What You Need to Know About Owning a Food Franchise

Believe or not, there are actually franchise businesses that kind of stink, and should be avoided at all costs.

You want names, right? Like in the post I wrote about a certain coaching franchise? Well, you won’t be getting specific names from me this time around.

Instead, I’ll be teaching you a few things about franchise opportunities that you’ve probably looked at already, but ended up scurrying away from like a field mouse that’s just sighted one of these bad boys;

Now that you’ve, “digested” that, let’s move on to a few really important things that you need to know about some really stinky franchises that are presently being offered in North America….

It’s Actually The Franchisees That Stink

Would you like to know where you can find a good number of franchisees that have a seriously unappealing smell?

In franchises that serve food; food franchises.

Only franchisees of food franchises know what I mean. wait; let me add something to that statement;

The family members of most food franchise owners know what I’m referring to, also.

I Have Real-Smelly-Real-Life Experiences

When I was 14 years old, I was an employed by the Golden Dragon, located in a historic office building near Cleveland, Ohio.

(Brainard Place)

My job title at the Golden Dragon was, “dishwasher.” It was my first real job.

In hindsight, I should have put more thought into this career decision. Here’s why;

Chinese restaurants serve multi-course meals. Let’s translate that into what’s known in the world of restaurant dishwashing as, “pieces.” From a dishwasher’s standpoint, here’s all the things that come back into the kitchen area after a typical meal at a Chinese restaurant;

1. Teapot

2. Teacup

3. Teacup saucer

4. Teaspoon

5. Fork

6. Butter knife

7. Soup spoon

8. Chopsticks

9. Soup bowl

10. Soup bowl saucer

11. Appetizer plate

12. Dinner plate

13. Coffee cup (Maybe)

14. Metal ice cream dish

15. Dessert spoon

16. Wooden Pu-Pu Platter (Possibly)

Except for a few optional items, every person that eats at a Chinese restaurant uses everything I named up above. That’s a lot of dishes!

I really should have said, “I’d like to think about your offer” before I accepted my first job. (I guess the excitement got to me.) I should have, “looked around” a little more. Maybe I could have started out as a dishwasher in a burger joint. That way I would have only had to wash a dinner plate, a small side plate, and a Coke® glass. What an idiot.

The number of dirty dishes that come back into kitchens of Chinese restaurants all over North America are astounding. Trust me.

And, boy did I stink.

My clothes…my pores…everything on my body absolutely reeked by the time I left for home from a 7-8 hour shift. My poor parents; they had to pick me up from work. Seriously, I smelled really, really, bad. And, this smell would immediately be transferred to my bedroom if I walked into it pre-shower.

I had to use freaking Lava soap to rid myself of the odor that was emanating from my body.

www.lavasoap.com

Smelly Franchise Owners

All franchisees that own, and work in food franchises smell after putting in a full day’s work. There is no getting around it. (Unless you’re a multi-unit food franchise owner who isn’t actually working on the inside of the business.) Like Peter Biro. He owns several food franchises. Read his guest post.

Smells aside, becoming the owner of a food franchise can be a great thing. If you’re thinking of buying a franchise that serves food, it’s important to learn, (ahead of time) as many things about the business as you can.

If you do a thorough job on your franchise due diligence, you may become a franchisee who comes up smelling like a rose.