Franchise consultants say their clients have become more serious in the past year, encouraged by the state’s improving economy and business tax reforms.

“We had a lull in franchises, with many people staying on the sidelines,” said Mark Cory, owner and franchise placement specialist at consultant FranNet in Grosse Pointe. “With the better economic climate and positive news, now they’re ready to jump in.”

This interest is not limited to Michigan. The International Franchise Association projects more than 775,000 new franchise businesses will open across the country in 2013, a 1.4 percent increase over last year.

Local interest in service-oriented businesses that cater to seniors is no surprise, considering 10,000 people are turning 65 daily across the country, living longer and purchasing plenty of goods and services.

“Baby boomers are driving the senior care market,” said Terry Coker, CEO of The Entrepreneur Authority of Michigan. “Everyone wants to know what franchises are available in health care.”

This includes Mark Lines, 45, who opened the state’s first ActiveRx franchise in January in West Bloomfield. He spent more than 20 years in the medical device field before he began exploring franchise options two years ago. ActiveRx combines physical therapy with strength training for seniors. He plans to open up to five more locations within five years.

“I absolutely have a passion for changing the quality of seniors’ lives for the better,” he said.

Plymouth-based franchiser Handy Pro provides home modification services to seniors, as well as commercial customers who need to meet rules of the Americans With Disabilities Act. Owner Keith Paul said there are 27 Handy Pro franchises nationally, with a new one opening in Grand Rapids this month.

The company was rebranded in 2008 to specifically cater to the older demographic — a move that differentiated his business from the competition, Paul said.

“We noticed we were doing a lot of wheelchair ramps, grab bars, walk-in tubs and similar work for our older customers,” he said. “People want stay in their homes as long as possible and they need this work done all over the country.”

Cory noted Bloomfield Hills-based ComForcare, provider of non-medical, in-home services to seniors, is growing and has 12 franchises in Metro Detroit. California-based Assisted Transition, which provides senior living and care services for families, has three in the area.

Other service-oriented, non-retail franchise opportunities also are attractive, due to their low inventory and overhead requirements, Cory added.

Todd McInturf / The Detroit News

Gary Dion, 59, opened Michigan’s first Closets by Design franchise in Auburn Hills in January. He previously owned a local tool-and-die shop and then a woodworking business for 14 years. He began looking at franchise opportunities last summer.

“I saw an opportunity to turn the switch on a high volume business with a recipe for success,” Dion said. He may expand into the Grand Rapids, Lansing and Traverse City.

The rapid proliferation of personal electronic devices, most notably cellphones, prompted Dan Di Sebastian, 54, to open a CPR Cell Phone Repair franchise in the Novi Town Center this month, with plans to open a second location in the area this year. He previously worked for GE Aerospace and Ford Motor Co.

“I knew I wanted to do something technical,” he said. “If a person’s phone breaks and they’re still under contract, but have no warranty, it’s hard for them to sell them a new phone — but they can send them to us.”

Coker said a lot of the interest in local franchises has come from older, displaced automotive engineers and executives, who want to find opportunities that can last 10-15 years, rather than job hop every few years.

Among them is Oakland Township resident Mark Arduino, 52, a master franchisee for Anago Cleaning Systems, which services commercial enterprises. He spent 26 years in the automotive sector. Today, he provides a variety of front-office services for 23 individual franchisees in Southeast Michigan.

“Even though I was trained as an engineer, I always had the entrepreneurial spirit,” he said.

by Joe St. Henry

Originally posted in The Detroit News | March 16, 2013

The post Improving economy spurs growth in franchises appeared first on .

The uptick in the Fresno housing market is helping to revive another sector of the wounded industry—home remodeling.

“Building permits for home additions, alterations and repairs were up 28% in July compared with the same time a year ago, according to the city of Fresno building department. From February through July of this year, permits in Fresno are up 15% over the same period last year. Visalia reports a similar increase over the same period.

A combination of homeowner confidence in the economy and the desire to modernize, retrofit or customize is driving the number of remodeling jobs up to a level not seen in at least five years, contractors say.

The demand even has homebuilders like de Young Properties creating new companies to specialize in renovation work.

