Franchise Interviews

Silverback Self Defense is a professional self defense company that specializes in group, corporate, and individual training classes. Founded and owned by Robert Webre, Silverback Self Defense is passionate about helping people learn how to protect themselves and save lives. With solid leadership at our back and proven operational practices propelling us forward, Silverback Self Defense is eager to introduce the rest of the States to our customizable training programs through franchisement.  In part two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast. 

If you want to be part of a healthcare brand that has built its success by putting patients first, explore the Pearle Vision franchise opportunity.Pearle Vision is one of the largest optical retailers in North America, with more than 500 EyeCare Centers across the United States and Canada, many owned and operated locally by franchise owners. The brand has more than 30 years’ experience in franchising, and although Pearle Vision is a healthcare franchise, you do not need a medical background to own a franchise. We are meeting with Alex Wilkes of Pearle Vision.  In 1981, Pearle Vision began offering franchises to optometrists, opticians and investors who were interested in using Pearle’s business model, brand and marketing muscle to build their own businesses. Today, the Pearle Vision franchise continues to grow by helping professionals profitably deliver quality eye care.

In part 1, we are meeting with entrepreneur and the founder of the BBQ Cleaner Jeffrey Krentzman. Jeff discusses the following: What are some of the pros and cons you encounter as your own boss? What is the hardest part of starting your own business? In your own business, what are some of things you feel you have done right that can be applied to someone else looking to start a business? What advice would you give to someone whose looking at being their own boss? Where should they even start? In part 2, you will hear a clip from out Great Quotes in Franchising podcast with the great Warren Greshes.

There are two key elements you receive when buying a franchise: They include a system and a brand.  Today we have the honor of speaking with award winning marketing professional, lecturer and teacher, Dr. John Tantillo.  Dr. Tantillo (aka The Marketing Doctor) is a trained applied research psychologist who is internationally known for his expertise at diagnosing the factors that impact target markets. The Marketing Dr. wants to share his knowledge with individuals and businesses so they will benefit from his modern marketing principles. Dr. Tantillo is also the author of the popular book, “People Buy Brands Not Companies,” and Udemy on-line Course: “Go Brand Yourself with Dr. John Tantillo: The secrets of branding for personal and professional success!”  Dr. John Tantillo created the brand name, “O’Reilly Factor” and is currently a contributor for Newsmax TV (link to JT’s Newsmax Clips needs to be created) where he is seen each week on the popular Newsmax Now segment, Brand Power, https://www.newsmaxtv.

  This week we are discussing two must read books before Memorial  or Labor Day.  We begin the show with Danny Lyon, author of  The Colour of My Underwear is Blue.  With over 60 marathons and 20 years of business experience,Danny Lyon shares why people create such varying levels of business and personal success. Lyon reveals the secrets of the success "high-flyers", the "turnaround artists", the "comfort zone dwellers", and the "give-ups". No matter where you are in your life right now, Lyon sheds light on how you may be holding yourself back and what it takes to get out of your own way.  Next, we meet with Steve Barnett, author of Gumption - Taking Bubba Gump from Movie to Restaurant.  Written in a cinematic style, this book is about the creation, growth, and sale of the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. The concept began when Paramount Pictures reached out to see if there was interest in creating a restaurant based on the movie Forrest Gump. It is also the personal story of the author’s growth as a CEO and c

Today’s podcast features a roundtable session with three franchise experts.  You will hear from franchise expert Jim Coen. Jim suggested most people know what they like but they don’t necessarily know what would be a good franchise opportunity for themselves. He explains why.  In addition, we have franchise expert and veteran Craig Slavin. Craig has 5 decades of experience in all aspects of the franchising. Craig suggests, “Just because you can afford the airplane doesn't mean you should be the pilot." He eloquently explains how this pertains to buying a franchise.  We also have Gary Ochiogrosso who answers a common question that we have been asked hundreds of times and that is, “What is the best franchise?” Gary also talks about the three-legged stool of a successful franchise.

Swimming with the Sharks Today we are going to play clips from two franchises that appeared on one of our favorite shows…Shark Tank.  When Michael and Babz Barnett saw a tweet from ABC scouting contestants for new TV show, Shark Tank, six years ago, they had no idea what they’d be walking into. In fact, they saw the premier episode in their hotel room the night before their own taping. But despite the lack of familiarity with the sharks entrepreneurs have today, they presented their concept, Romp n’ Roll – a modernized kids gym perfecting the intersection of entertainment and education for kids ages 3 months to 5 years, and were offered a deal. Which they declined. Next, we meet with Jerry Hancock, the founder of Sub Zero Ice Cream and former guest on Shark Tank.  Sub Zero Ice Cream uses negative 321-degree liquid nitrogen to freeze and hand mix each customized order with a unique patented process. Besides its unique and highly visual freezing method, Sub Zero Ice Cream caters to a variety of dietary needs.

