Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue IV, 2012 | Page 44

R E C O N N E C T : Guillermo Perales
PERSONAL
Key accomplishments: We have helped get more Latinos into franchising,
both as franchisees and suppliers. I feel I have been a leader and a role model
in this community. I’m glad that my business has been able to provide so
many jobs for people—more than 10,000. I’m still proud to be the largest
Hispanic multi-unit franchise operator in the country.

gether, and I like to play tennis.

Biggest mistake: Buying into the Denny’s franchise without any financial
disclosure.

Best advice you ever got: Persistency.

Smartest mistake: When we first bought Popeyes, the price seemed high
at the time. But it’s been a good brand for us and has helped us establish
markets in Texas and Florida.
How do you spend a typical day? I try to begin every day now jogging. It starts me out with the right frame of mind. Then it’s on to phone calls
and emails. Then a lot of internal meetings to evaluate opportunities and
expansion. Our people know what they’re doing and I respect that.
Work week: Even though I am now 50, I still maintain busy work weeks.
I’m still putting in 70- to 80-hour weeks. I want to be available for whatever
might come up. I travel a couple of times most weeks to association meetings, conferences, my stores, or other meetings. I’m part of our weekly manager’s meeting and I’m reviewing financials.
Favorite activity: I try to spend time with my family whenever I can,
especially now that the kids are older. We like to go to Colorado, skiing to-

Favorite stuff/tech toys: It’s been a BlackBerry for a long time but I
see a new iPhone in the future.
Do you have a favorite quote or advice you give? Persistency.
How do you balance life and work? It’s tough. I try to find a balance
with exercise, work, travel, and family time. You just try to keep an even balance there.
Exercise: I always strive to make it to the gym three times each week.
Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn’t. I still play tennis when I can.
But I’ve really gotten into jogging and yoga and try to do it every morning
before I start the day.
What do you do for fun? When I do get away from my business I like
to travel and spend time with my family. We just returned from a two-week
cruise in Europe.
Books/magazines recently read/recommended: Mostly trade
and business magazines. I read 20 to 30 different publications regularly, like
Multi-Unit Franchisee, QSR, Franchise Times, Restaurant News. It’s one of
the best time investments I can make and helps me stay up to date on the
industry and trends.

MANAGEMENT
Business philosophy: Organic growth through a lot of new construction
and searching for purchases. Since day one we have focused on growth,
building, and buying. We’ve also consciously been trying to stay strong in our
Texas and Florida markets (Dallas, Houston, Orlando, and Tampa).
Would you say you are in the franchising, real estate, or customer service business? Why? We’re in franchising but we definitely
do all three.
What gets you out of bed in the morning? The thought of discovering the next great move for our business.
Management method or style: We are a large company, so I have
learned that I must delegate responsibilities to people I trust. We have brand
directors for each of our different brands. We have a controller, CFO, four
attorneys, a leasing director, and marketing manager. I delegate to them
and trust them to take care of things. I rely on my brand directors and their
expertise to keep those brands operating effectively. If there’s a problem, I
will step in.
How close are you to operations? I’m close, but at 400 units I rely
on insight from my brand managers. But I do see the numbers every week
and visit my stores. Believe me, I keep an eye on cash flow.
Greatest challenge: The larger we’ve gotten, the more exposure we have
had to legal trouble. That’s one of the reasons we now have four attorneys
on staff to help us make sure we are doing everything by the book. On the

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Multi-Unit Franchisee Is s ue IV, 2012

corporate level, it’s difficult to find good people that will stick with you. At the
unit level, the problem of employee retention remains. We’re always dealing
with turnover in this business.
Personality: I expect a lot of myself and those around me. When something needs to be done, I expect it to be done efficiently and effecti fVǒआ