Franchise Empires

The secret ingredient to creating your own cookie franchise? People. Adam August opens the playbook to his fast-growing cookie empire. Adam is the Co-founder of Blueprint Cookies, the business he set up with Nick Hicks in 2019. The company has grown from one to three stores in three years and has ambitious plans to scale. The Wolf and Adam get into why investing in your employees is the best choic...

With almost two decades together as franchise partners, Joshua Coba and Douglas Payne know franchising inside and out.  They join The Wolf to talk about owning more than 1,000 European Wax Center units, why the start of a business is the most exciting moment, and how they’ve carved out a niche in a traditionally overcrowded franchising industry. Follow Douglas: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/douglas-pa...

Welcome to season 4 of Franchise Empires. Meet the owner of 29 Wingstops and 79 Little Caesars, following in the family footsteps. Shalin Patel is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Vibe Restaurants, who opened their first restaurant back in 2005. It has since grown to become one of the largest franchisees of Little Caesars and now operates across 11 states. The Wolf and Shalin sit down t...

Jamie Weeks loves life, he also loves business. Being a franchisor has allowed him to have it all and he’s ready to share how. He is Executive Chairman and Founder of Honors Holdings, the largest franchisee for OrangeTheory Fitness studios across the globe, Executive Chairman and Founder of Legacy Franchise Concepts, a Dogtopia Franchisee and Franchisor for SweatHouz Infrared Sauna Studios.   The...

Ben Eberdt is the successful musician turned franchise owner. He and dad, Jess, are taking over the dog daycare space. Find out how. GoDog is the daycare and boarding service that offers pet parents state-of-the-art, fun and hygienic care for their family members. The Wolf gets into conversation with Co-founder and President Ben, who talks about treating your band like a business, embedding custom...

Greg Flynn didn’t follow in the footsteps of his Stanford classmates. But with approx. 2,400 Applebee’s, Taco Bells, Paneras, Arby’s, Pizza Huts and Wendy’s - he’s done ok. The Wolf gets into conversation with the largest franchisee operator in the world. Greg Flynn is Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Flynn Restaurant Group and Flynn Properties, generating $4 billion in sales and employing 73,000 peo...

When you’re leaving the most important member of your family at daycare, you need to know it’s safe, fun and stimulating. Shaina Denny’s Dogdrop franchise is all this and more. Dogdrop is the dog day care service founded in LA and which has grown to three units. With the health and happiness of each dog at its core, dog parents can be sure they’re leaving their pets in the best possible care. The...

When you’re franchise investors and operators, you’re writing the playbook as you go.  Join The Wolf as he talks to two of the best: Scott Thompson, CDO and MD and Dennis Campbell, VP of Franchise Development, both at Level 5 Capital Partners. They get into why buying into the mission is key to scaling, the balance between too many heads and meeting development timescales, and growing a brand for...

With a lifelong passion for nutrition and food, founding her own gourmet empire was always on the cards. Find out how Brianna found her feet in catering and created Toastique. Toastique is the gourmet toast and juice franchise, offering healthy, responsibly sourced food all day long. The Wolf and Brianna talk decision-making at the 11th hour, working with friends and family, and expanding the Toas...

When Hank’s son described his dad’s job as ‘driving the car’ Hank knew it was time to come out of retirement. Now he’s building a STEAM education empire with Steamoji. Having already built and sold two businesses, Hank turned his entrepreneurial skills to solving the problem of STEAM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Art & Math) educational provision. The Wolf and Hank dive into why STEAM subjects shou...

Brian Scudamore is the CEO behind O2E, the banner company for heavyweight brands like 1-800-GOT-JUNK? and Shack Shine. Not bad for a boy who didn’t graduate high school. Now he’s the founder of a customer service empire worth hundreds of millions and loving every moment of it.  The Wolf and Brian get into Brian’s secret sauce, AKA the beer and barbecue test, why watching people grow brings him suc...

Brittany Driscoll is the marketing exec turned entrepreneur. After getting a taste of working in a fast-growing franchise, she knew she wanted in. Find out how she built her own franchise. The Wolf and Brittany get into conversation about her experience working at beauty franchise, Drybar, which has more than 200 locations across the country. Brittany shares how she and the Drybar founders built S...

Crumbl Cookies is the brand that swept the nation. Meet Jason, the unstoppable CEO and Co-founder. Jason founded Crumbl Cookies in 2017 with business partner, Sawyer Hemsley. Since then more than 600 stores are now operating across 48 states, employing over 26,000 people. The Wolf and Jason get into how and he and Sawyer came up with the concept, leveraging a gap in the market, how cutting edge te...

