs. I9 Sports offers youth sports leagues, camps and clinics for boys and girls ages 3 and up in, featuring programs in some of today’s most popular sports.  These include flag football, soccer, basketball, baseball, volleyball and ZIP Lacrosse™. Their mission is to help kids succeed in life, through sports. I9 Sports provides a youth sports experience unlike any other.  They teach the importance of good sportsmanship on the court, in the field and in life. Their commitment is to provide age-appropriate instruction, making sports fun for kids and convenient for today’s busy families.

And in case you’re wondering about the origin of the brand’s name.  Founder Frank Fiume created the brand’s name to represent 9 words beginning with the letter I, that define the very essence of what the brand stands for, in terms of the lessons it instills.  These are for their kids to be: Imaginative, Innovative, Interactive, Integrity-driven, Impassionate, Inspirational, Instructional, Insightful and lastly, Inclusive.

Brian Miller supports and enhances Patrice & Associates’ ongoing mission to connect the country’s most respected brands with the industry’s top culinary and managerial talent. His leadership sets the direction for their aggressive global growth.

Brian joined Patrice & Associates in May 2014 as an equity partner, with expertise in all aspects of the Patrice business model – staffing, recruiting & franchising. His extensive experience in franchise operations, development, strategic planning and marketing makes him a professional tour de force in the franchising industry. Brian has some 25 years in franchising and 16 years at a leading full-service staffing and recruiting industry franchisor, Snelling Staffing.

While it's been one hell of a year and a half for everyone, I can think of no one, that has had to face down, endure and push through more in both their personal and professional lives, than Gary Gardner and Therese Thilgen. Gary and Therese are the co-founders of the Franchise Update Media Group, publishers of: Franchise Update Magazine, The Multi-Unit Franchising Magazine and producers of two of franchising’s most legendary, annual events.  1) The Franchise Update Leadership and Development Conference and 2) The Multi-Unit Franchising Conference. In addition to the utter and complete shut downs of all things related to their business since the Pandemic, they also suffered the loss of their son Mikey.  Through their faith in God and the loving support of friends, family and the franchising community this amazing couple is back.  And they are back with not one, but two major, LIVE fall events.Gary Gardner, Chairman of the Board at Franchise Update Media Group, my guest this week on Franchise Today.  

.

Nearly one year ago, I had Dave Pazgan on to talk about the birth of ZorForum as a new supplier in the franchising space, with the intention of creating and facilitating a community of peer groups, exclusively for emerging franchisors.  Little did I imagine then, that less than a year later, Zor Forum would itself morph into much more than just a supplier to franchising, but rather, into a franchise organization and concept itself.  A franchise concept that would be led by Dave, Graham Chapman of 919 Marketing Fame and yours truly. 

It's true, we are mere days away from sharing our newly minted disclosure documents with dozens of our franchising peers and professionals, many of whom have been waiting patiently for months, to learn more about our offering and how they might become involved in our program.  With this milestone approaching, I thought it would be cool to re-air my August 2020 interview with Dave, so that’s coming right up, this week on Franchise Today.

For over 30 years, Pizza Factory has stayed true to its roots. Hardworking owners and staff, family-friendly dining, and a high-quality product make them who they are. They take great pride in the smile that the first bite of their pizza brings to the faces of their guests and they strive to make everyone feel as if this is their hometown pizzeria.

Their motto says it all:  “We Toss’em, They’re Awesome” —hand-tossed pizzas that are simply the best. Each bubbly, cheesy pie is made with 100% real mozzarella cheese and their signature sauce.  It’s hard to say what makes it so delicious: the dough, the sauce, or is it the fresh toppings? Or is it all of the above.  Mary jane RIva, Pizza Factory CEO "and" multi-unit franchisee, is here to discuss all of that and more. 

Mary Jane Riva became president and chief executive of the Oakhurst, Calif.-based Pizza Factory in September 2012, after she and her husband, Bob Riva, acquired the Pizza Factory Inc. franchising system from founders Daniel and Carol Wheeler and Ronald Willey.  But, she was a Pizza Factory franchisee, well before then. 

In fact, the Rivas have owned Pizza Factory restaurants as franchisees for nearly 33 years and continue to do so to this very day.  Always focused on unit level economics and franchisee success, Pizza Factory recently introduced a new, streamlined express model, to service the growing off-premise market segment, in addition to their larger foot print, dine-in restaurants.    QSR has already heralded the brand as the next big thing in pizza.  Mary Jane Riva, this week on Franchise Today.

Stan Friedman is passionate about franchising. Past leadership positions include C-Level roles at: Blimpie International, Wing Zone, Maggie Moos and Tutor Doctor. Years of franchise development and relationship experience are what uniquely prepared Stan for his present role at FRM Solutions, providing CRM tools to help franchisors manage relationships with their prospective and existing franchisees.  

Always an “outside the box” thinker, Stan has been a long-time proponent of diversity in franchising. That work began at Blimpie, when he created an Urban Expansion initiative heralded by the media and leaders of the public and private sectors and culminated in a White House visit, where he and BLIMPIE Founder Tony Conza, personally participated in the President’s “Conference for Community Empowerment.” Later that year, this initiative was celebrated as Blimpie International’s Innovation of the Year.

In further recognition of his work in diversity, Stan proudly accepted the IFA’s Ronald E. Harrison Diversity Award in 2011, an honor only bestowed six times previously, in IFA history.  More recently, Stan’s work in diversity has been focused on pro-athletes and their transitions from playbooks to Ops Manuals, as co-founder of PAFI, the Pro Athlete Franchise Initiative, a program created by he and 7 year NFL veteran, Michael Stone. 

Stan currently serves on the (IFA) Educational Foundation Board of Trustees and Leadership Council, is a past member of the Supplier Forum and is a founding member of IFA’s Diversity Institute Board.