TNS Total Nutrition (TNS) Franchise Cost & Profit Opportunity Review

March 22, 2019


Vitamins and nutritional supplements make up a large industry in the United States. As people become more health-conscious, they turn to these supplements to help them reach their nutritional and overall health goals.

 

Purchasing vitamins and supplements can be a daunting task. Knowing exactly what is required to get the most out of a diet or exercise program, or just general health improvement, can be overwhelming to some customers, so they often turn to the employees at the stores where they buy their products for help.

 

TNS Total Nutrition serves as a guiding light for those customers. By offering some of the top brands of vitamins and supplements, and having the knowledge to point customers in the right direction, they have made a name for themselves in the fast-growing industry. TNS is currently adding more stores to their roster by selling franchise licenses in various territories around the country.

 

Total Nutrition Systems

 

When TNS first began franchising in 2008, they did so with the intent to spread their knowledge and products as far and wide as possible. By offering the most popular brands, as well as their own, proprietary products, they are sure to have a wide selection with something for everyone.

 

TNS is not only about providing the best products in the business, they are also about providing knowledge and guidance to those looking to make a difference in their own lives. By starting on a new nutritional journey, many people are taking steps toward something they have never done before. With that comes fear and uneasiness.

 

TNS employees are trained to provide the best guidance possible for customers who don’t know where to start. There’s no substitution for the advice and guidance provided by medical professionals, and each customer beginning a new regimen should absolutely get clearance from their primary care physician before starting, but TNS can help customers find the best supplements for their situation, after that initial chat with their doctor.

 

TNS Total Nutrition is just one brand of vitamin and supplement sellers. They have capitalized on what Forbes has described as “one of the fastest growing industries in the world”. By joining in the race to be the best, most competitive vitamin and supplement store in the country, they have entered into a fierce battle. With so many people turning to these stores to get their health on track, there is a nearly endless customer pool.

 

Vitamin and supplement stores are nothing new. They have been present in this country for decades, but lately the demand has exploded. TNS has been selling franchise licenses for over 10 years now, and they are just getting started.

 

With the help of additional franchisees, they could one day find themselves the biggest vitamin and supplement chain in America.

 

Purchasing a TNS Total Nutrition Location

Being health conscious and serious about nutrition are all but required to become a TNS franchisee. They want their store owners to embody their image, which is to promote health and strength in their customers. Having owners who share this passion will help them in their quest for vitamin and supplement domination.

 

The franchisee applicants should also have some previous business experience. Even in a high-demand industry such as this, there can be problems that arise and the need for solution-driven owners is imperative. Previous business experience will help the franchisees to know what to do when issues do arise, and see themselves to a solution faster. Inexperienced owners may panic, or make the wrong decision, which could land the franchised location in a sea of troubles.

 

TNS franchise applicants will also need to be able to demonstrate a certain level of financial strength. They do not offer financing help, so the applicant must be able to prove their ability to pay all associated costs with opening the store.

 

The franchise license fee will run $20,0000. It may sound like a lot, but as far as franchise license fees go, this one is actually at the lower end. The license fee covers the cost of purchasing the business from the TNS. It allows the franchisee to do business under their name and to sell their products. No company is allowed to use the TNS name without being accepted as a franchisee and paying the fee.

 

In addition to the franchise fee, the estimated start up costs for a TNS location will fall between $96,000 and $156,000. This cost will cover the acquisition and renovation of the store front, supplying the store with inventory and needed computer and sales equipment, and the hiring and training of staff.

 

To cover the high costs associated with opening a business, they require each applicant to have a minimum net worth of $750,000. They also require at last $200,000 of that in liquid cash. This is to ensure the applicant has enough money to pay for the license, start up costs, and a few weeks of operation of the store, in case it takes a little while to get sales off the ground.

 

Applicants who successfully meet all of TNS’s requirements will then be invited to sign a franchise agreement, officially welcoming them to the Total Nutrition team.

 

Maintaining the Total Nutrition of the Location

 

As with the human body, a franchise also takes work to remain healthy. It is up to the franchise owner to keep the location in optimum working order to ensure that goals are being met. The franchisor lends a little help in this arena, because they, too, like to see their franchise locations succeed.

 

The first way TNS provides assistance to their franchisees is through their provision of ongoing training and support. The world of vitamins and supplements is constantly changing, so it’s important that each store owner be kept up to date with the latest trends and nutritional information. Being behind with the times can quickly sink a store, as customers will begin to lose faith in their authority on the matter.

