Franchises aren’t just for beginners

Hi folks,

There’s a phrase out there I absolutely hate: 

“A franchise is a business with training wheels.”

It implies that the only reason to buy a franchise is because you are incapable of running an independent business.

After all, nobody voluntarily rides a bike with training wheels when they’re perfectly capable of riding one without them. 

Now, don’t get me wrong: franchising is beginner-friendly.

That’s why I bought my first franchise. I needed to be trained, supported, and coached along the way. I didn’t have the background necessary to develop a brand, source vendors, and build out systems. 

But I quickly noticed something that changed the way I thought about franchising:

It’s not just beginners.

I have been blessed in my career with incredible mentors, almost all of whom are significantly ahead of me both financially and professionally.

And they own franchises too. A lot of them. 

But why?

They clearly don’t need “training wheels” anymore.

It’s because they see franchising as a path to reaching their financial, professional, and lifestyle goals. 

They see the bigger picture of what franchising actually offers. 

And it boils down to one thing: scale.

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3 ways franchising helps you scale

1. Horizontal growth, e.g. Same brand, more units. 

I’ve written before about how franchise owners get to play inside baseball. 

I help lots of people who initially want to buy an existing business. 

Most still do, but they decide to do so through a franchise system, often by buying new territories to start. 

I call this “Planting Your Flag.” (I wrote a whole article on that here.)

Growth through acquisition within a strong franchise brand presents advantages in three main ways: 

• Simpler deal sourcing (existing franchisees see deals first)

• Faster due diligence (you already know the model)

• Smoother integration (you’re not learning from scratch)

I will die on this hill whenever I’m given the opportunity:

There is no better opportunity to create value in small business M&A today than franchising.

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2. Vertical growth, e.g. different brands, same market.

It’s very common these days to seek to build a “HoldCo”, or a holding company that owns multiple businesses.

Franchising is an excellent way to do this. 

Why? Because you don’t have to be the visionary of each business. You really don’t have to innovate.

You just have to execute within the four walls of your business, which is usually a fast-track to being able to delegate. 

One choice you’ll have to make with vertical growth: 

Do you want to prioritize synergy or diversification?

Want synergy? Look for adjacent industries and similar business models. 

You can capture synergy in three main forms:

• Real estate (running multiple businesses out of one shop)

• Personnel (stretching people across multiple businesses)

• Customers (cross-marketing amongst customer bases)

Want diversification? Look for completely different businesses with no relationship to each other.

I got my start in franchising because I was working for an ownership group in a fitness brand. Those owners wanted to diversify into home services, so I got to join the deal as a partner.

There was zero synergy between fitness and home services — it was a pure diversification play. 

They were just using the muscles they built in franchising to gain exposure to different industries.

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3. Network growth

This is so often overlooked.

Operating in a system where dozens (or hundreds) of other owners are running the same business creates one of the best professional learning environments I’ve ever seen.

It flattens your learning curve. You get access to years of hard-earned wisdom, without the scars.

Over time, you can form real relationships with smart operators. People you’ll learn from, invest with, even partner on deals with. 

If you zoom out 10–20 years, I believe the network alone will be worth more than anything I’ve ever paid in royalties.

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So, should you own a franchise?

If you’re a beginner, it can fast-track you to growth that otherwise takes years.

If you’re a pro, you see the bigger picture… and all that speed just keeps compounding.

Got questions? Want to join the party?

Book a call and let’s chat.

Connor

P.S. I talk about this stuff with people every day. If you’re serious about exploring your options in franchising, book a call here. We'll dig into your goals and find the right fit.

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