“I think we’ve seen the light and it’s shining right now,” said Ken Dye, chief executive officer and president of Nelson Dye Remodeling Specialists in Fresno. “We’re hoping it doesn’t fade.”
Kitchen and bathroom remodels remain popular, followed by energy-saving upgrades such as replacing old heating and cooling equipment and solar panels. Then come the wants: custom closets, garage storage or home offices.

Dye, whose family has owned and operated the company for 57 years, is relieved to see business picking up. Like homebuilders, renovation companies saw business sliced in half during the recession. The road to recovery since then has been a tough one.

Between 2009 and 2011, the company only had about half the work it normally sees, Dye said. That changed in 2012 when the economy slowly started improving. This year, the work has more than doubled.

“We’re doing much better this year,” said Dye, whose company specializes in kitchen and bathroom remodels. “It seems like people are starting to spend money.”

Custom Drywall Service in Fresno slipped into the dumps in 2008 when new homebuilding came to a standstill. Back then, 80% of the company’s work was in new construction. The other 20% was in renovations.

But in the years that followed, the ratio of work flipped as homeowners remained in their houses. Remodeling work has steadily grown and finally is making gains of up to 30% this year, owner Matt Ploy said. Custom home work also is increasing.

“To me this indicates that the market is hopefully starting to level out and slope upwards,” Ploy said. “Things are coming back to somewhat of a normalcy now. I saw this starting for us specifically the last quarter of 2012 whereas before things were a rollercoaster.”

The phone in Ploy’s office is ringing more often these days with calls from homeowners who sought bids for a project two years ago and finally are ready to start. Others want to add rooms to their homes, make kitchens bigger, remove wallpaper or retexture walls for a modern look.

There also has been an increase in homeowners looking for ways to retrofit their homes to save money on energy bills. De Young Properties started two new businesses to help homeowners with insulation, roofing, heating and cooling, window replacements and solar.

“We have definitely seen an increase in homeowners interested in reducing their carbon footprint, lowering their PG&E bills and living more comfortably,” said vice president Ryan De Young. “The recovering economy really seems to have played a role in this increase in demand.”

Homeowners Ellie and Don Huston decided to remodel their 1,624-square-foot home on 3 acres in northeast Clovis instead of downsizing to a smaller property like many aging homeowners these days. “Neither one of us want to leave here so we decided to update,” Ellie Huston said.

The Hustons hired Diversified Builders in Fresno to renovate the entire house. They had the windows replaced, new floors installed, new kitchen cabinets and countertops, new light fixtures, new paint, refaced the brick fireplace with stone and had another closet built. Ellie Huston declined to say how much the couple spent, but noted it was more than what they spent to have the home built 35 years ago.

This year is a more positive environment for home renovations than in years past, said Diversified Builders owner Jason Peters, who has seen his business grow 50% since 2010. “2013 volume-wise has been my best year,” he said.

People who have stayed in their houses probably “figured the value in their home was down, but they have the funds to remodel so they’re saying let’s enjoy what we have,” Peters said.

But even owners of new homes are doing some renovation work now. Tiffany Gunsorek thought about buying a closet kit from a home improvement store for the master bedroom in her newly built Clovis home. But she had a custom closet built instead.

Picture from the Fresno Bee/Mark Crosse

Gunsorek and her boyfriend sold their previous home at a profit, enabling them to buy a new home this year and to pay for personal touches such as the closet and eventually a pool, she said. “I have a shoe problem,” Gunsorek said. “I needed something that allows for all of my shoes to have a home and one where I could see all the shoes.”

The two-day installation from Closets by Design in Fresno included crown molding and lots of shoe shelves, Gunsorek said.

Mike Andes started the Fresno franchise of Closets by Design a year ago after spending years in the residential and commercial construction industry. He saw the business as an opportunity in something that could prove popular when the economy turned around, Andes said.

So far it has worked out. Activity in the third quarter of this year already is 15% better than the second quarter, Andes said. And the second quarter of the year was 40% better than the first.
“Not everybody was affected by the economy, but (everybody) was worried. Even if they had some money, they were waiting to see where things were going.” Andes said. “Now, they see the economy is picking up—not as quickly here as in other places, but now people are willing to do those projects.”

by BoNhia Lee

Originally printed in the Fresno Bee | September 15, 2013

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