Fibrenew

Founded: 1985 Franchising since: 1987
In 1985 Tom Gallagher founded Fibrenew Industries Ltd., a company that offered customers leather and vinyl repair to its customers in Alberta, Canada. Gallagher's brother-in-law Michael Wilson purchased the first franchise in 1987 and helped the company open its next 20 locations.

Wilson bought the company in 1994, opening up 43 more locations in Canada and 11 in New Zealand. In 1998 Fibrenew International Ltd. was formed.

Fibrenew franchisees work from home, doing repairs, restoration and re-dyeing of leather, vinyl and plastic in automobiles, boats, airplanes, homes and businesses.

Box 33, Site 16, RR8 Calgary, AB T2J 2T9

Phone: (403)278-7818

Franchisor is a privately-held company with 5 employee(s); 2 employee(s) in franchise department.

Franchise Growth

Year	U.S. Franchises	Canadian Franchises	Foreign Franchises	Company Owned
2005	30	70	40	0

Where Seeking Franchisees
In the U.S. Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North carolina, North dakota, New hampshire, New jersey, New mexico, Nevada, New york, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode island, South carolina, South dakota, Tennessee, Texas, United states, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West virginia, Wyoming

Exclusive territories available.
Territory size: By county; population 250,000

Special Programs
Fibrenew sponsors Opportunities International, an organization that establishes microbanks to help women in Third World countries start businesses.

Total investment: $30K-50K Franchise fee: $30K-50K

Ongoing royalty fee: $300/mo. Term of agreement: 5 years, renewable

Type of Financing Available

	In-House	Third Party
Franchise Fee	No	No
Startup Costs	No	No
Equipment	No	No
Inventory	No	No
Accounts Receivable	No	No
Payroll	No	No

Qualifications
Net worth requirement: $25K
Cash liquidity requirement: $15K

Operations

• Franchise can be run from home
• 1% of all franchisees own more than one unit
• Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 1
• Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

Training

• Available at headquarters: 2 weeks

Ongoing Support

• Newsletter
• Meetings
• Toll-free phone line
• Internet
• Field operations/evaluations