We are starting a new series of questions and answers on SellMyGreenBusiness.com. Every few days, we will post an answer to a question posed by a reader or friend. This series willnbe moderated by Ron Edmonds of The Principium Group, but he will occasionally reach out to others in the industry for their opinions.
Today’s question:
Are there good opportunities to buy or sell existing franchised businesses in the green industry?
Answer:
Franchises are a very dynamic part of the green industry. There a number of landscape maintenance franchises, led by the pioneering and industry leading US Lawns. In the last couple of years, The Grounds Guys has also been growing rapidly. There are an even larger number of companies franchising in the residential lawncare (fertilization and weed control) space, ranging from titans TruGreen and Scott’s to such companies as Lawn Doctor, Naturalawn and many others. Most of these companies are growing.
In most cases, there is a fairly active resale market. In the past few years, we have represented clients in both buying and selling existing franchises. We have represented franchisees acquiring businesses to fold into their franchise, franchisees acquiring additional existing franchised locations. We have also represented independent sellers who ultimately sold to a franchisee.
So I guess I would say the market is vibrant. The same factors that make a franchise an attractive way to start a business for many potential buyers make byying an existing franchise attractive to others. Progressive franchisors recognize it is important for their franchisees to have an exit strategy?
Looking to the future, we see most existing franchises continuing to prosper. We also expect new franchisors to develop in such sub-markets as organic lawncare and residential landscape maintenance.
–Ron Edmonds