What Makes a Good Franchisee?

So “what makes a good franchisee” you ask?

Watch this quick video featuring our VP of Franchising, Jim Wollman, and find out some of the key characteristics that NTY Franchise Company looks for when partnering with franchisees to grow one or more of our successful resale businesses.

Video: What does it take to own an NTY Franchise?

Do you have the skills and traits mentioned in this video? If so, you would make a fabulous franchisee with any of our five resale brands: Children’s Orchard, Clothes Mentor, Device Pitstop, New Uses and NTY Clothing Exchange!

Still don’t know if you have what it takes, or curious which of our resale brands is the best fit for you? Take our successful franchise owner quiz!

What Makes a Good Franchisee Video Transcription

Do you prefer a text version of the video or want to follow along while you watch? Then check out the full transcription below! 

There is no “best age” to start a business

Jim: We attract people of all ages- from people in their twenties to their sixties and everything in between. People come from all kinds of backgrounds and work experiences too.

Most importantly, we are looking for people with energy and personality. That’s what makes a good franchisee. We can’t teach you how to be a cool person to work for so you need to come to the table with those things that will really help you be successful in these businesses.

Some characteristics of successful franchise owners

Also important are transferable skills. If you had previous successes in your career, then you have transferable skills and that’s good.

What I’m talking about here are previous management experience, staff oversight, budgeting, and communication skills. Those are important because we are going to teach you how to maximize your business and you are going to use those skills to execute and make yourself a successful franchise owner.

NTY Franchise Company’s Proprietary Point of Sale System (POS)

We also need people that appreciate what computers and technology can do because we use it heavily to measure and manage and improve our businesses to the maximum potential. We have proprietary point of sale systems that will help you with inventory turn rates, cash flow management and with employee efficiency.

Our Franchise Loyalty Programs

We have trigger based customer loyalty programs, just like the big business out there. We are using technology to attract, retain, and bring in more customers, and more customers more often. So an embrace of the use of technology is very important. You don’t have to be an IT professional, but you do have to be comfortable with computers.

We are also looking for people who are smart enough to realize that you don’t know what you don’t know and you can really benefit from a shortening of the learning curve. This not only helps you to avoid costly financial mistakes, that one is easy to understand, but what a lot of people don’t think about is that mistakes cost time.

We teach you how to run a successful franchise

We know People want to get going and get moving, become more successful more quickly, and we can help you with that. We are not looking for people who are so entrepreneurial that they want to just change everything coming right out of the gate.

We have a very proven pathway. We have all of the knowledge, training and support that makes up our proven and well-worn operating system. So we know that if you use our tools, use our systems, and execute that you will greatly improve your chances of being successful.

Successful franchise owners “wear all the hats“

A lot of people come from corporate America to begin their business for the first time. Of course we can help you there, but your background says that you wear a big hat and are a specialist and good at what you do.

This may be more narrowly defined in Corporate America. The thing about small business America is that you have to wear all the hats. The good news is that they are really small hats. And we are going to help you in areas that you aren’t as strong in and in other disciplines that you don’t feel as comfortable with. So having this ability to realize that it’s about you and wearing all the hats is an important thing for you to be able to realize and appreciate when you get into a franchise business.

Couples make great franchisees

Now this brings up the question-what are the most common profiles that make up our franchise business? One of the most tried and true profiles for us are couples. Where one covers the household expenses, the overhead, and so on. While the other gets the business up and running and started. Often times with love, opposites attract and they usually have different skill sets, but when you mesh those together they make a very good one hundred percent.

Hands off franchise investors

Another type of profile that has worked well for us are partnerships where you have one financial backer who is a little more hands-off, and another operational partner who is going to be the face of the business and run the business on a day to day basis. An example of this could be an adult with an adult child. Now in our soft line brands, apparel, we do have men who do these businesses and usually what they will do is hire a female manager who has prior retail experience. Conversely in our tech businesses, we have very successful women running our device pit stop. We really do get people of all walks of life and who are given a proven business operating system to follow.

Going solo: solo franchise ownership

Now, the one exception to what I just said is for those who are coming into the business solo. The one other thing that you have to think about is that if this is going to be your new business you may decide to run the business yourself and maybe take that managers salary for yourself in the early stages until you build the business out. But just to be safe, we would encourage you to at least have one year of household expenses tucked away in reserve as working capital above and beyond the initial investment of opening up the business which is covered on our website as well.

-end- 

So there you have it, now you know what makes a good franchisee. Think you have what it takes? Then contact us now to schedule your free consultation!

