Corporate Climbers
Prints of Akron
|
Willie Smith bought into an already established AlphaGraphics
Printshops of the Future franchise in the tail end of 2001.
Formerly working as a corporate exec at GE, Smith was in an
AlphaGraphics location in Akron, Ohio, when something just clicked.
"It was time to take a little more control of my [life],"
he says. "[It was time] to look for my own venue." Smith felt an instant rapport with the previous owner, who was
selling because it was time for a change in his own life. In fact,
Smith kept his predecessor on as a consultant to help guide him
into the business. That expertise and close training from the previous owner, as
well as the franchisor, was crucial to Smith, who didn't have
any graphics background, though he did have to struggle with his
innate penchant for independence. "The biggest challenge is
fully utilizing the franchisor," he says. Where he normally
would have resisted help in the past, Smith found himself embracing
the support. Content Continues Below
Stepping into an existing franchise gave him a slight advantage
as well. "I had a good idea of what I was walking into,"
says Smith, 38. "It was an existing business, so we already
had a lot of information--I just had to tap into that."
He's still tapping into it, to the tune of about $2 million in
expected sales for 2002. Contact Sources
Originally published in the July 2002 issue of Entrepreneur Magazine
 Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
|
What makes a good client gift?
What guidelines do you follow when buying gifts for your clients? Have you ever received an unusual or inappropriate gift?
|