STAR Awards
Most Innovative Onboarding Program: Shipley Do-Nuts
Jonathan Massey Vice President of Franchise Recruiting Shipley Do-Nuts
Shipley Do-Nuts’ onboarding effectively begins at discovery day when the brand shows candidates a day in the life of a franchise owner. Shipley gives candidates an opportunity to experience an early-morning shift by making and kneading the dough, working with customers, and getting an overview of the brand’ s management tools.
The company provides its new franchisees with a comprehensive onboarding experience from the time a candidate signs the franchise agreement to when they open their first location. Shipley Do- Nuts offers support with site selection and lease negotiation, design and architecture, permitting, and construction project management. It also includes a six-week operator training course with“ Do-Nut University” at corporate headquarters in Houston. In addition, Shipley provides field training support for the first three new store openings and creates a custom marketing plan for each location.
The company connects franchisees with its real estate, construction, and new store opening teams, conducts site tours, and holds weekly calls with franchisees to project manage the process. Jonathan Massey, vice president of franchise recruiting, says the onboarding process gives new franchisees knowledge and confidence. It has reduced the number of days between signing and opening and improved new store opening performance by 10 % over the past two years.
Most Innovative Lead Generation Program or Platform Cousins Maine Lobster
Sabin Lomac Co-Founder Cousins Maine Lobster
Cousins Maine Lobster embarks on a road show to take its food trucks to various markets to meet potential franchise prospects. This model reimagines franchise development as an event-driven, community-based experience rather than a digital-only pipeline. It gives candidates a front-row seat to the brand and motivates them to meet the Cousins’ team.
The events combine in-person energy with strategic PR and digital campaigns in each market. The result is a powerful mix that builds excitement, credibility, and connection with the brand. Instead of a transactional process, the road show is memorable and relational, which ultimately drives high-quality leads and strong franchisee commitment.
“ Since launching the road show, we’ ve seen tangible success across the markets we’ ve entered from high turnout and strong press coverage in key growth regions,” says Sabin Lomac, co-founder of Cousins Maine Lobster.“ Each road show creates a ripple effect by building local awareness, driving digital lead flow, and fostering meaning ful face time between our team and prospects. It’ s also helped enhance the validation process as candidates leave with a deeper emotional connection to the brand.”
Lomac says the road shows help build brand exposure in new markets so that local awareness and excitement are established by the time franchisees launch. It has become a powerful way to scale franchise development while staying authentic to the brand’ s identity. The program deepened community engagement, boosted visibility in key regions, and improved both the quality and conversion rate of leads.
Innovation in Support of Franchisee Profitability & Validation Empower Brands
Cristin Smith Senior Director of Revenue Operations Empower Brands
Empower Brands recently launched the Empower Partner Information Connection( EPIC) portal, a new technology platform that gives franchise consultants real-time access to everything they need to help candidates explore business ownership opportunities with the brand. EPIC provides territory availability and brand information and allows consultants to register candidates directly in one central location. EPIC brings together multiple brands and data sources under one system and saves consultants time, helps them serve their clients, and creates an efficient and transparent process.
“ EPIC embodies what innovation in franchising is all about by using technology to make the process smarter and more supportive,” says Cristin Smith, senior director of revenue operations for Empower
Brands.“ By giving consultants and candidates instant, accurate access to information, we’ re helping everyone make better, faster decisions that lead to stronger franchisee outcomes.”
Since EPIC launched, Smith says the brand has seen an increase in how quickly and effectively consultants can engage. The portal has helped improve communication, speed up lead follow-up, and increase the number of qualified candidates entering the system. Internally, it has given the development team better visibility into activity across all of Empower’ s brands and markets, helping the team focus on where to make the most impact.
Most Innovative PR or Social Media Campaign Capriotti’ s Sandwich Shop
Julia Ledford Senior Director of Franchise Development Capriotti’ s Sandwich Shop
Capriotti’ s Sandwich Shop produced a testimonial video with franchisee Tom Donovan about his experience as an owner with the brand. Donovan offered a glowing endorsement of the quality of food, support, business model, and positive culture Capriotti’ s provides. He also shared his overall satisfaction with being a franchisee. The video was featured on the Capriotti’ s website and email drip campaigns.
“ Each day, we are all finding new ways to solve long-standing challenges,” says Julia Ledford, senior director of franchise development.“ Being able to think outside the box and consistently create new content helps us stand out in the very crowded franchise world. Prospects have access to so much more information these days, and they do a large portion of their research before ever reaching out with an inquiry.”
Ledford says many of the new leads she speaks with on initial phone calls say the testimonial video resonated with them. She says emotional connection and relatability often come before financial details early in the journey when franchise candidates are first evaluating their options. Hearing from franchisees who share similar motivations or life experiences makes the opportunity feel attainable and authentic. •
Issue 4, 2025 | Franchise Update | 49