NTY’s Online Resale Plans and More Featured in Franchising USA

Online sales, loyalty programs and other high-tech offerings from NTY Franchise Company’s resale brands were recently featured in the July issue of Franchising USA. Read about it now:

July 2016 cover of Franchising USA featuring Chad Olson
July 2016 cover of Franchising USA.

Resale Retail Company Wants to Use Technology to Rule Industry

Although it’s in the business of selling gently used products, one Minneapolis based franchise is hoping to bring something new to the resale retail industry in the form of technology.

NTY, which stands for ‘New To You’, is a company that owns the franchising rights to five brands in the resale retail industry:

  • Clothes Mentor, which buys and sells used women’s fashion;
  • Children’s Orchard, which buys and sells children’s items;
  • Device Pit Stop, for purchasing and reselling electronics;
  • New Uses, which specializes in buying and reselling items for the home; and
  • NTY Clothing Exchange, the company’s teen and young adult resale retail brand.

With its largest brand, Clothes Mentor, the company wants to introduce an online store so people can shop for used items online the same way they would shop for new items on the internet, NTY’s chief operating officer Chad Olson said during a recent interview from the company’s headquarters in Minneapolis.

A lot of new websites have popped up online over the last several years that offer the service of reselling used items to customers, Olson noted, which has changed the online resale retail landscape. With this change in the landscape comes opportunity for Clothes Mentor, which will start rolling out its online store in baby steps.

First off, customers will have the ability to ‘click and pick,’ meaning they can make a purchase at their local Clothes Mentor store and then pick it up at the physical store. From there, the online store will expand until it is an integral part of the business.

Clothes Mentor also has an app that will allow the brand to push messages out to customers, allow customers to check their loyalty program points and give them electronic receipts so they don’t have to hang onto the paper ones in case they want to return something. Eventually, Clothes Mentor’s online store will also be available through the app, but that is a ways off as the brand is just getting started with its online store.

“This is a pretty big shift in our business model, so we’re going to make sure we do it right,” Olson explained.

Clothes Mentor isn’t just using technology to give customers a better experience, though. It’s also using technology to give its franchisees a boost, too. Specifically, it’s collecting more data on customers so franchisees can give them more personalized marketing. Recent generations like Millennials appreciate this more personalized marketing, Olson observed.

Across all five of the company’s brands, it has 193 stores open with another 56 in development. Clothes Mentor, NTY’s flagship franchise, claims the majority of those locations.

“Our number one goal is to offer the customer what we refer to as ‘Ultra high value retail’,” Olson said. “The stuff that we’re selling at the store level is at a much deeper discount than anywhere else they can find it because it is gently used.”

Aside from giving people the opportunity to save money, NYT also offers people the chance to recycle their items and receive cash in return, Olson mentioned.

In the Beginning

Clothes Mentor was founded in Columbus, OH by a local couple in 2001. Aside from the Columbus store, Clothes Mentor had a licensed store in Canton, OH. Olson and his father, Ron Olson, decided to go into business together, both having retail franchising experience with another company.

When they began looking at what opportunities were out there for their own business, they found out about Clothes Mentor and noted the two stores were doing quite well. From there, the father and son negotiated the franchising rights to that brand in 2007 and have been adding to the NTY family ever since.

Energy

NTY’s franchisees come from all walks of life, from kindergarten teachers to former professional bull riders. Regardless of their background, though, NTY wants franchisees to have a strong work ethic and enthusiasm.

“We would like them to have general business acumen, but more importantly, is that they have the energy, the drive, the motivation to be entrepreneurial,” Olson said. “We’re looking for people that want to be their own boss, but who have experience in one facet or another. We want them to bring their own skill set to the company.”

Training and Support

Training involves flying new franchisees out to Minneapolis for the company’s comprehensive three week business training program. NTY trains them in finding and leasing a location, plus business plan training.

“We basically prepare them in that training to go to a bank to obtain financing,” Olson said. “So we create a three-year profit and loss and cash flow statement. So, they leave here after that first bit of training prepared to find and obtain a location and obtain financing for the business.”

Once they have a location and financing, franchisees come back to Minneapolis for two weeks of operations training, where they are taught all aspects of how to operate the business. At least one of those weeks is spent in a real store environment.

Once the new franchisee is set up, they can expect NTY to visit their location a minimum of three times throughout their first year. Once will be prior to their grand opening and will include additional training. Subsequent visits will be during the grand opening and then again 90 days after the grand opening. Each visit is to ensure new franchisees get off to the best start possible.

Franchisees will continue to get visits from the company at least once per year for business consultations, Olson added. In between visits, the company offers monthly support calls.

