When a buyer starts the process and looks at exploring businesses of what is available to purchase can be a frustrating task at times.
There is often times a lot of junk available and often times not enough quality to look at. One must be patient and sift through options and businesses that are on the market. A solid broker can guide you through things to breakdown what you as a buyer are looking for. Get to know your broker and let them know what your passion is and what you enjoy. Try not to just focus on the profit all the time. As when you are enjoying a business often times the profit follows.
Choosing a solid broker often times should not cost you any upfront cash other than your time. As most brokers are paid by the businesses and franchises like we are at Top Shelf Franchising.
So take your time talk to a broker who knows business. See if these brokers have owned a business and what type of experience they have. Brokers should be seasoned and know business. Our team of brokers and associates all have entrepreneurship DNA built in their past, and have owned many businesses before. We as a top shelf team can relate to how you feel and what type of journey this is to find the right business. So take your time and the road to acquiring a business is a long cycle and there is no rush.
Top Shelf Franchising Team
Being able to take Friday afternoon off should always be important in one’s life. This is why I became an entrepreneur. To have this ability to say hey it’s Friday afternoon. I am going to network with colleagues/associates and friends. To take the time to build the business to the next level. Where you do not have to answer anyone, or anything is truly something special and rewarding. It really comes down to how you use this time that is there for you is the golden key. This focused time of social & dialed in time gave me an opportunity to build up and foster relationships with new and old associates. This focused energy on how one can set themselves free was very critical in starting out my entrepreneurial journey. Some can take time they have to be lazy, or not focus on much progress and pretend you are being productive. Others can put on that focused productive hat on and dial in on what you need to do to build up more opportunity for yourself. Others just don’t have much time at all to focus on building up their personal development towards success.
I spent a good 5 to 7 years every Friday afternoon networking & connecting as much as I could, and meeting as many new contacts as possible. Many of these relationships still exist today. Relationships take work and they are not going to build up for yourself by doing nothing or the bare minimum. You and only you have to nurture your relations. Whether its approaching someone to shake someone’s hand and look them in the eye and introduce yourself. It is also important to have a niche to offer them. If you don’t have an established niche, then it can be an uphill climb in promoting your services that you have to offer. So, try and establish a niche or identify what your niche is first then you can focus on building up that niche product or service.
Quick story I visited a trade show & franchise show in Calgary, Alberta Canada in 2019 and walked up to a franchisor who owned a successful senior care franchise at the time. I introduced myself and gave him my card and shot the breeze with the founder for 5 minutes. I circled back with an email a few days later to say very nice meeting you and look forward to talking more with you. I wanted to remind him I had several buyers interested in his brand and could be a win win for us together. Fast forward since then I have sold his senior care corporate territory in Vancouver for 1.4 million and have sold many senior care franchise territories for this brand as the years went on. This one introduction and approach coming in cold and introducing myself produced over $250k in revenue today for my company and is still re-occurring.
One card, one handshake and one introduction. Years later this initial prosperity keeps on continuing. So why not go out and build up what you have to offer? First and foremost, find a niche and promote your business or franchise. As not one single person is going to do it better than you or even do it all.
Using technology to network and connect with new customers is another source and stream to connect with contacts. It is a source of new age networking and connecting as well. I am a big fan of doing both networking old school and using tech to do so.
Try and ask yourself how can you service someone you approach or look at doing advertising towards your reach of a customer? Ask yourself what is your target market? Identify this and focus then attack and approach those areas. Dial in on what is important not what looks good so much.
Key Areas to Focus on your entrepreneurial journey:
· Build up relationships and relations with many new people and existing people.
· Go on the offense to build up your niche and business and franchise.
· Establishing a Side Hustle can be a nice way to entry point as an entrepreneur
· Hand out your card – Oh you don’t have any well get some as they are still important and who cares if others say they aren’t used anymore. Those people who say this many have never built up a business.
· Use tech to build and connect with others in your customer base or field.
· Go after your target market, who is your target market? Establish then go after this and invest in approaching your target market or customer base.
· If you are not willing to build up your own business on your own. Then one should focus on a franchise where one embraces the franchise systems and then takes the systems that are there and grow it further. This is often a good approach pending on your situation and needs.
