Hey there! My sister actually owns a franchise and she's been quite successful. She got her funding through a combination of personal savings and a small business loan. I worked with some local merger support experts who really helped her make the best decision for her business. It can be a bit nerve-wracking to take that leap, but with the right guidance and planning, it can definitely pay off. Good luck

A lot of franchises fail due to over saturation. They open too many locations and same brand name franchises end up competing with each other rather than other businesses. if the company has a track record, great. However if they don't have a limit on how many can open in a region or area, then I'd say don't do it.

Most startup businesses do fail. There is much . If a Wal-Mart opened near you, would you still have customers?

You can run a franchise but do not believe that you can simply buy competence at a business. However tempting it may be to buy something that exists because it is successful if you do not know the industry you will not be successful. Franchisees can and do fail, quite often.

You can invest much more easily in things like real estate trusts or such and get much less grief.

I understand niche market strategy... I mean, they are successful, but do you know why? That's viy important. If you know why, then you can look at your particular area and assess if it will work there.

Some are saying not to go franchise and you surely could do it yourself, but all the processes, marketing approach, and market research will be on you.

If you want a sure fire brick and mortar business, open a Dunkin Donuts. If your husband has a passion for this business, then do this. Keep that job of yours for awhile just in case, but a failed business isn't the end of the world. Just be aware that a sustained or successful business is going to be stress.

I'd encourage you to read two books (audio book format if you are a commuter) - 4 hour work week by Tim Ferriss and The Pumpkin Plan by Mike Mikalowicsz (spelling on that last name is a doozy). The E myth revisited was also very helpful. The first one will go into some basic risk management strategies and some simple business concepts. The second is a more practical exploration of niche market business creation a with the third. They were an education for me in helping to dial in my approach to my current business (which was insanely rocky at first, but is starting to succeed now).

Best of luck to you both!

I have never owned a franchise, but I have written all the documentation for one, all the training manuals, operation manual and the like. I have looked into buying a couple, to be honest, none made financial sense to me.

My advice is to do a lot of research, try to contact others who have gone into the same business in other areas, and also consider selling on line. My step daughter had a lot of newborn and 3-12 month clothing left over from her babies and decided to try to sell it on line and did very well, but it was a one-shot deal.

Retail anything seems worrisome (except food/restaurants/bars). Just looking at the market trends....and all the stores closing down from KMart/Sears...and JCPenneys and Bon-Ton...to the ToysRUS....online retailers are winning. Thrift shops and pawn shops still seem to be doing well, but, I can't imagine buying into one as a franchise.

Hell....every local craigslist and Facebook marketplace and Facebook buy/sell/trade groups are LOADED with stuff for spawn. I can't imagine that it would be too hard to get started with inventory just buying from those local resources...

I'm not sure what value a franchise name is going to bring to a children's resale shop. Seems like u could just open one without the franchise. Does not seem like a great business to get into tho. Low margins and a lot of competition.

Invest, BUT be cautious

Dont do it... run!

What a great question, Ali!

Oh and to answer the other parts of your question, yes my ex and I had a small franchise business that failed after 3-4 years. I never really made any money. I run a yoga studio in my spare time and have learned a thing or two about effective, cheap marketing. These guys do good work, btw. [sociallypresent.com]

Ok right on. So you should get advertising and promotional materials from them, a website, social media presence, etc. The name recognition is worth something of course. Find out how much of that they do.. Maybe call a local ad agency and schedule a visit. Try and find one that specializes in new media. Nobody shopping for kids clothes reads the paper or watches much local TV or even listens to local radio. For your market, social media is it. My limited experience with chain resale shops is that they really don't pay much for the stuff coming in. That leaves them vulnerable to an independant shop coming in and offering higher prices for in-bound goods. That is an easy story to tell on social media. Take a pair of nice jeans to the chain shop and see what they offer for them. Then check out what they are selling a similar pair for. Post that on social media along with what your store pays. Find some cheap way to incentivize people to like, share and check in on social media. You could kill 'em. Don't forget to hit the whole "Shop Local" mantra.

Once Upon A Child? This franchise operates in Cali too. I'm sure there are other, similar ones. OUAC locations I've seen have been undewhelming to me. They look like Goodwill stores. But they're out there so I'm sure some are successful. Since this is a major financial investment, make sure you do your due diligence and look for other, similar businesses. Try to ascertain potential demand. Look into the franchise corporation. The supposed advantage to franchising is brand awareness/branding for your business. For that, you pay a franchise fee up front, and ongoing royalties for the use of their business name. They SHOULD be raising brand awareness through national advertising. How often do you recall seeing this company advertise? I hope this is helpful. I'm not against franchising, it's legit, but sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't (look at Quiznos!).

Just be aware that the retail market is changing dramatically right now putting many retailers out of business forever. Amazon and multiple other online methods of retailing is changing the landscape. This will affect resale retailing too. Tread carefully. Research those other ones thoroughly and consider how coming retail trends will affect yours.

Personally, I would take a step back and ask if the franchise is really necessary. What do they actually bring to the table. Seems to me like a resale store is something you could do pretty easily without the overhead of a franchise. Just a thought.