Franchise QB

Episode 79: Greg Macchia- Owner, Franchising First

• Mike Halpern • Season 1 • Episode 79

Share episode

In this episode of the Franchise QB Podcast, host Mike Halpern speaks with Greg Macchia, a franchise consultant and owner of Franchising First. They discuss the vital role of franchise coaches in guiding entrepreneurs through the franchising landscape, Greg's personal journey into franchising, and the importance of due diligence in franchise ownership. 

The conversation also covers the franchise search process, the significance of having a supportive team, and advice for new candidates considering franchising as a business opportunity. Greg shares insights from his experiences as a business owner and consultant, emphasizing the emotional and financial weight of the decision to become a franchise owner.

Takeaways

Franchise coaches provide essential guidance to entrepreneurs.
Franchising offers a structured path to business ownership.
Due diligence is crucial for potential franchisees.
Understanding the franchise model is key for new candidates.
Franchise consultants help match clients with suitable brands.
Having a team of experts can save time and money.
The franchise search process is client-driven and flexible.
Financial qualification is important for franchise candidates.
Franchising can be a viable option for various backgrounds.
Life experiences outside of work enrich personal and professional life.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction 
01:16 Greg Macchia's Journey into Franchising
05:04 Transitioning from Business Owner to Franchise Consultant
07:25 The Role of a Franchise Consultant
11:01 Understanding Franchise Categories and Client Needs
13:59 The Franchise Search Process
16:25 Advice for New Franchise Candidates
19:14 Conclusion

www.FranchisingFirst.com

Free Resource for Franchise QB Listeners:

The Franchise QB Playbook will guide you through the process of finding your perfect franchise fit.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XlbD8oyl3uyeiqaM73poH67BX1jRRyCGR7l7qB-3Nz0/edit?usp=sharing. Also, you can view the Franchise QB podcast at www.youtube.com/@franchiseqb.

Contact me and my team with any questions along the way. www.calendly.com/franchiseguy
Mike Halpern, CAFC
mike@franchiseqb.com

