When it comes to buying a business, there’s no truth that doesn’t require verification. As everyone knows, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Yet every day the newspaper has stories about people who got tricked into a deal that…
Franchising is big business that keeps getting bigger, and there’s lots of money to be made — that is if you know where to look. The trick is to hitch your wagon to the fastest, strongest horse! That means you have to screen out…
Are you cruising along in a job that you can do with your eyes closed, maybe even with your hands tied behind your back? Everything is humming, and your industry seems solid. Then, bam! Something happens that shatters all your old assumptions and you start…
In an era of big mergers, most notably the recent link-up of H.J. Heinz Co. and Kraft Foods Group, the all-too-often consequence is mass layoffs. First we hear about all the economies of scale and efficiencies to be generated, and then a fresh group…
Buying a franchise is a great way to reinvent your career, find new satisfaction and higher annual earnings. When shopping for a franchise, too often people tend to sell themselves short. Instead of finding value in skills gained over the course of a career,…
So, you want to start a business, but feel like you’re running into a brick wall at every turn. Don’t despair, a franchise operation may be just the ticket to help you fill a local market niche. While you pay a franchisor a start-up fee…
If you’re like most Americans, your work time horizon is much longer than it used to be. As a result, there’s less reason than ever to stick it out with a go-nowhere job or to sink into despair after being downsized out of a…
The stories are legion about people who’ve breathed new life into their careers with a franchise or even a slew of franchises. But there are some pretty notable misses in the franchise business, as well. Just think Quizno’s or Curves, two franchise systems that,…
Buying a franchise is one of the quickest, safest ways to start your own business, but a franchise is not for everyone, particularly if you’re the type of person who likes to blaze your own trail. For starters, to be successful with a franchise…
Discovery Day presents a make-or-break moment for many would-be franchisees. For Megan Yu, a visit to the franchise parent company of Signarama, United Franchise Group, in West Palm Beach, Fla., helped seal her decision. Of course, by this time, she and her partner, Andy Yu,…
