Franchise Update Magazine Issue IV, 2014 | Page 55

—Bill McPherson, FirstLight Home Care
an entire division dedicated to unitlevel economics, so we’re looking at
our franchisees’ profitability first and
the rest falls in line. As a result of that
focus, our franchisees experience strong
sales,” she says. “Also, 90 percent of
our franchisees are multi-unit owners.
We love that fact—it speaks well of
them and our brand, and we plan to
continue to support our franchisees
Lee Easley
and keep them happy and profitable.”
Easley, who says East Coast Wings is growing slowly in
comparison with other brands in the sector “by design,” says
the decades of restaurant experience that CEO Sam Ballas,
COO Tom Scalese, and Steve Kontos, president of Athenian
Food Concepts (a subsidiary company that oversees the corporate stores) bring to the table also contribute to a satisfying
relationship between franchisees and franchisor.

Retail Brand: Wild Birds Unlimited

Wild Birds Unlimited understands that one size does not fit
all franchisees, says Paul Pickett, vice president for franchise
development. “Several years ago we developed individual consultation plans for all our franchisees. We have a very defined
process of helping our candidates understand the concept and
ensure that we’re a strong match for them, but we also modify
that approach to meet the goals of the individual,” he says.
For example, someone with years of retail experience (like
a manager of a Wild Birds store) can move into disclosure, financing tools, and the business planning process a little earlier
because they already know how to work within the Wild Birds
culture, says Pickett. “Everyone is at a different stage in their
business enterprise life cycle, so we customize and adapt while
still ensuring brand culture and standards are maintained. We
just happen to think there are multiple ways of getting there.”
When it comes to franchisee satisfaction, Pickett also cites the
company’s policy of having candidates reach out early to speak
with existing franchisees and learn about the brand’s “worldclass support and tools” from the development and operations
teams. Most important, he says, is Wild Birds’ attitude toward
franchisees. “We’re honored that they are part of our company.”

Service Brand: CertaPro Painters

There’s no great secret to why CertaPro franchisees are happy
with their franchisor and their work, according to Peter Barkman, vice president of franchise development. “One of the
reasons our franchisees are satisfied is that a lot of our ideas
and innovations come directly from them,” he says. “We have
great franchisees, many with tremendous backgrounds in their
previous lives. We do a good job of leveraging that. If you have

talent, you can fly a lot faster and more efficiently—as long as
you’re flying in the same direction.”
Barkman, a former franchisee of CertaPro, College Pro
Painters, and College Pro Window Cleaning, also attributes
the high satisfaction lev