“The ongoing support is fairly extensive because obviously in the franchise business, if our franchisees aren’t successful, then us as a franchisor will not be successful making money,” the COO said.

Expansion

All of NTY’s brands are open to expanding anywhere in the United States. Currently, the company has a presence in 30 states and is relatively well spread out, although a tad thin on the west coast, Olson noted.

“There’s lots of franchising opportunity available, especially on the west coast,” he explained.

For entrepreneurs who embrace technology, NTY, and Clothes Mentor in particular, offer a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor of something new and exciting in the resale retail industry.

See more from Franchising USA.

How Upscale Resale Has Created a Booming Niche in American Retail

This article, originally published on huffingtonpost.com, mentions NTY Franchise as a growing company in the booming resale industry. Read on to learn why franchising a resale store is such an appealing option for entrepreneurs:

Huffington Post graphic for NTY mention resale article
Graphic courtesy huffingtonpost.com

By Yatin Khulbe

It goes without saying that finding the right balance between a successful retail strategy and an approach that sets yourself apart can be a big challenge.

After all, an increasing number of new businesses fail each year while attempting to break into the seemingly impenetrable arena of modern retail.

The wall of the booming big box and major brand monoliths isn’t entirely impenetrable, however. Surprisingly, a number of upcoming retail contenders and franchises have taken an unorthodox approach to the resale market in recent years.

They prefer to focus on cultivating an upscale atmosphere and level of service usually reserved for their conventional and big brand counterparts.

So how did “resale retail” go from a budget niche to a booming new brand of resellers with increasing interest and profit margins?

Here are some of the points which encouraged resellers in coming up with smart and unconventional strategies in recent years:

Flexible Points of Entry

The unique nature of upscale resellers as an up-and-coming industry often mean that aspiring entrepreneurs looking to break into store management or ownership can enjoy more substantive options to finance a small business.

The availability of franchise opportunities among national resale parent companies has skyrocketed recently.

Resale is a multi-billion dollar a year industry because it attracts the consumers from all economic levels.

Why are buyers are excited about resale deals?

The answer is simple.

Everyone wants to save money on consumer goods and utilize it for vacations, child education, retirement funds, and various family activities.

Breaking into franchise management can traditionally serve as a safer starting point for those getting their start in ownership across a variety of industries.

Companies looking to expand the influence of their existing resale branding have substantially increased the availability of options for management newcomers in recent years.

What does it mean?

A minor nest egg can be invested with a greater range of strategies for those looking to make the most out of their existing experience in retail and business.

Unfortunately, the majority of small businesses generally won’t expect to yield profit margins in the first months (or even years) of operation.

If a budding retail entrepreneur doesn’t find this initial period of low profits viable or attractive, a partnership with an existing upscale resale franchise can often provide valuable options for getting the ball rolling.

Consistent Consumer Experience

Traditional resellers have often relied on lower than standard profit margins and nonprofit dichotomies focus on providing a service to the local community.

On the other hand, upscale resale stores concentrate on consumer experience by understanding the needs and desires of their buyers.

Modernized resellers provide no restraint shopping experience to the customers. It allows for more competitive price points while still retaining the attractive benefits of a resale outlet experience. Resale businesses with a focus on this above-par shopping experience include growing resellers such as NTY (New To You).

Why modern resellers overpower traditional counterparts?

It’s win-win for both the parties.

Consumers lock down lower prices while still enjoying the experience and atmosphere that come with new goods retailer.

The benefit doesn’t extend solely to customers.

The smooth shift towards an upscale customer experience means that owners and franchisees can expect to enjoy an operative experience and keep up with the steadily rising revenue of retail frontrunners as well.

Strong Support Systems

Breaking into uncharted territory doesn’t mean that resale franchises are going alone. In fact, a vast majority of resale stores rely on the framework of support networks that allow them to fall back on training opportunities, marketing materials, and more.

The main question arises:

Why are they helping each other?

A range of prospective overhead costs is saved which require a lion’s share of time and money.

As a result, this support mechanism allows room for innovation.

Lower Overall Risk When Taking the Leap

The idea of kicking off small businesses looks very attractive, but it often leads to lower than anticipated profits. The standard new retail venture without well-timed market research means failing within the first year or even less timeframe.

On the more optimistic flip side, from the very beginning, resale retailers break into the market with the convenient advantages.

For example, reliance on inventory that stems from donated clothing, furniture, or even the computer hardware take away the pain of investing in new stocks.

Without investing deeply in product purchases on the front end, the same investment can be allocated for primary concerns such as property and operation overheads.

Click here to see more from The Huffington Post.