What is a Semi Absentee Franchise? Is a Semi-Absentee Franchise Right for You?

You don’t necessarily have to quit your day job to become a franchise owner. Not all franchise concepts need an always-present franchisee at their location. Instead, many franchise concepts solely require a semi-absentee owner with a smaller time commitment to work on the business.

What is a Semi-Absentee Franchise?

Essentially, a semi-absentee franchise is a business concept that an individual can start and operate on the side while simultaneously having another job or obligation in the mix, compared to a full-time business that requires complete effort and constant presence. It’s important not to confuse semi-absentee ownership with partial ownership. Being a semi-absentee franchise owner oftentimes requires the same amount of capital, time and initial investments from a franchise owner to get the business up and running, but once it’s operating the semi-absenteeism begins. Once this is achieved, semi-absentee franchise owners typically spend 10-15 hours per week working on the business. It’s imperative for prospective franchisees to understand that semi-absentee models can potentially take longer for them to turn a stable profit due to spending less time working on the business.

How do these Concepts Work?

Many franchise brands specifically structure their models to run this way for various reasons, but regardless of the reason, it’s important for prospective franchisees to understand this. Where people tend to get into trouble is when they try to turn a business that is intended to be run by a full-time franchisee and try to turn it into a semi-absentee model. For this reason, individuals looking to invest in a semi-absentee franchise brand are advised to contact and work closely with a business coach to help them to identify specific concepts that employ this model. In the end, it’s important to make sure that with whatever concept you invest in it fits in with your overall long-term strategy, ability and time availability. Franchise brands that embrace this model range from brick and mortar stores to mobile or portable businesses even to vending and kiosk-based concepts – the options are vast.

How to Know if A Semi-Absentee Franchise is Right for You

When contemplating whether a semi-absentee business is the right investment for you, it’s essential to examine your needs, goals and expectations of your investment. Do you want to become a franchise empire builder? Do you want to build numerous concepts? How much capital do you have to invest? Consulting with a business coach can better help an individual identify the right questions that he or she should be asking himself or herself before deciding on a model. A person needs to consider what will be required from him or her with the presented franchise opportunity and if this meets the needs, goals and expectations of that individual.

Take the First Step, Contact A Qualified Coach to Learn More

For those wanting to take the next step toward the route to self-sufficiency and business ownership or for individuals looking to learn more about semi-absentee franchise brands, make sure you work with a qualified coach. They should ask you a lot of questions and they should LISTEN to your responses. When your goals, needs, and expectations are on the table, it sets up a better opportunity to learn about options that match closely with your discussion. If a “coach” puts you in front of 20 different businesses over the course of a couple of weeks, ask yourself if they really listened to you. Step back and find a coach that is to work WITH you. If you’d like to learn more contact me – I’d be glad to have a conversation.