Local Franchise Spotlight - Sport Clips

Over $1 trillion in products are sold annually through franchises in the United States. There are more than 3,000 franchise concepts available in more than 50 industry segments, with 650,000 individual franchise outlets up and running.

What’s it like to evaluate a franchise, make the purchase and get the business up and running?

We talked to local owners Jason and Lisa Trabert to find out how the process worked for them. Jason and Lisa own the business with Jason’s parents Dave & Sandy. At Sport Clips, they’ve created the perfect place for a guy to get great service and a great haircut. The Livermore location is at 4338 Las Positas Road (in the Target Shopping Center).

CFG: What backgrounds do each of you have?  

Traberts: The four of us bring a very diverse set of work experiences to the business. Jason is a mechanical engineer, Lisa a registered dental assistant, Dave is a Telco consultant and real estate appraiser and Sandy works at a local winery. 

CFG: Did you look at any other businesses before deciding on Sport Clips? 

Traberts: We had been looking at the hair cutting sector for a long time. There were many aspects of the business that intrigued us. It’s a relatively simple business to understand, people get their hair cut in good times and bad and there is great potential for recurring revenue. We decided on Sport Clips because as a customer, Jason loved the service he got there and we saw the potential of being in one of the few brands that targeted men and boys. 

CFG: What assistance did Sport Clips provide you with to help you get started?

Traberts: There was a lot of upfront support and training. This started during the phase where we were doing our initial evaluation of the business. At that phase, they provided screening tools to help us understand if this was a good match for us. They were also looking to get a good feel for who we were before they awarded us with a franchise. We were able to do a lot of training on-line, and then we did a full week of instructor lead training at the headquarters. This covered all aspects of planning for, opening and growing the business. We were able to do a lot of training on-line, and then we did several weeks of training at the headquarters. 

CFG:  How about after the store opened?

Traberts: Sport Clips helped us plan and execute the grand opening. There are regularly scheduled training and information sharing meetings schedule to help grow the business. Everything from on-line webinars to national conferences where all owners in the system meet for training and to share experiences. 

CFG:  How long did the entire process take?

From the time we initially contacted Sport Clips to express our interest to the grand opening of our store in Livermore, it took almost an entire year. *CFG note – this is very common for any brick & mortar business and is something most of our clients underestimate when it comes to planning their own business launch timelines.  

CFG: How did you decide on your location?

Traberts: The Sport Clips Area Developer was very helpful in working with us to identify a location that had the right size, traffic patterns and demographics to support the business. Sport Clips has an entire real estate division that works in many areas of the country to pre-approve locations that would work well for a Sports Clips store. It really takes the guess work out of picking a location since Sport Clips has a lot of experience and knows what works and what will not work. 

CFG:  What advice would you give someone looking to open their own franchise business?

Traberts: Plan to do lots of homework. Just reading stuff on the Internet is not enough. Really make sure you understand the financials and plan for the worst case scenario. Make sure you have adequate financial resources in reserve to keep you going until the business becomes successful. Understand the business and how it serves the demographic of your area. Is there a need for the business? Will that need change over time? Lastly – don’t have a baby on the grand opening day for your new business! Lisa delivered their first son on the day the store grand opening was scheduled. You can imagine what a crazy day that was! 

CFG: How long have you been in business?

Traberts: We have been open for 14 months now.  

Next post we'll cover some of the challenges and successses the Traberts faced during that first year.

Jason, Lisa, Dave & Sandy invite you to drop in and visit them.  Make sure to check out the MVP Service! Customers love that service so much that some have even paid to have the treatment done multiple times during the same service!

For more information, visit http://haircutmenlivermoreca.com/.

Their hours of operation are:

Monday-Friday 10 a.m.- 8 p.m.

Saturday 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Sunday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.