When you are getting ready to open your new business finding the right location is your first major decision, and one that you need to get right. You probably have heard the saying location, location, location, that may be even more true when finding a location for your new business. We are going to focus on retail and service businesses and three things you need to do to find your ideal location
1) Define What Your Looking For Before You Drive Around - What are your key ingredients? What are your must haves? These most likely will include things like visibility, foot traffic, Drive-by, parking. But what about synergistic businesses, are they close by? Another factor may be things like Density and easy in and out. So before you go out looking clearly define what your looking for, or more importantly what your customers are looking for.
2) Our There Enough Customers In Your Market - You know I am amazed at how many people buy a business and haven't counted the number of potential customers in there area. Use the demographic research available and get a good idea and how many potential customers there are for you to be successful.
3) Growing vs Graying Areas - What is the age demographics of your customers and where are they congregating? In real estate terms this is called growing vs graying areas. You know a funny thing happens in most markets. Young people like to hang out with young people, older people like to hang out with there age group, ever heard of a young couple moving into a retirement community?! Find out where your age demographics are congregating, and focus your search there.
At Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids we do lots of that demographic research for you BEFORE we come for site selection. Because finding the right location is the first step on your road to building a successful business. If you would like to explore our opportunity then just fill in the link below and someone from our executive team will give you a call to discuss your next steps!
There are lots of moving parts to a franchise, including your franchisor's opening assistance, training and ongoing support. All of the aforementioned are important to your success as a franchisee, and the best way to measure these are to talk to current franchisees. 
I was floored recently when I talked to a friend of mine about the franchise she bought. You see this wasn't what I would call your "typical" franchisee. Jane (as I will call her for the sake of this blog) has been in the franchise consulting business for 25 years. She has trained and taught both franchisees and franchisors about what to look for in a franchise, how to run a successful franchise business and what makes franchisees successful.
I recently attended a webinar with one of the largest franchising financing lenders in the United States. I would like to explain all the graphs that they showed us but the bottom line was this: all the signs point to the next recession hitting sometime in the next 24 months. 
There has possibly never been a better time to start a franchise business, ever. Not only is the franchising model proven, but with a pro-business administration in Washington, the regulatory, and tax environment, along with consumer spending power has never been better! Please don't take my comments as a political endorsement of any politician or political party. I simply think that the facts stand on their own.
When I was a Stock Broker, we would always start one place when we were looking for companies to invest in - and that was at the top! Of course we had certain qualifications that we looked for in management teams, but we always, without fail, looked at their level of education.
Are you or someone you know interested in owning your own business, but not sure how to go about it? Perhaps you're looking for an opportunity to diversify your portfolio, or gain a little more financial security for the future? Or maybe you just want a change of pace, and want to find a way to help make a positive difference in your community? Whatever the case may be, Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids is currently experiencing rapid growth in this profitable industry. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, America's salons and spas do around $46 billion in sales annually (see 
Welcome to Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids Franchising! Not only do we offer an amazing franchising system that can potentially offer an impressive return on your investment, but we really do value being able to help make a positive difference in the lives of kids and their parents. From stylists who truly care about their customers, to franchisees who work hard at helping make a positive difference in their communities, Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids is THE kids hair salon where EVERY child matters! But we also understand that while the concept is important to a potential franchisee, they also want to know how owning a Shear Madness Haircuts for Kids might be a sound business investment too. That's why we thought we'd put together the following list of ten reasons why Shear Madness isn't just a cool place for kids (even though it definately is that), but it's also a concept that may potentially translate into long-term financial success! 
In his book START WITH WHY, Simon Sinek tells the story of a group of American car executives who went to see a Japanese assembly line. At the end of the line the doors were put on the hinges just like in America. However, something was missing. In America the workers at the end of the line tapped the door with a rubber mallet to make sure the doors lined up properly. In Japan that job did not seem to exist. Confused, the American auto executives asked at what point they made sure the doors fit perfectly. The Japanese guide looked at them and smiled sheepishly, "we make sure it fits when we design it". You see, in the Japanese auto plant they didn't examine the problem and accumulate data to figure out the best solution - they engineered the outcome they wanted from the beginning. If they didn't achieve the desired outcome, they understood it was because of a decision they made at the start of the process. 
Most people who are familiar with franchising will look at the Franchise Disclosure Document, known as the FDD, differently from people who are just starting the process.
