I find it fascinating that SaaviHome is now offering its business and technology services as a franchise — a first for a custom integration company. When I spoke to SaaviHome owner Gavin Lantzy about his decision, he said that he was always interested in the franchise model, having had a franchise-styled painting business when he was in college.
I get it — I am also interested in the idea of franchises. I say “idea” because I have never had enough financial capital or liquidity to ever have made a serious move on one, but I see the attraction behind the concept of opening a business backed by a solid corporate entity that can cover all the knowledge the owner may be lacking.
I remember probably more than a dozen years ago being impressed by a Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii shop while I was attending an InfoComm in Orlando, Fla. The coffee was good, the vibe was fun, and, as far as I knew, there were none in the Northeast. Plus, I really love coffee, and there were franchising flyers just hanging out near the register.
Looking over the materials, it seemed like a great opportunity, and the three mornings in a row I visited during the tradeshow had me thinking it could be a viable possibility.
But once I was out of Orlando and back on Long Island, reality came for me pretty quickly — no way could I afford the buy-in, let alone the start-up costs. Besides, I wasn’t even sure I could open one locally with a name like that. Sure, there were plenty of donkeys involved in the logo and the store itself to try and explain the name, but I doubt anyone believed it. So, I forgot about it, having it resurface only when I visited the shop in Orlando until that one closed down between my visits.
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Occasionally I will check on other franchise opportunities, and, like many of you I’m sure, I get emails from CertaPro Painters encouraging me to start a franchise in my area, but house painting is not really a passion of mine, and I think if you are going to own a small business, you should at least be into it a little, preferably a lot.
That is part of the reason why I am excited to see what happens with the SaaviHome offering. As we know, home technology is a growing field with expanding possibilities. And it is freaking cool.
At the start, SaaviHome, which is located near Denver, Colo., is offering franchises in the Mountain West region, including Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and Colorado, but the plan is to eventually spread out across the entire United States.
I see this as being very good for the industry. Not only does it raise awareness of who we are and what we do, but it also brings more entrepreneurs into the space. Plus, for those who do work in the industry already, it offers them an ownership path that may otherwise not be available to them.
I hope that SaaviHome finds success in this model and that, eventually, a few other custom installation businesses follow suit.