This is the Franchise QB Podcast, where we empower entrepreneurs to win big in franchising. We huddle up weekly to educate our audience about the most successful small business model ever created. Franchise it! Welcome to the Franchise QB Coaches Corner. This is where we highlight franchise coaches, the unsung heroes of the franchising space. They go by coaches, consultants, and brokers, and they play a vital role in the franchising ecosystem. Similar to buy-side real estate agents, franchise coaches guide entrepreneurs through the overwhelming landscape of thousands of franchise opportunities. They assist with everything from franchise search guidance to FDD interpretation. funding strategy, to recommending franchise attorney for legal reviews, and much, much more. And most of them offer 100 % free services to the franchise buyer and will coach them step by step through the due diligence process. They assist with both franchise startups and resale acquisitions. Let's meet a franchise coach and learn how they are changing lives through franchise ownership. Joining us today in Coach's Corner is Greg Macchia, owner of Franchising First, certified franchise consultant with Franserve, and host of the Franchise Hounds podcast. Welcome to the show, Greg. Mike, thanks for having me on. Big fan of the show, excited to be here in the hot seat. It is great to see you. Thanks for coming on. So you and I met back in 2022 at the Franserve convention at Disney. And we were also placed in the same cohort group because we joined the Franserve Network around the same time. We call it a power team where we get together every couple of weeks and share best practices and brands and things of that nature. Since then, you and I have seen each other at consultant discovery days, most recently on the FranShip that was organized by our friend Lance Graulich to share best practices between franchise consultants and franchisors. So it's really great to have you on. Tell us a little bit about your background and how you found franchising. Yeah, thanks Mike. Originally from New Jersey, went to Notre Dame undergrad. After getting out of college and working for a few years, I realized it was a lot more fun being a student and decided to go back, get my MBA. I moved out to Boulder, Colorado to get my master's at the the University of Colorado. And after my MBA, was, you know, was kind of the tech heyday. I was working in tech sales and BD roles, you know, covering the Western half of the United States and in sales, you know, with your sales manager, uh you're only as good as your last deal. And it's very much a, what have you done for me lately uh culture. you know, was on the road a lot and My wife and I were thinking about starting a family and probably like a lot of our clients that we work with, I just started to think to myself like, is this sustainable? Is this corporate life the one I want, right? um So the company I was working for got acquired. um Most people got laid off, including me, and uh I decided to take the leap and start a business. And uh that was about 18 years ago. And I saw a gap in the, the cleaning industry. The business I founded was called Clean Conscience. And what we did is we used, you know, environmentally safe cleaning products and practices, things safer for, you know, kids and pets and family. And it's funny, I was always intrigued by the, by the franchise model. And I actually wanted to franchise that business. and become a franchisor, which is really how I got involved in this world. um And went pretty far down the path working with franchise attorney and a consultant that kind of helps you put your business in a box. And I ultimately decided um for various reasons that I was just gonna open um corporate locations. And... And about because of that, that experience, I got introduced to this world and about six years ago, five or six years ago, I started doing franchise consulting, um, and really enjoyed it. Um, and then about three years ago, I sold my cleaning business out right and decided to do this full time. Yeah. I was going to ask you the chronology of it. So you kept the cleaning business and then kind of ramped up your franchise consulting practice. And then you had that exit once you. feet underneath you in the consulting side? Yeah, exactly. I was kind of doing both and really just to see, you know, if it was something I enjoy doing, could I make a living at it and those kinds of things. So it was a, it was a pretty good transition for me. Yeah. And I bet like you can bring a lot of good stuff to the table with candidates because you've been there, you've done it. You know how hard it is to start an independent business from scratch. And obviously franchising has some benefits that we'll get into here at a minute. but also just like, you know, this Franchise QB podcast, you have your own podcast called the Franchise Hounds. Tell us about your podcast. Yeah, it's a, it was my COVID project, which is, which is hard to believe. Cause it's been, it's been five years. I my first episode was in June of 2020, which is, which is kind of crazy, but, it's funny cause my son who's now 16, he used to help me edit it and all. And gosh, I guess he was 11 at the time, which is, which is funny to think, but He would make highlight reels of, know, ums and ahs and bloopers and play them for his sisters. He thought it was very, very comical. um, but I need to get better at publishing new episodes. You know, I really enjoy, uh, the conversations, right? I love talking to these founders and hearing their stories and those kinds of things. It's, funny to think back to some of the episodes. I had Dan claps on who we both know. He's the, uh, yeah, with Voda as the CEO of Voda and they were just launching, right? They, didn't have any franchisees yet. And just to hear his vision and, know, now I think they just went over there, right? 