Portrait of a Franchise It's been a rocky road, but Jack and Diane are finally nearing their destination: franchise ownership.

It's been a long haul for Jack and Diane*. During the time between finding a suitable franchise opportunity and the construction of their quick oil-change franchise, the calendar has clicked ahead two years, and our weary couple is still dealing with adversity and delays. These timing issues have to be considered. The more complex the business, the longer it takes to get established. While a hair-cutting business may take about six months from signing the franchise agreement to opening, a homebased tutoring business can take less than 30 days; it just depends on the challenges of the business you choose.

This is the last installment of Jack and Diane's story. We hope to catch up with them again one day in the future, as they man their new franchise, beaming and shaking hands with a satisfied customer, or ringing up yet another sale. These are the images they envisioned over two years ago, when they committed to take a chance on a franchised business.

These are also the images that franchise investors find in the brochures sent by franchisors. Franchisors know we seek independence, freedom and wealth. Franchising would not be so successful if it did not deliver on these points in many instances.