If you have been considering the thought of franchising a business of your very own, chances are that your mind is overflowing with ideas and excitement. Chances are also that you are beginning to feel overwhelmed by the number of options available to you. With the crazy number of franchise business opportunity available in America, one can feel extremely confused as to where to even begin. Lucky for you, I have the details of a fantastic opportunity here for you that could be your next big break. Flowers. Wait, what? Yes, flowers. To be exact, 1-800-flowers.com is the franchising business we will be getting into today. Whether you are sending flowers to a relative, wife, friend, or sending your condolences, flowers will never go out of style. And women everywhere will tell you the same thing. Fortunately, with 1-800-flowers, you don’t have to worry about showing up on your own to hand-deliver the flowers. This company does all the hard work for their customers. This one reason is a great indicator as to why this franchise business would be an amazing opportunity to begin. It’s in demand and well-loved and known. And you now have the opportunity to join this company and run your very own 1-800-flowers. Let’s take a look at the business and what it entails.
All About 1-800-Flowers.com
Flowers make a woman feel loved, appreciated, and cared for. Sure, we may forget to water them, kill them, and then badger you when you refuse to buy us anymore (because we obviously can’t keep them alive), but come on guys; they are beautiful! 1-800-flowers makes it incredibly easy to order a gift online and send it out to your loved one. They deliver! So, there’s no need to worry about how you’ll surprise her, or how you can make it five states away for a relatives birthday. Just call up 1-800-flowers or order online and send them a beautiful gift from the heart. They also offer same-day delivery, just in case you forgot about an anniversary, birthday, or feel the need to send a spur of the moment gift. 1-800-flowers is truly a wonderful company with a great concept behind it. Franchising this business would be incredibly rewarding. So, now that you have some knowledge on the company, how could you get started with this running this business? Let’s check it out.
Franchise Requirements and Details
When you make the decision to franchise a business, you have a lot of factors that you have to consider. The cost, growth, turnover rate, and certain other requirements are all important things that you need to know. When it comes to 1-800-flowers, it won’t be all pretty smelling plants and gifts surrounding the opportunity. With this business comes a great amount of responsibility. And not one that will fit everyone’s style. This company has been offering a franchise opportunity since the 1970’s. In 2010, there were 36 franchises running. By the end of 2015, that number increased to 100 operating franchise outlets. So when we take a look at the growth, it shows us a decent level of increase and popularity. However, the growth is not the only indicator that we need to check into. The turnover rate can greatly affect the way that a company runs its franchise opportunity. With the turnover rate, we can easily tell if the business is in good standing by whether or not the number is too high. If the number is too high, it can mean that previous franchises have terminated, closed down or transferred their business. Most of the time this indicated that the franchise was not making much profit. In this case, 1-800-flowers has a turnover rate that gets a little high at 11.27. While this number isn’t too high, it could be nearing the risky level. It would be in your best interest to question the company about the reasoning behind the turnover rate. For all we know, this turnover rate could be high because of franchises choosing not to renew their agreement. In that case, it would sure be a better situation than if it were because they terminated their agreement.
It’s time to talk about money, money, money. The franchise fee for owning this business is anywhere from $20,000 to $30,000. Your entire investment will be anywhere from $228,000 to $663,000. So that’s a pretty big jump for that investment. And that’s not even all you will have to pay when it comes to franchising fees. There are ongoing fees that you need to pay based on your gross revenue each year. During your 10-year agreement term, you will be responsible for paying a 6% royalty fee and a 3% advertising fee. These fees aren’t extremely high, however, it is a bit higher than average. When it comes to the franchising buy-in fees, there is financing that the company offers. However, there are no refunds, so you’d better make sure that you are in love with this opportunity!
Let’s talk about the elephants in the room. Yes, plural; elephants. There are a few disadvantages to owning this franchise business that you will want to think about deeply before you get too invested. This company offers no training or computer support to its franchises. This could be pretty difficult and challenging for you to get started in the business especially if you have no idea how to run the business. 1-800-flowers also does not offer any territory rights to its franchise outlets. These are all pretty serious downsides, depending on how you think about it. And honestly, maybe the whole lack of training doesn’t even bother you, so that would be one less problem to worry about. However, the last thing that sends a small red flag is that the company has been involved in lawsuits. How many, is not clear. But that may be worth looking into.
Signed, Sealed, and Delivered
The entire process of franchising is extremely fun and easy. Hah! No, it’s not; not at all. But with the right details and the clarity of knowing what you are passionate about can greatly help break down the process and make it easier. When it comes to deciding on the industry you want to work in, it can even be hard to narrow it down. The food industry alone has thousands of options available to choose from. However, today we talked about flowers; gifts for family and friends. As I said, women love flowers. Even if she says she doesn’t, most likely, she does. So yes, flowers are a pretty decent industry to get into. But as always, you have to be passionate about the industry. With 1-800-flowers, there are a few benefits to owning this franchise business, but unfortunately, if you aren’t fully passionate and committed, the negatives may outweigh those benefits. Communicating with the company directly can definitely assist you in figuring out the final details and helping you fully decide on whether or not 1-800-flowers is the right company for you.