· Just because you purchase a franchise now. Often owners think marketing is left to the brand to build my business for me. Your franchise territory and location are yours and yours only, we all need to build up and foster relationships in the community. Waiting on someone else to do it for me is not the best mindset for success. Many franchisees themselves focus on the head office and what others are doing. Where one should focus on what you can do and understanding your market to make your business better. Then connect with customers and community to allow for a fruitful situation to take shape.
· Join Canadian and local associations and go to events where your clients and business interest lie. Do these values line up with your brand and your business. If they do then go to these events, shows, online groups, etc.
· Try and read as many entrepreneur books as you can. I read 4 to 5 a year of entrepreneurs and which motivates you further. The 4 hour work week was a game changer for me by Tim Ferris.
In the end, to finish in closing. No one is going to bring success for you in your life. Not one person and not the government either. You have to be a go getter and go out there and get it done as an entrepreneur and franchisee. Entrepreneurs & franchisees have to have thick skin and hearing no has to be ok and not fall apart if you hear no. This should motivate you further each time you hear no. So go out there and build up something special as you are special in your own way. Only the strong survive mentality is where we are in life and be the strong one who shoots through the clouds.
Tony Kereluke
Top Shelf Franchising
Entrepreneurs are not born and created on their own. Most are made and created by making moves in their lives. Only they and you can decide to live a life in a different way and to take some some small chances and calculated risks to start off with.
Making a move isn`t a bad thing. Its actually healthy in most cases and gives you energy and life to look forward too. Each week I make a cluster of very small moves to make my future better and better. My wife and I are constantly making moves to improve ones life for the better. Making a move doesn`t have to be risk it all situation or put the family farm on the line. A small move can go along way and inches you forward to more and more successes.
A calculated thought out move of what to do next and how you will succeed from this move is a great way to think week to week. Try and shift your thinking to make some moves and see the outcomes arising in your mind. This mindset will become contagious of what you want to do, and how you want to feel and go in your life. Don`t necessarily follow the narrative's all the time. Be a leader and a move maker and a strategy thinker. This is very common in successful entrepreneurs.
I have read many books on successful entrepreneurs and one core value they have in common is thinking outside the box and constantly making a move and planning their next chapter. So why don't you start thinking like this more often and watch what happens?
Try not to go through the week without making a small move to improve and see progress & successes arising. This doesn't have to be related to money all the time. As when you chase the money around it tends to not follow you back this way. Don't say its been a hard week and didn't have time. Yes you do as you can make a move of a single thought a priority.
Tony Kereluke
CEO & Founder
Top Shelf Franchising
1-855-816-1743
www.franchiseopportunitiescanada.com
Today and tomorrow freedom is becoming a more important quality that ever before. Flexibility, lifestyle and the ability to make choices is what it is all about now. We all have choices to make in life. However many are stuck with barriers and limitations that in many ways are self-created. Try and remove these barriers as a next step.
Our freedoms are being stripped away a little more than ever before. Creating freedom for ourselves is up to you and us and not anyone else. In fact no one will give us freedom and lifestyle. The same goes for that no one will put food in our fridge either. So we need to find ways to earn and generate revenue for ourselves in different ways, and look at being more self-sustainable. In addition to finding the freedom & flexibility lifestyle backed behind it.
Did you ever notice we are
not taught in school or post-secondary or at any level to understand, and master
the ability to earn, and generate multiple revenue streams. Nor are we taught to
understand food and nutrients and how to cook and feed ourselves with
nourishing foods. The system is often rigged so you do not know how to
earn and then find ways to pay less taxes as an entrepreneur.
The stone cold facts is that
no one wants you to know become an entrepreneur especially in Canada. You should work hard pay
40% to 50% taxes and pay off your student loan. This is a broken model and
creates a massive barrier to remove. Then with easy debt loans taken out one
has even more barriers in the way.
We can all make choices with
action and purpose to become an entrepreneur which gives you freedom,
flexibility and in many cases a lifestyle.
Don’t follow the money.
Follow a passion and a dream and create a niche. When you start carving into these
things then the money comes. It may take time however you need to give yourself
time and remove the barrier of time. If you need a reboot don’t be scared,
and if you are financed up and this barrier is in the way then one might want
to consider selling it off and rebooting things.