One of the most frequent questions I get is what is our most popular podcast to date. Interestingly, it came from our Great Quotes in Franchising podcast with Tony Lutfi…over 44,000 views to date. His advice to our listeners was priceless.  We are going to play our whole interview with Tony Lutfi who achieved the American dream through franchising. 

Several years ago, I was inspired to conduct a study on women in franchising based on my interview with Gigi Butler.  The study was titled, “Women Entrepreneurs and the Influence of Gender on Successful Franchising".  The study was published in the Global Journal of Entrepreneurship.  This study explores the influence of gender on franchise business ownership.  Here is a link to the study.  https://www.igbr.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/GJE_Vol_2_No_1_2018.pdf Today you will hear our interview with Gigi Butler.  Gigi Butler, is the founder of Gigi's Cupcakes. People across the country know Gigi from her appearance on "Undercover Boss" on CBS, and her journey is the American Dream come true. Soon after opening, Gigi's Cupcakes became a Nashville delicacy dessert of choice and now, nine years later, it has expanded across the country...making Gigi's the largest cupcake franchise in the country!  

It recently occurred to me I haven’t shared with our listeners what else I do in addition to Franchise Interviews.  I am a full-time professor and course leader for several marketing courses at Purdue University Global.  I am excited to share some exciting news.  For the last several years, I have been working on a paper that was published in The Qualitative Report Journal.  The Qualitative Report is a Q1 ranked journal on Scimago Journal & Country Rank (SJR). Q1 to Q4 refer to journal ranking quartiles within a subdiscipline using the SJR citation index. Thus, a first quartile journal (i.e., Q1) has an SJR in the top 25% of journals for at least one of its classified subdisciplines.  The name of the study is called A Qualitative Study: Military Veterans and Franchise Ownership.  This study focuses on the military experience and motivation to become a franchise business owner. You can download a copy of the study on the following link: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol25/iss3/14/ I would love to hear

Several years ago, one of my peers Elzie Flenard introduced me to motivational speaker Steve Pavlina.  Steve produced a number of great podcasts available to the public (uncopyright) on motivation, entrepreneurship and life balance.  This podcast discusses how to overcome fear.  We will start the show with a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast, featuring hall of fame speaker Warren Greshes.      

We start today with our most recent Great Quotes in Franchising podcast and discuss why franchising is like taking an open book test.  Next we discuss tax tips with Craig Cody.   As a Certified Tax CoachTM, Craig Cody belongs to a select group of practitioners throughout the country who undergo extensive training and continued education on various tax planning techniques and strategies in order to become, as well as remain, certified. With this organization, Craig has co-authored an Amazon best seller, Secrets of a Tax Free Life. In addition to tax planning, Craig's practice offers traditional tax services as well as off site CFO services. With a dedicated and passionate team we are able to provide daily guidance and advice to business clients. Our efficiency is embedded in our team concept. Our clients include, but are not limited to, Medical Professionals, Clothing Sourcing Businesses and Commercial Electrical Companies. Craig answers the following questions: What is the biggest mistake you see sma

We have a great show today. We are meeting with Mike Ruiz, President of Global Talent Solutions (GTS).  Global Talent Solutions helps bridge this gap for franchise employers, whose sector contributes 3 percent of the U.S. GDP. He and his company are driving an incredible amount of employment activity in the franchise space. Its talent acquisition takes a candidate-centric approach by being more efficient, less antiquated and systematic. GTS is helping franchise employers nail interviews - as well as best positioning them before and after - with a unique, agile and simultaneous approach to the classic three-pronged acquisition method of research, outreach and recruitment.  In Part Two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.  For more information...go to www.gtsrecruiters.com