200 territory or something like that, which is, is pretty wild to look back on really, really cool. That is really cool. And you mentioned June of 2020 that month and date rings a bell for me because that is the month I. completed my Franserve CFC exam to become a consultant. was in franchise development on the franchisor side for 16 years. And that's when I kind of went over to buy-side advisory and helping candidates. So that that month, that's, guess we kind of joined around the same time, which is pretty. Yeah, yeah. It's really funny. Yeah. So let's talk a little bit. I mean, you mentioned your business. How do you feel that your past experiences as a business owner has kind of translated into your current role kind of coaching candidates that are new to the idea of franchising? Yeah, it's a great question. I think it ultimately comes down to that. I don't take the decision to become a business owner lightly, right? I've always, you know, tell my clients outside of who you marry. This is really one of the biggest, probably emotional financial decisions you'll make in your life. Right. And I get that. You know, I grew a business from from zero to 40 ish employees with multiple locations. You know, I know what it's like when a handful of employees call out or, you know, or when payroll is coming up on the end of the week and you know, cash cash is going to be really tight. Right. So, uh you know, without a doubt as a business owner, you're going to go through some some tough days. And uh I just try and keep that in mind, you know, as I'm as I'm working with them that my role isn't to be a cheerleader or motivational speaker or talk anybody into moving ahead with an investment. My role is more of to be sure that to the best of my ability that when it comes time for them to make a decision that my clients feel comfortable with their level of due diligence and they're going into this with eyes wide open, right? Like that. I want my clients to view me as a trusted advisor and that, you know, they ask what I think I'm going to tell them, you know, the good, the bad and the ugly and um having, you know, been through it, I think, you know, really helps. sure. like kind of, kind of piggybacking off of that topic, like aside from the diligence you do with brands to make sure you recommend good ones, like what else do you do with your candidate that gets them ready for ownership? Like, do you provide them with guidance with things like funding, et cetera? Yeah, absolutely. As you know, it's kind of all part of the process. And you and I, doing this a long time, we kind of have our A team oh of support people, right? Whether it's franchise attorneys or funding specialists. And they all have different roles or specialties. If I talk to someone and they tell me they're going to use their college fraternity brother who specializes in DUI cases, right, to take a look at the franchise agreement, I definitely advise against that, right? Like there's real benefit to having someone who specializes in franchising and is comfortable with an FDD and that sort of thing. And same on the funding side, depending on what tool or avenue they want to use to fund, there's, as you know, There's different partners that specialize in different things. And I feel like that ultimately saves our clients time and money, right? 100%. Yeah, no, that's good. It's good to have a team of experts because you can't... just like inherently if they trust you, they're gonna trust them and therefore they get a really good smart team around them to help guide their decision making. Because ultimately they're gonna pick what they wanna do, but it's good to have all the data at their fingertips. em do you like specialize in a certain category? mean, franchising is huge. There's 4,000 brands. We work with a subset of those brands. Do you work across all industry categories or do you have kind of a focus? Yeah, I mean, like you said, we have 800 brands on our portfolio. So I do work across all categories. know, typically I find a client maybe often come to us with a with an idea of an interest in a particular industry. ah You know, over the last few years, it's certainly been a lot of home services or B2B or B2C services, you know, pet related, kid related health and wellness. ah But even if they don't have an idea, you know, that's okay, right? Like, I feel like my role is to maybe help broaden some horizons, say, hey, based on what we talked about, you know, have you thought about this or this could potentially be a good fit type of thing. Yeah. So that kind of leads me to my next question. Like having a candidate or a client that is open-minded, that allows you to show them things that maybe they hadn't thought about before. That would be kind of advantage. in their search, what else do you like to see um in candidates that are kind of entering franchising with open eyes? Any attributes that kind of make the search process go better for both you as a consultant and the candidate as someone trying to kind of get into franchise ownership for the first time? Sure. I typically like to work with candidates that have just received like a big inheritance from their aunt Martha. I'm sure you get quite a few of those. No, I'm kidding, right? It would be nice though. uh Obviously being financially qualified is a really good place to start. um I like to see candidates that are obviously responsive and approach this like they would a job search really is kind of how I describe it. They show up prepared for meetings, they're respectful of... others time, it's important they can follow the brand's discovery process. ah You know, I always tell them as the franchisor is evaluating them as much as you know, they're evaluating the franchise and that you know, ultimately franchises are awarded and not sold. So, you know, just common business etiquette and practices is usually a pretty good place to start, right? Yeah, absolutely. And the funding is important because without that, you don't know where you're looking, right? It's like You don't go looking for it. the same thing in franchising. You have to make sure that the capabilities are matched with, you know, the of industry category or specific brand. So I think that funding piece makes a lot of sense. oh So like at a high level, what is your process when you kind of just meet a candidate that's like, hey, Greg, help me find a great franchise for me and my family. What's that process look like? Is it 30 days, 90 days, six months? Like, what does that timeline look like and what are we doing over that period of time? Sure. oh Yeah, great question. Typically starts with an initial call and oh You know, it starts with, learning about them, their background, their skills, their goals, their investment level comfort, those kind of things. And then we do talk about the process as far as how long it takes. And I always tell them, really, our clients drive the pace and flow of this, right? Like we can typically move as fast or as slow as they like. Obviously, Sometimes things like territory availability come into play. If we both had the scenarios I know where clients maybe haven't, you know, been willing or able to move fast enough kind of in a hot market and things got sold out from under him, which is always unfortunate to see when, when I, you know, when we truly think that they'd be a good fit and