How franchising has changed in the new economy: Q&A with Chris Couri of We Do Lines

Q: How have you adjusted your growth strategy in this economy?
We made a decision to seek Area Developers rather than single unit operators. In addition we targeted synergistic industries like painting, parking, paving and property management. Our model is a great “Bolt On” concept for most commercial service companies mainly because of the rapid scalability and low cost of entry. We have formed a National Supply and Support agreement with Sherwin Williams (click for link to press release) and strong relationships with national brands to inject additional value to our model and to support our franchisees. We utilize PR to drive business to our franchisees as well as to further promote the brand on a National level.

Q: Are franchisees more qualified now than ever before? Why or why not?
There is a large pool of potential franchisees available due to the economy, but only a small portion of these will be right for franchising. By focusing on pre-existing business owners we tend to get a more qualified candidate as they are already running small businesses. At WDL we insist that our candidates are well educated about the franchise industry. I feel that “An educated consumer is my best candidate.”

Q: Do you predict that franchising has changed from this point on? If so, how?
I absolutely believe that franchising has changed and will continue to morph due to the lack of financial liquidity in the marketplace. It is now much more difficult to get candidates funded. As a result, qualified franchise candidates with organic funding have the luxury to negotiate much stronger deals and have vast choices. There is more of a focus on promoting your brand and maximizing the leverage of all the avenues, both traditional, non-traditional, and digital.

Q: Anything else you think is interesting or important to know about franchising and/or We Do Lines in particular?
When considering whether to invest in a franchise, a candidate has to answer some common sense questions: Is there a marketplace for the franchised product or service in the area I intend to operate? Is the timing right for the product or service in that marketplace? Is it “on the economy?”

The second thing in the timing fork is the “man in the mirror” calculation. Is this the right time in my life to take on this challenge? Do I have the necessary equities to succeed in the business model? To be successful, each candidate must possess four personal equities:

1. Intellectual. You have to be smart enough to be able to run a small business.

2. Sweat. You have to work harder for yourself that you ever worked for someone else.
3. Intestinal. You have to have the guts to invest in yourself.
4. Actual. You have to be able to afford to capitalize the business.

These equities back up on each other. You need the actual funds to start the business, the guts to invest the funds, the sweat to make sure every dime works for you, and the intellectual smarts to choose wisely where to invest your funds. A responsible franchisor must assist the candidate to discover whether he is the right fit for the model and in possession for the necessary equities. At We Do Lines, we take seriously the notion that the franchise is ‘awarded rather then sold.’ This presumes a large degree of ‘want to’ by the franchisee and willingness to judge the opportunity realistically.

We Do Lines highlighted in the Hartford Business Journal

The Hartford Business Journal recently published an article on everything We Do Lines including how the concept was developed, why it was developed, the growth of the franchise, and how to become a franchise owner. The story was built from interviews with the executive team: Chris Couri (CEO), Dan Rella (CFO) and Tom Darrow (COO). Currently, We Do Lines has six franchises in Connecticut, the Cleveland area and west and central Florida. The goal is to open 200 franchises over the next three years. Check out a portion of the article below or click here to read the full article.

Idle Thought Yields Plan For Painting Franchise

Three years ago, Chris Couri, Tom Darrow and Dan Rella were commercial landscapers with too much time on their hands. One workless day in the winter, an idea occurred to the longtime Ridgefield residents. They were staring at the faded lines of a parking lot when they started thinking, who’s out there repainting all these stripes?

That thought led them to start a business they named We Do Lines, which has gone from “zero to six franchises” in the past six months, said Darrow, noting line stripping is a $700 million industry in the U.S.

The We Do Lines franchises are in Connecticut, Ohio and west and central Florida. Over the next three years, the owners plan to have nearly 200 franchises across the country.

“Tom came up with line striping. We knew nothing about it, so we started researching. We called a dozen line strippers in the area and no one really got backTom Darrow, one of the co-founders of We Do Lines, works the line striping equipment to update a parking lot. to me. I got the feeling that it was fragmented, that no one treated it like a business,” said Rella.

With a $20,000 investment, the three partners were able to start a business by reaching out to their landscaping customers, many of whom hired them immediately to paint the lines of their businesses’ parking lots. The team also developed an unusual marketing plan. They began painting customer’s parking lot lines during daytime hours as a way to stir up interest in their business.

“Immediately, we started getting interest from people who have never seen a line stripper. Not too many people know line strippers because they’re done at night. What we started to do is create a buzz with our logo, name on the truck,” said Rella. “As a part-time business, we hit solid numbers, validating why it could be full-time. That’s when we decided to start a franchise model. We started hard selling those in October.” (Read More)

We Do Lines Enters Into Strategic Partnership with Sherwin-Williams

Parking Lot Striping Start-Up Teams Up with Leading Coatings Manufacturer

RIDGEFIELD, CONN. – We Do Lines USA, Inc., the nation’s first parking lot striping franchise, and Sherwin-Williams, a leading supplier of paints and coatings, have formed a strategic partnership. Through the partnership, Sherwin-Williams will be the primary paint supplier to We Do Lines franchisees, providing training, supplies and expert knowledge of the markets where both companies do business.

According to Chris Couri, President of We Do Lines, the parking lot line striping market is vast and virtually untapped. In fact, in the United States, there are an estimated 50 million parking spaces representing a $1 billion parking lot striping segment of a $29 billion parking lot industry.

“For a service with such high demand, we have created a concept that is efficient, reliable and socially responsible through our Lines for Charity program,” said Couri.

“Sherwin-Williams offers a broad range of pavement marking solutions for any demanding application or ambient condition,” said Richard May, Sherwin-Williams national account manager. “Sherwin-Williams products and We Do Lines’ franchise concept are ideally suited to provide solutions to organizations in need of fast-drying, durable and environmentally responsible parking lot striping services.”

The partnership will position We Do Lines for further growth and development. Working with North America’s largest single-source paint and coatings supplier lends tremendous quality recognition and brand power to the company.

We Do Lines Growth

We Do Lines has sold six territories since its launch as a franchise only nine months ago and they continue to have a pipeline full of qualified prospects.

In February 2008, Couri, Tom Darrow, and Dan Rella, noticed that while their collective 50 years of business experience came in different industries, their match culturally paved their idea to redefine a broken and rough industry with top-tier customer service and a meticulous attention to detail. With efficient systems in place, and a very strong first location, We Do Lines plans to expand nationally with a goal of reaching the 100-unit mark within the next three years.