We are meeting with Rafael Alvarez, the founder of ATax.  ATAX is a full-service income tax preparation business that represents and caters services toward the Hispanic community. Services include bookkeeping and accounting, driver's license assistance, notary services, and insurance analysis helping to educate the community on the steps they need to take to ensure citizenship and financial success in the economy. Every ATAX franchisee has the ability to offer supplemental services as part of their business model. These secondary services can range from English as a second language, immigration advice, passport photos, and so on, which turns their business into a year-round operation. * A Safe Haven: ATAX is dedicated to helping the Hispanic community by being a benefactor to the communities it serves, mainly helping educate and dispel fear through the support they offer their customers. * Strong Financial Model: The ATAX model helps franchisees feel supported, profit quickly and retain clients through mult

We have a great show today. We are meeting with Laura Coe of Snapology.  Snapology is a low cost, home-based, mobile business teaching robotics and STEAM principles through classes, camps, parties and other events.  At Snapology, they understand that children are meant to learn through play. When children are actively engaged in hands-on, interactive learning activities, their creativity flourishes and they show a greater interest in school.  If kids are happy, then parents are happy and your business will flourish.  Snapology, a franchise that provides a fun, inviting environment for kids at all levels to gain valuable life skills involving STEM/STEAM, including logic and problem solving, as well as social skills and teamwork. Snapology’s adaptable, research-based curriculum allows children to learn through play.  Every business has a story. Snapology was founded by two sisters, Lisa and Laura Coe, who decided to start their business after seeing the love their children had for creative play using buildi

We are welcoming back Charles Bonfiglio, CEO and President of Tint World.  Charles left Brooklyn, NY when he was 21 years for Florida to pursue his dreams of entrepreneurship.  Since 1982 Tint World® has provided high-quality window tinting and vehicle accessories to people who love their cars. With a wide selection of automotive products and services, clean, attractive facilities, and superior customer service, Tint World® has become America's favorite place for auto styling and marine styling accessories, and residential and commercial window film services. Now, anyone can be the proud owner of a Tint World® Automotive Styling Center. In 2007, Tint World® began franchising, and quickly became the nation's largest and fastest-growing window tinting and auto styling business opportunity. If you're interested in running your own business and being your own boss, you too can enjoy the excitement and profitability of running your own Tint World® auto styling business – all for a surprisingly low initial investm

Hi everyone and welcome to a very special edition of Franchise Interviews.  Our theme over the last several weeks has been social media marketing for franchisors and franchisees.  Today, we are meeting with Sophie Nguyen, CEO of So Gold Marketing. Sophie decided to pursue a career as a social media consultant back in 2013. She kicked off her professional experience managing Purdue University’s social media accounts for 3 years. Connecting with students, having real-time conversations via social media all while building Purdue’s online presence. Then she made another decision to move to the fast-paced Silicon Valley, the tech start-up capital of the world, to begin her career as an entrepreneur, and this is where So Gold Marketing was born. The rest is history. Connecting to people is the heartbeat of So Gold Marketing. Their relationship with their clients is about getting to know them and their company, so they can best understand how to connect to their clients. And ultimately help them reach their busines

We are meeting with Cassidy Crail, the Co-founder of C Squared Social.  Cassidy is going to discuss the history of C Squared Social, how many franchise brands are starting to look at millennials, and how C Squared Social helps franchisors reach this large market of potential new franchise owners.  C Squared Social is the expert in targeted digital advertising. They use their proprietary Four Point Targeting Method to get your message in front of the people you are looking for on all the most popular social media platforms, mobile apps and websites. C Squared Social design the ads, customize the campaigns and automate your call to action to meet all your objectives. In Part Two, we play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising.  

We are meeting with Ken Hutcheson, President of U.S. Lawns.  All of US Lawn’s landscaping professionals have a genuine commitment to improving communities and improving lives every day, which is a big reason they became part of the Network to begin with.  From the Home Office in Orlando, FL, community leaders across the United States are selectively onboarded and trained to do business proudly displaying the U.S. Lawns star. Right now, there are over 250 U.S. Lawns locations throughout the country, and their expansion continues to bring them ever closer to having franchises in all 50 states, so they can serve all major and secondary markets with first-rate landscape maintenance crews and commercial grounds management excellence. Even multiple location commercial property owners are secure in the fact every property is being treated with the same care; their grounds maintenance teams are all operating under the same code; all are equipped with the ideals and processes you’d expect from a top national chain;

We are meeting with Bill McPherson, the vice president of franchise development at AlphaGraphics, the global company that offers printing and marketing solutions at nearly 300 locations around the world.  Bill is a franchise veteran with nearly 30 years of executive and sales experience.. He’s also a Certified Franchise Executive and frequent IFA speaker/contributor.  In Part Two, we will play a clip from our popular Great Quotes in Franchising podcast.