329. Franchising vs. Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition—Jon Ostenson, CEO, FranBridge Consulting

So takeaway number one is when John talked about entrepreneurship through acquisition being popular these days, but what he's found is that sometimes these folks that are investigating it tend to be more wantrepreneurs in that they keep analyzing and searching for the, quote, perfect deal, but many times it takes two years or more or that they never end up buying a business.

And he said part of the challenge is that you're acquiring someone else's culture.

Staff might leave, customers might leave, and a variety of other potential challenges.

Takeaway number two is when he said why he loves franchising, or at least some of the reasons.

And he said one of the reasons he likes franchising people considering franchising as opposed to entrepreneurship through acquisition is that you can buy a franchise and get it started right from the beginning where you're able to start bringing in your own staff and team.

You can franchise stack, which is where you're able to buy one franchise and add another, or as he shared a couple examples of clients of his that bought one franchise and then purchased complementary franchises.

And then the other thing he says is you get the first line of sight on other franchisees that you can purchase.

And that's so true.

I know in my instance, when I own franchises, I sold my franchise to my manager at the time, and he has since acquired other territories within that same franchise system.

Takeaway number three is when he listed out some things he has found that are attractive in today's franchise world for the people he's working with, the people he's helping find the right franchise.

And he said the list includes a B2B business, a recurring revenue model, a good return.

And what do you provide that's unique or what are your differentiators? So he said that the brands that are able to discover or be clear on what makes them unique helps them stand out.

And now it's time for today's win-win.

So today's win-win comes from the end of the episode when John said he has never seen more interest in franchising than he has right now.

I thought that was a great moment to hear that from someone that's in the thick of this every single day.

So if you're thinking about franchising your business or you're franchising, you're wondering, should I be maybe doing the marketing or launching this campaign? Based off of what John said, it sounds like now might be a really good time.