Monthly Archives: March 2012

Interview with Ronn Cordova of The Maids Home Services

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Ronn Cordova has been a part of the franchise industry in one way or another for the better part of two decades. He’s been a franchisee, a broker, an outsourced vice president for several different concepts, and now, he’s the Vice President of Franchise Development for The Maids.

“You can make a lot of money in the franchise business,” he says, “but few afford that slice of heaven [that The Maids does.]”

 

That slice of heaven Ronn Cordova speaks of is time– time most people, franchisees or otherwise, don’t have to spend with their friends or family because they’re working. It’s the typical trade-off: success and money versus time with your family. Luckily, for those who choose to be a part of The Maids, that’s a choice you’ll never have to make.

 

The Maids, long before Cordova arrived in May of 2011, has been wrought with success. It’s been ranked number one by the Franchise Business Review for the cleaning services industry. The Maids has also been ranked number 1 in industry and 42 overall by Entrepreneur 2012 Top 500 magazine. (There’s been only one lawsuit between the franchise and a franchisee that occurred over 10 years ago.) The franchise still likes to keep that information on its FDD so prospective franchisees know absolutely everything about the company. In fact, it was that kind of honesty that attracted Cordova to The Maids in the first place.

 

As a former franchisee, Cordova understands and anticipates the questions someone interested in The Maids might have.  His “knowledge of the trenches” comes from personal experience: he used to own a few pizza franchises. While the pizza franchises didn’t work out for Cordova, he took to heart all that he learned as a small business owner. “I’m very careful to [properly] place franchisees,” he says.

 

When it comes to selecting and placing new franchisees, Ronn and the rest of the franchise development team go over each application case by case. “We evaluate on a per individual basis,” Cordova says. Of course business acumen, sales, marketing and managerial skills are welcome and necessary. Financial fortitude is important too, though the franchise does help with financing via a third party. As a franchisee, you’re given mountains of support: 7-week long online pre-training course, 9 days of training at The Maids headquarters in Omaha, NE, a week of on-site support when you’re up and running, a business coach for the duration of your franchise agreement, and you’re assigned a mentor.

 

It may surprise you that the cleaning services industry has become a necessity as opposed to a luxury in recent years. “It’s been hard to make the cleaning industry sexy,” admits Cordova, but the Great Recession certainly helped to boost business. Now, in a traditional family unit, both heads of the household work in some capacity. The time that once was used to clean bathrooms and vacuum carpets is now spent at work. “There’s a lot of money to be made in the everyday services [industries],” Cordova says.

 

“One of the best parts of our business is that it affords a family lifestyle,” asserts Ronn. Customers who use The Maids’ services usually work Monday-through-Friday between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. and not on the weekends, which is exactly when they want their homes to be cleaned.

 

As someone who works for The Maids or owns a franchise, you’re home when your clients are: in time to have dinner with your kids.

 

 

Expansion Plans with FASTSIGNS

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When traveling, it’s best to have a guide: someone who knows the best places to eat, the best sites to see, and, perhaps most importantly, the safest areas in town. When expanding your business, it’s best to have more than just a business plan. Catherine Monson speaks with experience when she says, “having a local [business] partner is important.”

 

Catherine Monson has served as chief executive officer of signs franchise FASTSIGNS for three years. When she was recruited to assume the role, the original founder was uninterested in expanding the concept internationally. Well, Monson was.

 

The fact of the matter is, as Catherine aptly points out, that “Businesses need signage.”

 

FASTSIGNS fills an obvious global need: businesses need signs to alert potential consumers that they exist. With the global economy expanding, especially in the Middle East, Asia, and South America, there’s a lot of opportunity for FASTSIGNS to grow quickly– except Catherine Monson isn’t really interested in rapid expansion.

 

“It’s very important to modify your business model to embrace the culture of where you’re expanding,” explains Monson. That’s why FASTSIGNS has a specific three-pronged expansion strategy.

 

First, when expanding, the signs franchise looks for international partners with a knowledge of the culture and business climate of the proposed expansion location. The partner can be the owner of an existing signage business or wishing to start from scratch. Either way, his or her knowledge is integral to FASTSIGNS’ steady and successful expansion plan.

 

Second, FASTSIGNS likes to convert existing independent sign stores into FASTSIGNS franchises, if they’re interested, of course. “We’re willing to expand anywhere we can help,” adds Catherine. For example, FASTSIGNS recently expanded in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico thanks to three Puerto Rican business leaders who owned a sign store. Instead of coming in and siphoning business from existing independent business by establishing a new FASTSIGNS franchise, FASTSIGNS chose to approach existing businesses and business owners.This way, the business owners receive marketing support and brand recognition from FASTSIGNS (along with new technologies and materials) and FASTSIGNS goes into business with an established customer base and a knowledge of the local community.

 

Finally, occasionally FASTSIGNS expands the old fashioned franchise way: by selling a new location or territory. Just like every other option, there’s a lot of research that goes into building a new location.

 

When asked what she felt was the most important thing for franchises to consider when expanding internationally, Catherine Monson answered, “Spend a good amount of time really studying the culture, the labor market, and as a result, what might need to be different about your model.” By that she means, what works in the U.S. might not work elsewhere, like in Saudi Arabia. “I don’t think we’d be as successful [in Saudi Arabia] without having a Saudi partner.”

 

“If you fail,” she says, “you have a bad mark against you.” As a well-known brand in a hoping to expand in relatively unknown lands, that’s not a good sign. Fortunately for FASTSIGNS, with Catherine Monson at the helm I doubt there will be anything but all signs pointing to ‘go.’

Learn more about sign franchise FASTSIGNS online at Franchise Buy.com.

Franchise opportunity FASTSIGNS