Keep dreaming and its ok to
say I want to be an entrepreneur to have lifestyle and freedom out loud or in
the mirror. As someone might help you and your mind will listen to
yourself as well.
Baby Boomers across Canada are looking to retire more so
than ever these days. Backed with less
jobs available than in recent history, more and more people are turning to
entrepreneurship with a strong goal of becoming truly self-reliant on ones
future. These baby boomers are selling their businesses, entering the
entrepreneurial space and it is starting to show. Being on the ground as a
franchise broker in Canada, we are speaking to both buyers and new
entrepreneurs entering the space on the daily. We speak to sellers many who are
set to retire or move on at low evaluations.
I really see this moving shift as a great time to enter the business
owner world and maybe not so much if you are looking to sell right now. That
being said there are many great entrepreneurs who I have sold their businesses
for that weathered the storm and kept their overheads light and are doing just
fine.
Today as of October 30/20 there is no better time to enter than now. Why? Costs and evaluations are low and opportunities are high. When the world weathers this storm in the world, one should have a better position in life than they had before. Making a pivot and a move will not just happen for you or fall in your lap. You are the only one that can make a move. No one will do this for you. It’s go out and do it mentality. Do not rely on anyone or anything to live your dream as an entrepreneur.
It’s time to pivot your life and business for today and tomorrow. One thing that Covid has and should teach us all is that relationships are worth more than any currency. Your word is your personal currency in life. When you have your word and excellent fruitful relations backed with new seeding relationships, you will be successful as a business owner in time.From to time to time I find myself having a tiny struggle to relate to most humans on the daily.
To be honest I find myself wondering why many choose to not fully satisfy ones purpose and journey in life. Why one chooses to give in and not try another way to be free in life. Entrepreneurs find a way and don’t make excuses. This is very noticeable when dealing with entrepreneurs week to week. When they hear no they don’t fold up and shut it down. Entrepreneurs find another angle or seek out another stream to swim down versus hearing no and not even thinking about another way.
This cannot be explained only out of respect that they tried to go another path and others simply did not make this choice.
Why do so many go with the daily grind. All for what to pay the bills and be in traffic or not enjoy the job? It is understood that many have families to provide for and simply cannot quit there day job to start and become an entrepreneur. This may be true however there is not much of an excuse of trying some moonlighting or having a side hustle on the side. To test the waters and chum the waters if this entrepreneur side is for you. Who knows the side hustle could turn into something really solid and real. So why not try is the question of it all?
Could it be that Belief and Will is dead inside?
The Belief inside of many has been taken away from our human ways. Just like when we were kids our creative ways are at the highest peak. Then society of living and structure to do this and that takes over these creative ways. Then that creativeness slows and disappears or fizzles off. Well don’t let that belief fizzle. Keep that burning desire to try different ways and things! Why not try a side deal and what do you have to lose by trying a side hustle? Why not learn from other entrepreneurs and find a mentor? These entrepreneurs will share their time and story only if you ask and don’t think you know it all.
When you’re trying you are living. It’s that simple! When you are not trying well you might not be living like you want. So go out and hustle and create some side music for yourself. You might like it! Then watch what seeds and stems from there. You might learn a few things too.
Tony Kereluke
Founder Top Shelf Franchising
www.franchiseopportunitiescanada.com
Often times in life we all need to take a risk or two to really strive forward to a next level. Taking a risk does not mean one has to risk the family farm and hopefully it works mentality. There are business and calculated risks one can look at, and a risk can simply be leaving a job that you do not like or are overworked at and changing a new path. That is a calculated risk that one must look at from time to time in life. Try and say to yourself when feeling fear of even taking a small risk that it is ok to feel this way. Ask yourself what is the worst case scenario and will the whole house come crashing down if this doesn't work? Fear is often the reason why people do not succeed. As they let this fear take over versus blowing right through the fear or telling it to go away.
Let me ask you have you ever met a successful person in Canada or around the globe that didn't take any risks? or let fear control them on making a decision? There really isn't many and would be hard pressed to find one around.
A few suggestions to combat fear and risks:
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