Franchise Blog

Boe Wolfgang of Philadelphia, PA was recently awarded a Kids At Heart Photography franchise and will service Central/Lower Bucks County and parts of North East Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “Being an employee of Kids At Heart for five years and enjoying my job was great. I liked that Kids At Heart was a fun business with a successful system. Now I can continue doing a job I enjoy while being my own boss and earning a higher income.”

Kids At Heart Photography, Inc. is the premier leader in school and youth photography, with 15 years of “capturing children’s smiles”. Founded in 1991, Kids At Heart is the alternative to the typical “point & click” school and sports photographers. Kids at Heart have successfully photographed over one million children! “We have a unique franchise opportunity,” says Michael Stewart, Chief Operating Officer of Kids At Heart Franchise Services. “We are more like a partnership than a franchise. Kids At Heart provides sales & marketing services, production services, customer service and most administrative duties. (more…)

The CLIX brand franchise was launched in 1999 to put the fun back into portrait photography. According to CLIX President and CEO David Asarnow, “We saw a huge opportunity to change the face of portrait photography. We wanted to provide positively outrageous service in a fun, friendly, hip, and now environment, where we could offer high-end boutique-style portraits that are competitively priced and delivered right away. We live in an instant gratification society,” notes Asarnow, “and consumers want what they want, when they want it.

“CLIX could have emerged as a chain of portrait studios, but instead chose the franchise route. “We did evaluate going out as a chain,” admits Asarnow. “However, we’re a very customer focused and community based business. We wanted to be able to have that entrepreneurial spirit in each and every CLIX location and be able to duplicate that fun, friendly environment in every single store. It’s hard to do that through a corporate environment where you have to have policies, rules and regulations and employees that don’t have a vested interest in the store. A franchisee with a stake in the business will make sure each customer has that outrageous experience. (more…)

If the road to success is paved with good intentions, then the road to a successful franchise operation is paved with legal filings.

Palmdale, Calif.-based RedBrick Pizza Worldwide Inc. is walking down such a road. Redbrick and its founder Jim Minidis are the subject of four lawsuits filed by disgruntled franchisees. Unfortunately, court battles between parent companies and franchisees are a common part of the business.

“If you look at a franchisor’s Uniform Franchise Offering Circular and you don’t see litigation, you are probably looking at a franchisor that is doing something wrong,” said Chris Bright, founder of Fransmart, a Newport Beach, Calif.-based franchise-development company. (more…)

Whip out your iPods and PDA’s, mark your calendars set your reminders! This is a free B2B event you do not want to miss!

On Friday, June 22, 2007, the Los Angeles Convention Center will play host to the Turning Point URBAN Business Expo from 10AM to 3 PM at the West Hall, Rooms 408A/B. The event will be FREE to the Public where attendees will be able to meet with over 50 of America’s top corporations, government agencies, franchises and other small businesses, attend helpful business seminars, chances for prizes and giveaways, a chance for attendees to participate in “15 Minutes of Business Fame”… and more! (more…)

EagleRider, the world’s largest motorcycle rental and tour company, has unveiled its revolutionary Central Reservation System (CRS) on its highly popular motorcycle tourism website, www.eaglerider.com. The website debut is set for June 15th, 2007 and is expected to change the way motorcycle and powersport enthusiasts book their travel on the internet. EagleRider enlisted travel industry giant Amadeus and emerging technology provider Eagle Travel Systems to develop the beautifully designed site. One of the most highly anticipated features is introduction of the first global central reservation system (CRS) to supply real-time reservations technology and electronic distribution to the motorcycle and powersport travel sector. (more…)

A corner lot on Austin’s busy intersection of Oakland Avenue and Fourth Street is open for business again, with a new building and hundreds of videos.

Family Video, an Illinois-based rental company, expected to open its new Austin store by noon today at the site of the former Hardee’s fast-food restaurant just south of Austin High School. The Hardee’s building, which last was used as a Chinese restaurant, was demolished in November.

Family Video is ready to operate from 10 a.m. to midnight “365 days a year,” regional manager Aaron Cole said. It still must landscape the developed property. (more…)

Vernon Stansbury of Springfield VA was recently awarded a Kids At Heart Photography franchise and will provide youth photography services inside the Washington DC beltway. His franchise area consists of the Greater Washington DC area including parts of Virginia and Maryland. Kids At Heart is excited to grant Vernon Stansbury the first franchise in the Washington DC/VA/MD area.

Kids At Heart Photography, Inc. is the premier leader in the school and youth photography markets, with 16 years of “capturing children’s smiles”. Founded in 1991, Kids At Heart is the alternative to the typical “point & click” school and sports photographers. Kids At Heart’s attention to detail, service, flexibility, and love for children sets them apart from other children photography companies. As a result, Kids At Heart Photography has successfully photographed over one million children. (more…)

Budgetel Franchise System, LLC has named hotel industry veteran Tom Dunn as managing director for franchise development in the Southeast, responsible for the growth of franchised properties in Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Mississippi.

Dunn has 15 years of experience in franchise sales and development, having served most recently as vice president of franchising for Synergy Franchising, LLC, based in Sarasota, Florida. He has also held positions as director of franchise development for La Quinta Corporation in Dallas and as vice president of franchise sales and development for Jackson Hewitt Tax Services when it was a division of Cendant Corporation.

Quick-service restaurant giant Church’s Chicken® announces a new partnership with Sunbelt Business Brokers in an attempt to step up their already-aggressive franchisee recruiting efforts. Cleveland-based Sunbelt specializes in helping companies buy and sell businesses.

