Hey guys,
Looking for some advice about franchising.
Background:
I currently own a company called Smash Therapy located in Rochester, NY. It is Rochesters first smash/rage room. A smash room is somewhere people can go to break things for entertainment and stress relief in a controlled environment. We supply the safety gear and breakables. We also clean up afterwards.
Smash rooms have been opening up all over the place across the country in the last couple years. You can find them in almost every major city. They are becoming mainstays of entertainment/stress relief.
I started working on opening Smash Therapy about 6 months ago. We opened the last week of October 2018. I saw the idea online and was already interested in starting some sort of business. So I decided to go for it, and here I am. I live in Rochester, NY and am 22 years old.
Franchising:
An investor approached me not too long ago. He asked me if I was interested in opening another location in a neighboring city, Syracuse, NY.
This proposal interested me and got me thinking. Smash Therapy was crushing it in Rochester. I did about double what I projected to do in Month 1. Everyone loved the experience and said they'd be back.
I have a good business model and a well above average facility compared to other smash/rage rooms. My prices, times and items given seem to be attracting lots of people to my business. It's one of the reasons I believe I'm much busier than other rage rooms that have much larger surrounding populations.
Why I want to franchise to Syracuse, NY:
-Just like Rochester, I will be the first smash/rage room in the area -Its only a matter of time before someone opens one themselves. Why not be the first one there as well? -i would be able to set it up in half the time and 25% cheaper -I have family and friends back home working at Smash Therapy that I trust to run the operations in my absence -I have already secured approval for funding through family for this second location -I already have suppliers for breakables in Syracuse -My business structure seems to be successful so far in Rochester -more tourism in Syracuse and more opportunity to draw potential customers from neighboring towns/cities. (Buffalo, NY, which is adjacent to Rochester, already has a smash room, so I may not draw as much business from there.)
Why I'm unsure about opening another location:
-#1 reason I'd be worried to do this is the uncertainty. Maybe Smash Therapy is only doing so well because lots of people are trying it and may not come back. I've only been open for 6 weeks. Maybe by 6 months, my sales go way down. And then I will have 2 locations losing money and a much bigger money hole -Having to manage 2 locations. I do trust my team in Rochester, but I wouldn't be able to be 2 places at once. I would have to find another set of employees to run a Syracuse location. This worries my a bit -Syracuse has a smaller population than Rochester
So guys I'm looking for some constructive criticism and friendly advice.
Should I seriously consider franchising? Or is this way too large of a risk with too much uncertainty?
What if I wait too long and miss out on this opportunity to be the first smash/rage room in Syracuse?
What issues would I face opening another location/franchising?
Is this crazy to think about a 2nd location after only being open 6 weeks?
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