What a Day at Subway!

I had the amazing privilege of presenting two motivational/educational speeches at the Subway Worldwide Franchisee Convention this past Friday and Saturday. What a day at Subway!! There were 4500 people in attendance, from all around the world, including about 900 vendors to the Subway system. Subway currently has just over 33,000 stores in 90 countries!! Can you believe that? It's hard for me to even wrap my mind around! I learned a lot of interesting stuff through this opportunity (some "deep" things about me personally included), but one neat statistic was in regards to the frequency of people in North America eating out at QSR's or Quick Serve Restaurants. Did you know, that 31% of North American's are considered "heavy QSR users," meaning they eat at a QSR more than 12 times a month - TWELVE TIMES A MONTH!! But if you think about it, many who eat lunch out during the work week quickly fall into this category. Additionally about 34% are considerate "moderate" user (4-11 times per month) and 34% are considered "non/low" users in that they eat at QSR's 0-3 times per month. Which category do you fall in to? Depends on the month for me - if it is a busy travel month, I could easily be somewhere between a moderate and a heavy user. Thank you Subway for your subs under 6 grams of fat!!

The Subway system is made up of many family's, so they seemed to really relate to the family business side of Super Wash. I had a number of people approach me after the Saturday session, in particular, to tell me about their family business experience. For me, that's when we really start having fun!

And it certainly is a small world. After Friday's session, a Subway franchisee came up to me and said, "My mom and dad are franchisees of yours and I wanted to introduce myself." I had no idea who should could have been talking about because her last name did not look familiar (she's married). When she told me who her parents are, I just lit up! She has two super parents who have been a part of the Super Wash family since 1985 and we just adore them. It was a special treat to meet her at the Subway Convention.

Until next time, have a super week!
Susan

Renewed Energy

Our annual Franchisee Homecoming was a success! Our theme was "Renewed Energy" and from the comments we have received back, our franchisees definitely left with renewed energy. How great it feels to be able to offer this kind of opportunity to our franchise partners!

There are times when all of us lose steam, when our "Passion Buckets" are empty. There is no harm in losing steam every once in awhile, but there is harm in not re-energizing when the time comes. When you're feeling low on spunk, do like we did at our franchisee meeting last week, surround yourself with people who have positive energy and believe in you. They will help fill your Passion Bucket right back up.

Have a super week!

Francheesor

It is very important for all of us to continuously expand our vocabulary. This week I learned a new word, "Francheesor". I was at a non-franchise industry event and the person I was talking was asking me about the different parties involved in franchising. After you say, "Franchisee" and "Franchisor" so many times, it apparently combines real nicely into "Francheesor". I thought this was hi-larious, but did manage to not embarass myself by laughing outright. I am wondering if I can use "francheesor" when I give speeches about franchisee/franchisor relationships??

Now that UFOC is defunct, I think francheesor should take over as the funnest word in franchising!

Until next time, have a super weekend!

The Personal Touch

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned my husband and his buddies would be watching NCAA basketball here at our house. Friday night is pizza night and the guys decided to order from a local pizza place, mostly because there was a buy 1 pizza, get 1 free special going on. I had taken the kids to a friend's house for a play date so I didn't get to experience the pizza, but I did get to interact with the pizza shop owner a few days later. I work from home most days and was surprised, to say the least, when the name of the pizza place came up on our caller ID. I was even more surprised after the call. You see, the owner of the pizza restaurant saw from his records that we were new customers and just wanted to call and see how we liked our pizza and if we were happy with the service they provided. The whole call took 30 seconds, but let me tell you, it left a very lasting impression! As a customer, I sincerely appreciate the owner/manager calling me to thank me for my business. There is a lesson in here for all of us, personally and in business; in this age of technology and social media the personal touch still matters - a lot!!

The personal touch is the reason Bob and Mary decided 25+ years ago to staff their Super Wash car washes. We are always striving to make a positive difference, and we greatly appreciate the efforts of our 700+ Super Wash managers and attendants who help us offer the personal touch.

For those celebrating Easter this weekend, enjoy the holiday!! For all, enjoy the first weekend of April - it's hard to believe it is here already!

Until next time, be SUPER!

Franchises: Where Traditions and Memories are Made

Today is my oldest son's 4th birthday. At 6:00 AM this morning I was out the door to our local Dunkin' Donuts(R) to buy him a big jelly donut, which we ultimately stuck a large "4" candle in for him to blow out at breakfast. What a super way to start out your birthday, right?? This tradition originally started out as an "oops" because I hadn't gotten a cake or cupcakes made for his birthday and I needed something quick to put a candle in. He loves DD jelly donuts so off I went. And here we are now continuing that "oops tradition, treasuring those memories made with Dunkin' Donuts.

It seems like franchising sometimes get a bad rap, mostly by folks who may not truly understand the importance of the franchisor/franchisee relationship, but as I was cruising to DD this morning I reflected on how many wonderful traditions and memories my family has built at franchised businesses. In addition to Dunkin' Donuts for your birthday: 1) Each kids' 1st birthday was celebrated with just them, me and their dad at McDonald's(R). Their first Happy Meal(R) was a big occasion for us since my husband was a McDonald's "Employee of the Year" back in his youth. 2)We had a wonderful party at Chuck E. Cheese's(R) this past weekend. Andrew and his cousin, Izy (who was celebrating her 5th birthday), smiled the whole time. They had a blast, and so did we. The Chuck E. Cheese's staff was so accomodating and cheerful and truly made the party relaxed and enjoyable instead of chaotic. I will never forget acting like a kid for a few minutes myself and challenging my dad to a couple of games of Ski-ball. Not that it's important, but I won. I am sure this will be the first of many Chuck E. Cheese's parties. 3)Me, and lots of kids, treasure the memory of washing the family vehicle at a Super Wash(R) car wash with dad on the weekend. To this day, thirty some years after I started hangin' out at the car wash with my mom and dad, when I am in a self-serve bay at a Super Wash I am totally at ease. It's just me, the water and the dirt. It feels so good when I am done washing my car and I can see what I accomplished. Thanks mom and dad.

Franchises: where traditions and memories are made. Thank you to all of the men and women out there who reached for the dream of owning your own business and did so through franchising. My family and I will do our best to keep making traditions and memories at your businesses - I'm sure many other families will to!

Happy Birthday, Andrew! You are my heart.

Until next week, have a SUPER weekend!!