With Company Layoffs Increasing, Here's Why Franchising Is the Next Best Move Here's why franchise ownership is a great option for recently laid-off employees who want to pursue entrepreneurship as their next step.
By Jeff Brazier Edited by Chelsea Brown
This story appears in the September 2023 issue of Start Up.
Layoffs are making headlines in 2023, with the tech industry feeling the biggest effects of this national trend. According to TechCrunch, layoffs in this sector, year to date, exceed the total number of tech layoffs in 2022. Other industries are streamlining employee payrolls as they look to a future of job automation through artificial intelligence. Even though getting laid off is a tough situation, there can be a bright side — a chance to embark on a meaningful path to entrepreneurship.
This endeavor may seem daunting at first, especially if you don't have a unique business idea, but that makes franchise ownership a particularly attractive option. With a proven, successful business model, a built-in support system and brand recognition, a franchise offers a much easier way to jumpstart an investor's business ownership dreams.
In order to attract this pool of potential franchisees, business concepts should highlight how their franchise, in particular, is a financially viable option and how it will continue to benefit the professional development of a prospective franchise owner. Former tech executives and aspiring entrepreneurs, in turn, should widen their lens when looking for their next career opportunity.
Related: Aspiring Entrepreneur? Consider Perfecting Something That's Already Built
Franchising is a good fit for an opportunity-seeking entrepreneur
The unique advantage franchising offers is an established business model with a blueprint that has been refined over many business units and many years of successful operation. With that comes a brand identity that is already recognizable to consumers. Building a brand-loyal customer base is one of the most difficult aspects of starting a business from scratch. With an established franchising concept, you get brand interest, excitement and trust already built in.
The franchising business model comes with a corporate team equipped to help franchisees with support services relating to marketing, operations and business analysis, training and more. At Kiddie Academy Educational Child Care, we help our franchisees with all these aspects plus financing, real estate and construction, just to name a few. High-quality tools and technology systems afford franchisees access without the hassle of setting it all up on the front end. Finding a franchise organization that helps facilitate setup through pre-existing relationships with entities like lenders or real estate developers is key to success.
Because of all the resources available to franchisees, they often find they have more freedom as business owners than they did in the 9-to-5 (or 24/7) job they just left. Different franchise concepts have different time requirements. Potential franchisees can choose what best suits them.
Flexibility is always an added benefit in the workplace, and transitioning to franchise ownership offers many new options. Franchisees can build their business closer to home or start a new leaf in a place with a growing market. When you own your own business, you're in control of your destiny — you don't have to worry about the insecurity of working for someone else.
Newly laid-off professionals make the best franchise candidates
A laid-off tech professional can make a very strong franchise candidate. Franchisors who show potential franchisees how their skills can be transferred into a new career path can help grow their organization while providing an opportunity for qualified candidates who are looking to excel. It's a mutually beneficial relationship.
Regardless of their background, successful business professionals who have had the unfortunate experience of being laid off usually have a strong work ethic and a desire for continuous learning and development, making them a perfect fit for a franchise organization. Job-seeking entrepreneurs should consider the growth opportunities — both personal and professional — that come with opening a franchise location.
Most franchise organizations are "no-prior-experience-necessary" opportunities because of the infrastructure and support systems in place to help their owners excel. Even if you don't have a background in a field like educational child care, for example, with the right amount of passion and franchisor support, you can still become a successful business owner. Franchise ownership opens the door to experiencing an entirely new industry using the business expertise a potential franchisee has already developed in a previous career.
Related: 6 Tips to Consider When Searching for a Franchise for the First Time
Franchise ownership allows professionals to live a life they love. Entrepreneurs can seek out opportunities in unique markets where they've always wanted to live and consider franchising as a means to relocate. There are also significant work-life balance benefits with franchising. Maybe franchise ownership for a particular organization means only working in the mornings or afternoons — or maybe not even showing up to an office at all. These benefits differentiate the franchising experience in a positive way.
Business professionals experiencing a layoff and franchisors can both benefit from taking a close look at how they can work together. Franchising isn't for everyone, just like business ownership isn't for everyone, but for those who are looking for career advancement, it's a solid model to consider.
