How Many Hours Franchise Owners Work: What to Expect

Maybe some folks give business owners the credit of having worked hard to get to their seemingly cushy positions, but they still consider business owners as people who’ve made it and are now living on Easy Street. You may have even thought so yourself…before you became a business owner.

You now know just how big a burden the responsibilities of owning a business are: administrative duties, ensuring customer satisfaction, looking after your staff’s wellbeing, meeting industry standards, and more. Maybe you are making money, but the daily grind is barely leaving you any time to enjoy it. You know you’re not happy with this arrangement, and something needs to change.

Switching from an independent business to a franchise is an option that’s worked for many business owners. Franchise owners have to work fewer hours when the fit is right, and the business model allows it. Let’s take a look at what goes into owning a franchise.

Building a Franchise from the Ground Up

Starting a franchise is similar to starting an independent business but differs in the fact you’re not going to be operating alone. A franchisor will be there to help you through the process.

Starting a franchise begins with conducting research. It’s important for you to look into what franchising opportunities are available to you, how much capital they’ll require, what the initial fees and regular expenses are, if you ‘ll be able to afford them, and any other factors that are important to you. You also should look at what franchises already exist in your local market so you’ll be aware of any competition you’ll have to deal with.

Next, draft your business plan. This doesn’t need to be overly detailed to begin with, and you may make adjustments over time. The important points to cover in a business plan include what your long-term goals are and what steps you intend to take to pursue them. Once you start contacting franchisors, make sure to review their franchise agreements to see what requirements you have to meet and if they fall in line with your goals and business plan. It’s a good idea to hire a franchise attorney to review franchise agreements with you before you sign anything.

Once you’ve chosen a franchise and have gone through orientation and training, you should form a limited liability company, corporation, or whatever type of organization your franchisor requires. You’ll also want to find a good location for your franchise, whether that’s rented, leased, or purchased property. Finally, before you open your doors, you should hire staff for your franchise.

A good franchisor will help franchisees throughout the process. For example, ProSource Wholesale conducts a thorough application review to get to know each entrepreneur interested in becoming a franchisee. Once a franchisee is ready to begin, Prosource provides its franchisees with a comprehensive training program to prepare them for their regular duties and how the business model works. ProSource also maintains relationships with third-party financing vendors to help franchisees with their starting costs, such as equipment and inventory.

The Industry Matters

While every industry requires effort for success, some require more than others from the business owners. A good rule of thumb is if the business requires special training or knowledge, you’re more likely to be required to take an active role in running the business. For example, the construction industry is made up of businesses that require specialized training and certification, such as electrical work, plumbing, HVAC installation, and masonry.

If you want to open a franchise that’s more flexible with your schedule, look at the entry qualifications. If a franchise requires extensive certification or specialized education, you may want to reconsider. For contrast, ProSource Wholesale is a franchise that’s accessible to any enterprising businessperson. By focusing on providing supplies to professional contractors, ProSource ensures its franchise owners have to work less and don’t need complex construction skills by not getting involved in the installation process, leaving that up to the customers instead.

Businesses Modeled for Moderate Workloads

Another important factor in how much franchise owners have to work is the business model employed by their brand. If you ask them, most franchisors will tell you upfront if their business model and strategy allows you to work part-time or as an absentee or semi-absentee owner. Franchises that market themselves as “passive income” franchises are ones designed to allow you, the franchisee, to profit from them without a lot of work. This is often accomplished by hiring enough staff to handle most of the duties, including a site manager to handle the day-to-day operations, as well as administrative staff to handle things like payroll.

If you start a passive income franchise, it’s important to remember that “little work” doesn’t mean “no work.” You will still be required to put in at least some amount of time and effort managing the business, even if it’s just conducting periodic inspection tours to make sure your franchise location, or locations if you own more than one, keep operating to the brand’s standards. Some passive income franchises also require you to work extra hard and longer-than-average hours to start with before the franchise system is far enough along it can function without your direct oversight.

ProSource Wholesale’s business plan is a flexible one, allowing you to customize how you oversee your franchise location or locations. Because we use a membership system to allow clients to access showrooms, you can adapt your schedule to the needs of your customers and your preferred work-life balance. Also, rather than only being allowed to operate from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., we allow our franchisees to customize their work hours too, so you can operate at a time convenient to you and your clients.

Find Your Franchising Fit with ProSource Wholesale

We at ProSource Wholesale take pride in offering a franchising opportunity that’s flexible with how much a franchise owner has to work. We’re a flooring, kitchen, and bathroom franchise with over 30 years of experience providing professional contractors, remodelers, installers, architects, and real estate professionals with the supplies they need to serve their clients.

We’re interested in welcoming service oriented, competitive, ambitious, tech-savvy entrepreneurs like you to our team; businesspeople who are self-motivated, driven to succeed, business minded, service-oriented, and knowledgeable about their local markets. We want our franchisees who share our core values of teamwork, being the solution to challenges, and providing customers with exceptional service. From our membership-based, professional-focused business model to our showroom access technology, our system is designed to help you find the work-life balance that you’ve been seeking.

Contact us today to find out more about franchising with ProSource Wholesale.