Power Of One

By Lourdes Aguila

United Energy Partners

3333 Iowa St.

St. Louis, MO 63118

(800) 467-8887, (314) 664-0300

DESCRIPTION: Energy-efficient light-ing and controls for commercial use

BUSINESS STARTED: 1990

FRANCHISING STARTED: 1995

NUMBER OF FRANCHISEES: 13

TOTAL START-UP: $75K

ROYALTY: 2-8.5%

SEEKING: Nationwide, Canada, Mexico and Europe

In today's cost-cutting climate, United Energy Partners (UEP) is a natural. "Thousands of dollars are wasted every day due to inefficient lighting," says company president Tony Portell, 39.

UEP helps customers see the light by offering to initially pay for retrofitting their lighting systems. UEP projects the energy savings each client should see, then lets them pay from that monthly savings. If the company saves less than projected, UEP refunds the difference. That guarantee has put UEP and Portell on the road to a bright future.

"We've never had a client save less than projected," says Portell. Clients including the U.S. Postal Service, JC Penney and McDonald's accounted for 1995 systemwide sales of $3.5 million.

Franchisees do the building analyses; the home office prepares the proposal and handles all the administrative work. No engineering background is needed, says Portell; franchisees just need to be comfortable selling.

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This article was originally published in the December 1996 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Power Of One.