Sport Clips’ Company Stores Support Franchisees and Help in Franchising
Having a strong support system in place is critical for setting franchise owners up for growth from day one. At Sport Clips, a unique component of our robust franchisee support model involves operating our own company-owned locations. These corporate stores serve as valuable testing grounds and real-world case studies that ultimately benefit the entire Sport Clips franchise system.
“We test all new equipment, processes, procedures, design, etc.,” explains Matt Wanstreet, the President of Company Stores, who has been with Sport Clips for a year. “This allows us to make it the best it can be prior to sending out to our Team Leaders. Hopefully all the bugs are worked out, and we don’t use Team Leaders as guinea pigs for testing.”
Perfecting Systems for Our Team Leaders
By pioneering and fine-tuning new initiatives at the company level first, Sport Clips is able to perfect systems, products, and strategies before rolling them out system-wide to Team Leaders. From testing new haircut techniques to trialing new salon designs, no stone is left unturned. This meticulous approach allows the corporate team to confidently provide proven solutions that maximize efficiency and client satisfaction for Team Leaders from the moment they open their doors.
As Wanstreet notes, “We financially support the Support Center. This allows us to have more resources and headcount to provide excellent support to the entire company.”
Sport Clips franchisees can count on having a deep bench of industry experts in their corner across all areas of business operations – from marketing and tech support to training and accounting. No franchisee has to go it alone when they have Sport Clips’ full team of franchise experts by their side.
Perhaps most importantly, the company store teams experience the same operational challenges, staffing hurdles, and day-to-day fires that franchisees face in running their businesses. Wanstreet states, “We experience all of the same problems as our Team Leaders when it comes to staffing, labor law changes, and other issues that pop up. This allows us to truly know the pain they might be going through and offer real-world, proven suggestions for solutions as we work through them ourselves.”
Stepping into the Franchisee’s Shoes
By walking a mile in franchisees’ shoes, the Sport Clips corporate support team can provide field-tested, genuine advice pulled straight from their own experiences on the front lines. From advice on grand opening marketing tactics that pull in crowds to competitive compensation insights that attract top talent, no suggestion is merely theoretical. Team Leaders get guidance honed from operating honest-to-goodness franchise locations.
“We operate our company stores as one big franchise. The decisions, problems, and successes are mirrored in both scenarios,” explains Wanstreet. “We have the same support structure we recommend to our large multi-unit team leaders, and have the same costs as they would.”
By adopting the same operating models, leadership structures, and adhering to identical cost structures as franchisees, Sport Clips demonstrates an unparalleled level of empathy and commitment to authentically understanding the franchisee experience. There’s no disconnect between corporate and the realities of franchise ownership.
This firsthand knowledge allows the brand’s leadership to speak the same language as franchisees and steer them towards proven best practices pulled from their own systematic experimentation and learnings at the company stores. From staff hiring and training strategies to operational efficiencies and deployment of technology, Sport Clips franchisees get the inside scoop and can fast-track their way to success by following the corporate team’s lead.
Never Alone in Business
As Wanstreet summarizes, “They are never alone in their journey with us.” With corporate staff committed to being in franchisees’ corners, providing trusted guidance honed from real-world franchise operations, Sport Clips is arming franchise owners with the tools, resources and support to win from the very start.
Learn more about becoming a franchise owner with Sport Clips franchise by visiting our research pages here. If you’re ready to start a conversation with our franchise team about investing in the Sport Clips franchise opportunity, we invite you to fill out our form here. We look forward to hearing from you!
