Michael Horowitz - Primer on Franchises - Ep.185

Ep.185: Alex (@aebridgeman) is joined by Michael Horowitz (@mahorowitz). My guest today is Michael Horowitz who recently sold a roll-up of 20 Wingstop franchise locations (15 acquired, 7 built, 1 closed) and co-authored a paper with A.J. Wasserstein about the franchise path for entrepreneurs. In this conversation, we discuss his strategy and components of an effective franchise roll-up. We touch on the pros/cons of the franchise path, the role of debt, choosing a brand, challenges, and opportunities with multiple locations, and much more. If you’re considering franchises, this episode can serve as a great primer and base of knowledge for exploring the model. Please enjoy this episode with Michael Horowitz. Listen weekly and follow the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Breaker, and TuneIn.  Learn more about Alex and Think Like an Owner at https://tlaopodcast.com/ Links: Michael on Twitter Ten Essential Questions to Consider When Selecting a Franchise Brand for a Search Fund Journey Timecodes: (00:00:00) Intro (00:03:18) Michael’s franchising career (00:10:00) Choosing a smaller brand like Wingstop (00:14:14) Transferring rights between franchisors (00:15:27) Michael’s growth trajectory (00:16:58) How restaurant groups continue to scale (00:19:12) Michael’s decision to sell (00:22:26) Choosing food franchises over other opportunities (00:26:14) How franchises can uniquely use debt (00:31:12) The culture shock of moving from finance to managing fast-food employees (00:35:34) Learnings from the restaurant industry (00:37:35) Career paths within franchising (00:39:47) Hiring and recruiting challenges (00:47:28) Multi-franchise investor strategy (00:52:10) Advice for folks considering franchising (00:54:16) What strongly held belief have you changed your mind on? (00:56:07) What’s the best business you’ve ever seen?