Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue IV, 2011 | Page 8

Chairman’
sNote
BY CHARLES SMITHGALL

We Learn in Order To Teach

A

s we look back on last April’s 2011
Multi-Unit Franchising Conference
and toward next April’s conference (to
be held at The Mirage in Las Vegas),
what did we learn… and what can we expect?
Participating as chairman in such a worthwhile
event is definitely a learning experience, but it’s
difficult to appreciate the value until you’ve actually been there. I have learned
a lot during the past year from
my front-row seat during the
planning process, the staging of
the conference, the post-event
critique, and now, while planning for next year’s, which is
certain to be bigger and better.
And throughout, I continue to learn about how
the franchise relationship works so well for both
franchisees and franchisors.
Franchising is truly a wonderful marriage; just
look at the statistics. Darrell Johnson, CEO of
FRANdata, would be better at citing the specifics, but the latest data I saw was that 94 percent of
franchises are still operating 10 years after their
inception, versus only 18 percent of stand-alone
business concepts. If you prefer to bet with the
odds in your favor, then franchising is a no-brainer. If you are strong at execution and want to simplify your focus to specific operations, franchising
is the place. And we all have the same challenge:
How can we become better operators? That
comes right back to people.
It has been said, “The team with the best
players usually wins!” I continue to relearn this
important fact year after year. I have yet to investigate a franchise concept that wouldn’t be
successful without the right people operating it.
I love franchising because I get great satisfaction from competing, and, in our business, there

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are so many ways to measure our performance.
Franchise Update Media Group provides the best
single stage for us to improve our businesses. The
rest is up to us. The articles in Multi-Unit Franchisee magazine and the programs at their conferences are invaluable to us. But it’s what we do
with them that counts.
The 2012 Multi-Unit Franchising Conference
will be chaired by John Metz, and, if John operates the conference like he does his own business,
all previous ones will be left in the dust. John
developed a solid background in finance and real
estate before becoming a successful multi-unit
franchise operator with multiple Denny’s, Dairy
Queen, and Marriott locations, and now he’s also
a franchisor after acquiring Hurricane Grill and
Wings. John is an excellent choice to lead us into
the future. And the staff at Franchise Update Media Group just keeps getting better and better. I
challenge you to read this edition from cover to
cover, and I think you’ll agree that you got your
money’s worth.
But don’t stop there. Go and teach what you’ve
learned and make all the people around you better. If we all keep doing that we will continue to
excel. We have a great deal invested in our businesses. Let’s continue to help each other learn
and grow. The best gifts in the world are those
that continue to multiply when they are shared.
I have enjoyed very much my year as the 2011
Multi-Unit Franchising Conference Chair and
I am determined to continue to learn and grow
with a vengeance.

Charles Smithgall
Chair
2011 Multi-Unit Franchising Conference

Multi-Unit Franchisee Is s ue IV, 2011

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9/22/11 5:34 PM