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Franchise Industry's Going Full Speed Ahead
by Seth Jermyn
http://www.franchiseour.com
The franchise industry ran into a stalemate in the 1990s,
whereby entrepreneurs were hesitant to jump aboard due to a
risky and unstable economy. However, the parent companies
of these franchises weren't about to give up. They stuck
with it through the thick of it all and watched their
franchises come out shining. By brainstorming ways to make
franchises appealing to the market, a win-win scenario was
set into motion. In today's market, franchises are once
again a great opportunity with charisma and high potential
for the up and coming business owner.
The fastest growing franchises over the past several years
belong to the food, investment and fitness industries.
These industries, according to Entrepreneur, are only going
to get better in the next couple years. According to
Entrepreneur magazine's 2005 Franchise 500 list, Subway
continues to lead the pack for the 13th year in a row. In
second for the second year in a row is Curves. Why are
these franchises doing so well? America is embracing a
healthier lifestyle, which fits into Subway and Curve's
plans extremely well. For this reason, many fast foods are
adjusting their menus to offer healthier foods. Two fast
foods that are doing this are Subway and Quiznos. Other
traditionally fatty fast foods that are also joining on the
bandwagon are Dunkin' Donuts and Sonic Drive-In.
The need for investing and spending money wisely is also a
top priority for many Americans. Thus, companies like
Jackson Hewitt Tax Service and RE/MAX continue to top the
list. Another motivating factor as to why these top
fast-growing franchises are faring so well has to do with
employers and health insurance companies that are pushing
ways for people to manage their medical bills in a
constructive manner like fitness. As result, more Americans
belong to health clubs than at any other time in history.
Curves is capitalizing on this movement along with weight
loss programs like Jenny Craig, which was struggling during
the 1990s but restructured and improved its health-related
problems. Entrepreneur watched the fitness and weight loss
franchises category increase from eight to 17 on the Fortune
500 list in last couple years.
Overseas as well as in America, franchises are sprinting
ahead. While most of these franchises are not familiar in
America, they are certainly just as or more than successful
than better-known American franchises. For instance, Jani
King has over 100 regional offices in 16 countries and tops
Entrepreneur's 2005 Franchise500 list in the commercial
cleaning franchise industry. Also, Jani King ranked in the
top 10 overall on that same list. The American commercial
cleaner based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Coverall Cleaning
Concepts is also tops in this category. The main reason
these commercial cleaning franchises are doing so well is
they recently started training the owners and workers of
these franchises in anti-terrorism tactics.
Are you ready to join the franchise industry during this
growth period? Before deciding which franchise is right for
you, research each one carefully or consult a franchise
service such as FranChoice to find a franchise that matches
your needs and desires. To learn more about franchising,
visit Entrepreneur.com's Franchise Zone.
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