Franchisee Says: Don’t Rush in Like I Did

Wall Street Journal:

When James Sparks opened his Servpro, a cleanup and restoration service for homes and businesses after fires, floods and other damage, he was in for some surprises. Mr. Sparks, 35, admits that he didn’t do enough research. He bought his franchise 3 years ago after speaking with two franchisees and didn’t consider competitors or other franchises.

Leaving a steady job and its benefits, Mr. Sparks took out a home-equity loan to finance his Servpro in Anaheim, Calif. He says that his wife, who was raising their 2 young children at home, had some qualms.

‘We did some things that were risky,’ says Mr. Sparks. ‘There were days I didn’t think that we’d make it.’

He was able to overcome the initial bumps in the road. He talked to StartupJournal about overcoming those hurdles and his experience so far.

Read on: How did you get started as a franchisee?