Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue II, 2016 | Page 50

MULTI
BY KERRY PIPES

BRAND

RECONNECT

Texas-Sized

Michael Knobelock is well on his way to 100 units

T

hey say everything’s bigger in Texas.
It’s definitely bigger for Texan Michael Knobelock, whose Houstonbased MSK Enterprises operates
nearly 70 franchise locations spread across
4 different brands and 7 states. Since we
profiled him 5 years ago, Knobelock has
added Captain D’s and Sears Appliance &
Hardware stores to his Church’s Chicken
and Little Caesars stores. He also has his
own restaurant, Dekker’s Mesquite Grill,
located in an affluent suburb of his hometown, along with plans to s tart building his
own Italian restaurant this year.
He’s come a long way since the 1980s,
when he borrowed $10,000 from his parents
to re-open a shuttered convenience store in
Houston. He succeeded in that early business venture, which he eventually sold, and
in 1992 used the proceeds to open his first
Church’s in Houston—becoming the first
Church’s franchisee in the city. “I loved the
Church’s Chicken brand,” he says. “I ate
there, and I knew I could sell that.” In the
nearly 25 years since, he has continued to
NAME: Michael Scott Knobelock
TITLE: Owner/CEO
COMPANY: MSK Enterprises
NO. OF UNITS: 41 Church’s

Chicken, 21 Little Caesars, 3
Sears Appliance & Hardware, 2
Captain D’s, 1 Dekker’s Mesquite
Grill (independent)
AGE: 54
FAMILY: Wife Patty and 2

daughters, Torrey and Kally
YEARS IN FRANCHISING: 25
YEARS IN CURRENT POSITION: 25

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MULTI-UNIT FRANCHISEE IS S UE II, 2016

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