there was availability and that sort of thing. But after that initial meeting, we kind of both understand one, how I help to. I get background on them. go off, do some research, come up with an initial list of brands or industries that I then share with them. And really we go from there based on their feedback. um Hopefully I'm on the right track and there's a few brands are interested in learning more about. I get them connected with our contact at the brand and we kick off a discovery with the brand. But really, obviously their feedback helps as it helps. you know, refine the search that and that sort of thing. And as you know, territory availability is, you know, really plays a major, major factor in all this. Not only, you one is there territory available and then two is there available territory to scale and, know, really build something, right? Yeah. It's like important to figure out, you know, what is their plan? You know, what ownership type do they have in mind? And as a because you might find someone that really loves a model, but they have to be in there nine to five, five, six, seven days a week. you know, they might be looking for something that's more absentee where they can keep their W2 and all that. So that can see how making sure there's an alignment between what the franchisor expects and what the candidate expects is pretty critical to making a good match. So what advice would you have for someone that has never looked at franchising before? They're now kind of considering it. They're new to the space. You know, is now a good time to get into franchising? Is that kind of the guidance you would provide? Yeah, I mean, I guess even to take a step back, anyone who's really considered business ownership or the thought of, I might want to be my own boss. obviously, you know, I obviously think that franchising should be part of the at least the initial discussion, right? To understand the model, understand what it looks like to own maybe an independent business versus franchise. And look, if we get a month into it and we decide that maybe the franchise model isn't right for you or your goals, then I still feel like I did my job, right? Like I probably saved that person a lot of money and a lot of time and we go from there. But, you know, I think it's really important to consider the model and look at all types of businesses. Obviously, you and I are big believers in the franchise model. and how it can support an entrepreneur and really be a good fit for people to get into business ownership, really regardless of uh the amount of experience or business acumen as an owner. know you and I know some really successful people uh who've grown incredible wealth through franchising, right? So it's not like the model is uh for rookies, if you will. No, I like your approach because You know, when you're looking at like the landscape of what's out there, you know, in ownership, you're looking at independent businesses that are for resale, starting an independent business like you did, which is incredibly challenging. then a franchise startup or a franchise resale. So I think if you look in those four buckets and keep those open, people figure out pretty quickly if ownership is for them. And then if they kind of check that box, then they can start deciding what's important to them. mind paying a royalty if it translates to, you know, having great systems and, you know, the net income is probably going to be greater after paying the royalty than it would be if I kind of did this on my own. And I think it takes time sometimes to figure out exactly what the candidate, you know, is looking for. And uh like you said, sometimes when they decide to go that direction, you did your job because you showed them what franchising is all about. Maybe it's a fit, maybe it's not. So that makes a lot of sense. So, um Greg, you as a human being, tell us something interesting about you outside of your franchising expertise. I know you're a big fly fisherman. Yeah. I would say in general, I'm like a big life experiences kind of travel guy. You know, I don't need a fancy car, but, you know, pitch me on the idea of a crazy adventure and chances are. you know, when are we going type of thing. Gosh, my son and I a few years ago did a hundred and eighty eight mile rafting trip through the Grand Canyon. And it all that took was like a buddy of mine saying, like, you and your son would love this. And I was like, OK, when we go, you know, and I think, you know, again, this comes back to like business ownership and some of the things that. you know, you're able to do, but really I want to be, I want to be the guy who's able to attend all my kids functions and things. Um, I don't want to miss, I don't want to be on the road traveling. Um, I could never go back to a corporate job after having experienced kind of the freedom of, of business ownership. Um, you know, um, you know, my, you know, we, as a family, we went to the Super Bowl this year and, just, just really being able to. share life experiences with my family and kids and friends and loved ones is kind of what I think defines me. Yeah, man, that's great. That's really great that you kind of, get to enjoy that time for being a business owner with your family. That's super cool. Greg, it's been great. Anything else you want to add to the mix before we wrap up today? Yeah. I Mike, I always knew you were a pro as a franchise consultant, but now I got to experience the pro podcast host. It's been awesome. I've enjoyed it. Flattery will get you everywhere, Greg. Well, it was great to have you on. I appreciate your time. And if anyone listening, would like to connect with Greg to learn more about becoming a franchise owner. You can contact him at gregfranchisingfirst.com or contact me. I'll get you connected. Thank you, Greg, so much for taking the time to discuss franchising first and franchising in general with us today. Yeah, thanks, Mike. Enjoyed it. Got it, Thank you for listening to the Franchise QB podcast where you're at the helm of your future as a franchise owner. If you enjoyed the content, please rate the show and recommend it to anyone that might be interested in franchising. Make sure to visit FranchiseQB.com to subscribe to my newsletter and for an actionable playbook to go from walk-on to legend in your new business. Follow us on Twitter @QBFranchiseQB and join us every week for a new episode. See you next time. FranchiseQB.com to take the next step of your journey towards wealth, independence and franchise ownership. And remember, When working for the man gets old, you must do something bold. Thank you for listening.