When you’ve got 14-hour long queues out the door, you’re doing something right. But how does a small burger franchise create super fans? Join The Wolf for this commentary episode where he deep dives into how a small fast food chain can create the kind of obsessive fan base larger brands can only dream of. You’ll hear In N Out Burger’s back story, what stands them apart from other burger joints, an...

Adam Geisler and John Erlandson love sport, but they also love how sports influence children’s lives for the better. That’s why they own 4 sports franchises. Youth Athletes United is the umbrella platform for Adam and John’s 4 franchise brands : Soccer Stars, Amazing Athletes, TGA, and Little Rookies.  The Wolf, Adam and John talk through how a passion for sports can’t be taught, but business can,...

Scott Marr is behind Koala Insulation, a franchise brand on the rise. But it’s not his first business success story. Discover how Scott built his highly successful empire. Mobile businesses are Scott’s area of expertise. Before founding Koala Insulation, he created First Clean USA, acquired by a private equity firm in 2018. The Wolf and Scott discuss the process of selling 350+ Koala territories,...

How do you grow your franchise business profitably? In this Twitter Spaces, 3 multi-unit franchise owners share the secrets to their success. The Wolf is joined by Zac Pennington, owner of 8 Anytime Fitness locations, Brian Beers, owner of 30 Midas units, and Lucas Mitchell, owner of 13 Five Guys locations. All offering different services or products, but all following the same growth strategies....

The inventor of the chicken sandwich has humble beginnings. Discover how Chick-Fil-A became a nation’s favorite, despite never opening on Sundays. In this 10-minute run through, The Wolf breaks down the restaurant’s humble beginnings, how a chance opportunity to buy up cheap chicken turned into a money spinning idea, and how founder S. Truett Cathy developed the 2-part franchise strategy that domi...

From a commodities trader to licensee of 14 Zaxby’s units. How did Ben Little do it? He just said ‘yes’.  From helping to run 8 units with his father and his business partner, Ben has grown their empire to 14 units, including the no. 1 and no. 3 best performing stores in the country. But he had to start at the bottom. The Wolf and Ben get straight into it, discussing how Ben had to learn the brand...

Stephen and Henry have been in business together for more than 15 years. Now the owners of 7 franchise units, they’re solving the problem of finding qualified employees. Find out how. From backgrounds in corporate America these entrepreneurs now have 5 Massage Envy units and 2 Amazing Lash units in their portfolio. The Wolf gets into the weeds of financing franchises, getting out of sales, and how...

Dr Grace Huxtable-Mount is a force. She’s also the owner of 5 The Learning Experience franchises, and looking to expand. Tune in for Grace’s extraordinary franchise journey. The Wolf and Grace get straight into Grace’s story, from the Bahamas, via Japan, to US citizenship in 2001. Since then she’s opened up 5 The Learning Experience units, a childcare and early education franchise. You’ll hear Gra...

Jared Taylor owns 6 Amazing Athletes franchises. Find out how this former collegiate baseball player found his way into franchise ownership via Real Estate. The Wolf and Jared get into why the recession forced Jared to make a decision about his future, why making a positive impact on kids was a real draw to the Amazing Athletes franchise, and why following your passion is always a good thing. You’...

When McDonald’s CEO Ray Kroc arrived in Tokyo three days before the grand opening of their first international franchise in Japan, he was shocked to see that construction had not yet begun on the restaurant.  Enter Japanese businessman Den Fujita. After buying the rights to bring McDonald’s to the Land of the Rising Sun, and with no existing blueprint for international success with McDonald’s, Den...

How does a fintech professional end up owning multiple pizza units? Having a soft spot for the brand definitely helps. Meet Shwetabh Gautam, the NYC-based pro who took a risk on franchise ownership with four friends he grew up with, and who now own 6 Donatos Pizza units in Cleveland. The Wolf and Shwetabh get into why loving the brand played a big part in jumping on board, how they were offered fi...

Mike’s franchise journey is a fascinating one. Find out why he left his corporate 9-5 to open multiple Sylvan Learning Center locations, via Chick-a-Fil and senior care. When corporate life is sucking your soul away, it’s time for a change. Now a franchise owner of 10 Sylvan Learning units, Mike shares his story. The Wolf and Mike dive right into how he left his job to work in the family jewelry b...