Area Developers Create Growth For Planet Smoothie Franchisees
Experienced franchise owners provide ongoing, local support
Opening a small business for the first time — or even the fourth or fifth time, in the case of multi-unit franchisees — can be nerve-wracking. One area of concern may be support: where does it come from? Am I out here by myself?
Not if you’re a Planet Smoothie™ franchise owner. Thanks to a rigorous, tested and wide-ranging onboarding experience from parent company Kahala Brands™, every Planet Smoothie franchise operator is ready to hit the ground running. In some parts of the country, there’s an extra bonus, too — local franchise owners who are also Area Developers.
A valuable resource for new owners
Area Developers usually own and operate multiple Planet Smoothie franchise locations and know their market inside and out. They can help with everything from site selection to the best kinds of specials to run, and when to run them. Planet Smoothie originally created the Area Developer concept primarily to leverage its advertising strength in major areas where there is a large concentration of locations, but that barely scratches the surface of what these experienced owners do, says Doug Merenda, Director of Franchise Development.
“The Area Developers are basically an extension of our corporate team in the field,” Merenda says. “They are dialed into what we’re planning around new offerings and other business enhancements, and they in turn share that out to the franchise owners in their territory. They are also seasoned veterans and can quickly answer questions about day-to-day issues.”
Strong communication, best-practices sharing
Planet Smoothie is working to broaden the Area Developer program. Our current program focuses in specific markets in Georgia and Florida. Markets which have Planet Smoothie franchises spread out over many different communities are great for the Area Developer model, Merenda says, because that concentration of owners can feed off each other’s success, as well as learn where pain points unique to that area might be — and how to fix them.
One example? An Area Developer can lead the development of an advertising co-op, allowing each Planet Smoothie franchise owner to get lots more bang for the marketing dollar. From fliers to coupons to digital exposure, their combined buying power gets much more done than a single store would be able to do, especially early in its life. That’s in addition to other marketing support that new Planet Smoothie franchise owners receive, Wuycheck says, noting that “this is just one way an Area Developer can help every franchise owner in their territory do a lot more than they could by acting alone.”
Planet Smoothie is a smoothie franchise that sets itself apart by offering great-tasting smoothies that use healthier, natural ingredients. In a side-by-side comparison, our smoothies generally have less sugar and fewer calories. This is a big competitive advantage, as Americans actively seek out healthier options. Planet Smoothie is led by a veteran franchise team and dedicated brand support team as part of the Kahala Brands™ family.
Learn more about Planet Smoothie
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