Don't assume 50-year-olds are past their prime-many are
finding that the years after 50 are a perfect time to start a
business, and buying a franchise is a great way to do that. Whether
motivated by personal desire or out of financial necessity, these
ambitious individuals are pursuing entrepreneurial endeavors in
every imaginable field. Here's a look at several late-blooming
entrepreneurs who purchased a franchise after age 50.
A New Beginning
Today's older population is healthy and
active-Worldhealth.net reported that 7.5 million Americans 55 and
older belonged to gyms in 2002, compared with 1.5 million in 1987.
These older Americans have both the desire and the ability to stay
in the work force well past the age of 50. In a recent poll from
The Wall Street Journal and NBC News, retirees were more
interested in an active life, which involved working, than their
parents' generation.
For aging individuals seeking new work options, franchising is
an appealing choice. "Folks in their 50s are energetic,"
says David Handler, senior vice president of the International
Center for Entrepreneurial Development, a Cypress, Texas-based
holding company for nine franchise brands. "They've
perhaps lived the corporate life, and they're ready to try it
on their own."
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Dan and Mary Ann Jones represent this growing population of
older franchisees. After giving retirement a try for a couple of
years, they came to the conclusion that it was not all it was
cracked up to be. "We were doing nothing, playing golf and
having fun," says Dan, 58, who left his corporate job at an
insurance corporation to see if the grass was greener on the other
side. "We decided we needed to do something else, because we
were getting bored."
The Joneses spent nearly a year researching franchise
opportunities before selecting Kwik Kopy Business Center, which provides
printing, copying, packing and shipping services. They had both
worked in upper level management jobs and felt a franchise like
Kwik Kopy would allow them to use the skills they had acquired from
a lifetime of work in the corporate world. "We've both
been in high-paying jobs and under tremendous amounts of
stress," says Dan. "We had come to a point in our lives
where we wanted to have fun and build something."
Since opening their franchise in Temple, Texas, in July 2003,
the Joneses have been busy, devoting as much as 70 hours per week
to the business. Still, their franchise has granted them a newfound
freedom they hadn't known in the corporate world-the freedom to
set their own schedules. They have also acquired skills such as
doing the payroll and even using the copy machine-duties they never
had to learn before. Most important, having a franchise has
breathed new meaning into their lives. Says Mary Ann, 55,
"It's just like having grandchildren."
Layoff to Startup
Marc Weinberg turned to franchising when Prudential downsized
and he was laid off after 23 years as a corporate employee.
Weinberg walked away with enough money to retire comfortably, but
after six months, he was ready to start working again. Though
plenty of opportunities were available in the corporate world, he
didn't want to follow that same path. He also had no desire to
start his own business. "I didn't want to start my own
company from scratch," he says, "because I'm the type
of person who would work myself to death."
So instead, at the ripe age of 50, Weinberg hit the bars. He
purchased a Bevinco franchise in Stanholdt, New Jersey, and started
getting paid to keep bar and restaurant staffs accountable for the
products used and the cash received. Now, eight years later, he is
taking things relatively easy-working about 30 hours a week and
bringing in about $100,000 a year. He also works with the
franchisor to assist other franchisees. And he still has time for
his favorite hobby: racing his powerboat.
For Weinberg, getting laid off wasn't devastating; instead,
it was a golden opportunity to fulfill a longtime dream of running
his own franchise. "[Owning a franchise] feels terrific,"
he says. "I get to reap the rewards of my own work directly
instead of having to contribute them all to the company."
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