“We chose Sunbelt because it is the largest and most well-known business broker network in the country,” said Vice President of Franchise Sales and Development, Scott Moffitt. “We have positioned ourselves for major growth and have targeted cities all across the United States where we plan to open multiple units through our franchise growth strategy.” (more…)

Fatburger, a burger chain that enjoys a cult-like following in its hometown of Los Angeles, hopes to open 10 franchise locations in the Orlando area during the next two years. Andrew Wiederhorn, chairman of Fatburger’s parent company Fog Cutter Capital Group, said the burger outfit is in talks with a couple of potential local franchisees, but no one has signed on yet.

The name’s the same

Since early last year, when Walt Disney Co. began its acquisition of Pixar Animation, industry insiders have speculated that Disney-MGM Studios would get the Pixar name worked into it. Disney officials denied it. Then a couple of weeks ago, Disney rekindled speculation when it filed a legal notice with Orange County that referred to a place called “Disney’s MGM Studios-Pixar Studios.” Turns out the name merely designates a small area around an upcoming ride, Toy Story Mania. Disney says it has no plans to rename the entire Disney World theme park. (more…)

Terry DeLucia loves Mexican-style food. Spicy is OK, too.

But spicy Mexican-style food isn’t OK for her husband, Joseph.

That dining dilemma may no longer be a problem for the DeLucias now that a franchise of the Juan’s Mexicali restaurant chain is planned for the Colony Plaza Shopping Center.

“It sounds like something that will make him happy, and it will definitely be something that will make me happy,” said DeLucia, a Village of Duval resident. “So, we’ll both be happy.” (more…)

Operation Bootcamp announced today its franchise opportunity for becoming part of its unique program that improves people’s lives by increasing their fitness, building their confidence and fostering healthy eating habits. The Operation Bootcamp franchises will allow consumers across the country to exceed their personal fitness goals within the supportive and respectful environment created within each of the boot camps. In 2006, Operation Bootcamp became the largest bootcamp program of its kind in the country.

“We have been tremendously successful with our programs in Atlanta and are excited about the opportunity for consumers in other cities to experience our boot camps first-hand,” said Heidi Ziegele, owner of Atlanta Kick and founder of Operation Boot Camp. “We have spent the last seven years refining our program to offer intense workouts, while at the same time providing motivation, positive reinforcement, education and fun. Our program aims to not only improve each of our boot campers, but to give back to the community through partnership with the local parks and greenspaces.” (more…)

When you’re on the job site, the last thing you need is an inoperable hose sidelining your efforts. Though industries spend tens of millions of dollars on equipment technology, the usual routine for replacing a bad hose is anything but advanced. Countless hours and dollars are wasted going to a local hose supplier for a replacement. Larger companies have the luxury of having their own inventory of hose and fittings along with a crimping machine, but often such equipment is nowhere near a job site. (more…)

Jo To Go Coffee® will be giving away free coffee to DADS on June 17, 2007 at all franchise locations.

Representatives from the corporate office cited a surprising Father’s Day statistic as the inspiration for this year’s Jo To Go Coffee® Father’s Day Celebration: according to AT&T, Father’s Day is the busiest day of the entire year for collect calls. (more…)

Sport Clips celebrated the opening of its 400th store today in Las Vegas, a landmark for one of the nation’s fastest-growing hair-care franchises. Tailored to men and boys, Sport Clips is growing at a rate of two to four new stores a week across the country.

One of the highlights of the event was special guest Guinness World Record Breaker for fastest haircutting, Ivan Zoot, trimming the hair of NASCAR’s Mike Wallace. Wallace, straight from races at Talladega and Richmond, drives the #7 Geico Chevrolet Monte Carlo, for which Sport Clips is a sponsor.

Late last week, Wallace’s team was tenth in the Busch Series points race. Zoot’s records include: in 1998, the fastest haircut in the world, 2 minutes, 9 seconds, and the greatest number of professional haircuts executed in one hour, 22; and in 2000, the greatest number of professional haircuts executed nonstop in 24 hours, 144. (more…)

Mrs. Yen’s Candy Bouquet franchise is rapidly becoming the most popular gift choice in the San Francisco Valley. Mrs. Yen’s, Inc. has just announced the opening of a new store in Hanford as part of an aggressive expansion plan. This store will be the base for much of the creative work of designing and arranging Candy Bouquets.

Mrs. Yen’s, Inc., a Candy Bouquet franchise holder in much of Northern California, just announced the grand opening of its newest achievement, a new retail store in Hanford, CA. The addition of this latest store triples the coverage area of Mrs. Yen’s, Inc. Candy Bouquet franchise, expanding to more than 50 zip codes stretching from the Central Valley to the San Francisco Bay. (more…)

UBuildIt, described as “the nation’s leading company of residential construction consultants for people who want to serve as their own general contractors,” will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony June 28 at noon for the grand opening of its Ooltewah office.

The public is invited to the UBuildIt open house, which runs from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Located at 5906 Ooltewah/Ringgold Road, the Ooltewah office is the company’s first franchise in East Tennessee and the second in the state.

Officials said, “UBuildIt’s residential construction advisors provide expert guidance to people who are remodeling or building a new home and want to have more choices and more control during the planning and building process.” (more…)

The owner of the area’s now- defunct iSold It franchise said a scam by a former employee has hampered paying some customers for goods the store sold on their behalf.

Owner Randal Plaunt, who closed the store April 28, said he’s been mailing out checks to customers for goods his store sold for them via eBay Inc. online auctions.

But some records may have been destroyed by a former manager accused of embezzling from the business, he said.

A spokeswoman for Monrovia, Calif.-based iSold It LLC had said last month that clients should be paid by June. Several customers told the State Journal this week that they still haven’t been paid. (more…)