 

TNS will provide initial training when the franchise is first purchased, but they will also provide ongoing training on an as-needed basis. This will assist the franchisee with keeping their staff up to par on their knowledge of products, and keep the customers believing in the brand.

 

Additionally, TNS provides ongoing support to the franchisee for their computer and technology programs. Technology is a huge part of business these days and if computers go down, the whole business goes right down with it. Getting the software and point of sale systems back online after a crash is critical to minimizing the loss of sales. With help from the franchisor, the downtime will often be decreased so that stores can get back to making sales and generating revenue.

 

As payment for all of the training and support that TNS provides, as well as their fee for ongoing business transactions under their name, the franchisee will be required to pay TNS a royalty fee in the form of 8 percent of total gross sales.

 

This percentage is a bit higher than the national average of 6 percent, but TNS makes up for that by not charging any advertising fees. Most franchisors charge around 2 percent for this fee, so it actually works out to about even.

 

With franchise fees and startup costs that are lower than most, and ongoing fees that fall in the average range, TNS works out to be a pretty decent value for the dollar amount spent. It starts to look like an even better deal when factoring in that they provide the same level of training and support that other franchisors provide for a much higher cost.

 

Healthy Franchise System

 

Determining the value of the franchise license doesn’t only factor in the cost versus what is received in return, it also relies on the earning potential. No one buys into a franchise to lose money, or even to break even. They want to turn profits and the bigger the better.

 

Finding the exact amount of money generated by franchisees may not always be easy, but there are other ways to determine if the chain is successful or not.

First, looking at the franchise net growth rate can be a big indicator of how a brand is doing. In 2014, TNS showed a franchise growth rate of 34. This is a low rate, considering the average rate is 97, but there are some mitigating factors for that. For starters, TNS had a very slow start to their franchise sales.

 

They first began selling franchise licenses in 2008, but by 2011, they still didn’t have any franchised stores in operation. Over the next three years, they would grow to 34 franchised locations. That is when they really hit their stride. Between 2014 and 2018, TNS exploded to more than 100 franchised locations in the United States, and five additional franchised locations in Europe.

 

Through all of that massive growth, they also managed to keep their turnover rate at zero. This means that of all the locations they have opened in the last seven years, none have closed or been transferred for any reason.

 

The reason these statistics are so important to determined the potential of the brand is that it points to happy franchisees. When franchisees are making the kind of money they expected, or even exceeding those numbers, they don’t feel the need to close their stores and they share their good experiences with other entrepreneurs, which entices more people to invest.

 

Explosive growth and zero turnover is almost unheard of in any franchising industry. The fact that TNS has managed to maintain this pattern for at least four years is nothing short of impressive.

 

Choosing TNS

It can be scary to invest with a company that had such a hard time getting off the ground so few years ago. With only 7 years of documented success, it can be hard for entrepreneurs to justify the investment when there hasn’t been at least a decade of history to analyze. This fact alone may make some potential franchisees shy away from the opportunity.

 

For those that are willing to put trust in the TNS system, this could turn out be a very lucrative deal. Not only does it require less start up cash than many franchise opportunities out there, it also has huge earning potential. By being a part of a growing industry and an explosive new brand, the franchisee is doubling down on their investment and putting themselves in a position to strike gold two times over.

 

Investing in any nutritional supplement franchise right now would probably result in big profits, but investing with one of the fastest rising chains in the game increases those odds even higher.

 

As far as value for dollar, TNS is a good investment. It’s low cost and and it’s earning potential only continues to grow. Buying in sooner rather than later would be wise, as TNS is likely to discover that their product is worth more than what they are selling it for and raise the price at some point.

 

That’s not to say that everyone should jump at this opportunity. Being a good fit for the company is most important, because investing with a brand that does not match their goals and ideals can result in financial difficulty for the franchisee. They must have the connection to store that drives them to succeed. Anything less will let down both parties.

 

Locating the store in an area that will do well and is surrounded by a large market for the products being sold is important. Not all investors have the ability to open stores in that location, and for them, it’s best to pass on this and opt for something that will succeed in their area.

 

No franchise opportunity is one size fits all. Each has their own unique attributes that require the right kind of franchisee to handle. For those that fit well with a vitamin and supplement chain, TNS is a good option. Low cost and fast, stable growth alone make this a sound investment. Add in the earning potential and it’s almost a no-brainer.

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