Transitioning from Corporate Refugee to Franchise Owner

People who have spent their entire career working in Corporate America may find themselves at a crossroad after several years of working to being laid off, restructured or ready for a new challenge. For those looking to start their own business and becoming a business owner or entrepreneur is an exciting and scary one at the same time. Most are looking to build equity or wealth, maybe create a family legacy and most importantly taking back control of their life and creating a lifestyle. Some of the things to consider when you are making a transition are:

#1 Your old Corporate Life:
What you're used to may not be there -- corporately you're used to working with a structure and organization within a company – for example you work from 9am to 5pm, you know who you're reporting to, you know certain people handle certain tasks within a department. But when you come into your own business the systems that existed in corporate do not exist anymore and all the decisions and responsibilities start and end with you. For some people the challenge of starting a new business and creating their own systems and processes can be quite exciting. But for other people it can be daunting so franchising becomes the optimal solution. You will work with a proven business model and a built-in operating system all the while being your own boss. In franchising you're in business for yourself not by yourself!

#2 All Alone:
Small business owners can sometimes feel alone when they set out to start a business. They might not have that colleague in next cubicle or office and so that might make them feel insecure. In franchising your fellow peers will fill that gap. Being able to communicate and reach out to them to ask questions or learn best practices can help you overcome those kinds of challenges. I’ve often referred to your franchise as a second family, they are they when you need them offering guidance and support.

#3 Risk:
Risk can be another big issue when considering small-business ownership but there's also risk in a corporate job. The biggest risk with a corporate job is job security -- someone else is going to determine what your future is going to be and financially someone else will decide when that's going to happen. Your job could be lost at any time with restructuring or downsizing. Being a business owner you have full control over the level at which you're going to grow your business and build financial security. Of course you're taking on risk with a business but statically there are positive signals. Over 95% of franchises opened within the last 5 years are still open for business and over 85% opened within the last 5 years are still under the same ownership.

#4 Change:
Let’s face it a lot of people don't like change. If there's uncertainty or there's new things being brought our way can be a challenge for anyone. If you’ve spent a long time working in a job and now you’ve switched over to being an entrepreneur when it comes to franchising you have the support of the franchisor. They have the infrastructure and resources in place to help you through any challenges that you may be facing.

Discover what franchise concepts are out there at our expo and see if a change from corporate America to the real world makes sense.