Could franchising be the route to your plumbing company’s success?

Historically, Thurman said, the vast majority of new Mr. Rooter locations have been (and continue to be) conversion opportunities, in which the corporate leadership identifies a market to develop, and then identifies all the existing plumbing companies within that market. Recently, however, Mr. Rooter has started awarding some franchises to a more “entrepreneurial” buyer.

“These are typically people that are transitioning out of white collar employment; they’re highly successful career people who have experienced a career change due to a merger or consolidation,” Thurman said. “They find themselves, at a relatively young age, without a job, but they're ordinarily very well capitalized. But sometimes it can be difficult finding another job at the level they were at. And often, rather than going back into the normal corporate career, they'll leverage their capital and their experience to pursue a business ownership.”

Thurman says these white-collar franchise operators come from all walks of life, often without any previous plumbing experience.

“Many of those came to us through a resale process, meaning they bought an existing Mr. Rooter that already had the staff, the cash flow, and the equipment. And that's very attractive to these type of individuals because they have a lifestyle they need to maintain, and need to step into [an immediate cash flow generating] business.”

This trend began in 2016 and has continued into 2017.

This new type of owner greatly contrasts the traditional model of plumbing business owners, who began their businesses knowing much more about the technical side than business management.

“What we often find is that which made them a great successful technician — training, all of their experience, all of their education — had really been focused on the work itself. When they try to transition into more of an entrepreneurial role, or when they make the decision to start their own businesses, the technical skills, though important, really don't prepare them for all of the challenges they're going to face in trying to build a business around this trade,” Thurman said.

But whichever end of the business the prospective franchisee is coming from, the first step is an honest conversation about what they want their business to become.

“We often ask, ‘What are the top two or three challenges that you feel are really holding you back or keeping you from accomplishing the goals that you have for yourself, for your family, for your employees?’ Thurman said.

Discussions touch upon the nature of the Mr. Rooter business model, how the relationship with Mr. Rooter can help them with the nuts and bolts of the business, but more importantly, how it can help owners meet higher goals and expectations for themselves and for their families’ futures.

What is the end-game?

Jeff Moody is president and COO of bluefrog Plumbing + Drain, a franchisor that just launched in January of 2014. Currently, they have 15 franchisees in nine states, and Moody feels that being the up-and-comer in the plumbing franchising game is actually an asset.

“I think we have a unique name and a look that’s client-friendly,” Moody said, “For people that want to be associated with a national brand, those options may be gone with the larger franchising companies.” What to do if, for example, you’re located in San Antonio and there is already an existing Mr. Rooter?

He sees the focus on helping business owners run better businesses and becoming financially healthy. “If they have a good reputation and are running a profitable business in their area, the may have no reason to even look at franchising,” Moody said. “If they’re struggling on the business side, that’s where we can come in and really give them an advantage.”

Certainly, the opportunities for growth are there almost every direction you turn. Plumbing is famously recession-proof. “People are not going to live without hot water,” he said, “people are not going to live without their toilet flushing.” And given the historically high levels of home-ownership and falling number of skilled tradespeople, demand can only climb higher.

“What we’re all about is trying to understand, what is the end-game for our partner that’s coming on board?” Moody said. “What are they trying to accomplish?”

If the plan, for example, is to pass the business on to the next generation, then the individual company name might mean a lot to them. In which case maybe becoming a franchisee isn’t the right way to go. However, if the plan is to create a salable asset that the owner can one day walk away from, the story changes.

“We have found that brand names have a higher resale value,” Moody said. “So we try to create value within that company, in order to maximize it as a sellable asset.”

And that, Moody feels, is the key to franchising. Too many people — whatever their work may be — have their business wrapped around them, and not around systems and processes that can be replicated by other people. “That’s what we’re trying to do with bluefrog,” Moody said, “we’re trying to create a client experience where people want to do business with us and want to tell other people about us.”

And as with Ben Franklin and Mr. Rooter, a big part of that is workforce development. In addition to training programs like the bluefrog team building system, Moody wants everyone in the industry to take a step back and reconsider how plumbing is “sold” to young people when they are choosing a career.

“Plumbing as a trade is a phenomenal opportunity,” Moody said. “You can go out there and learn and master the service side. You can go and be a manager, so you’re managing other employees.” The image of a plumber as a person standing knee-deep in dirty water all day is one that has to change.

And finally, to anyone thinking about becoming a franchisee, Moody offers this advice: “Look for people who are passionate about your success, not their success. Are they focused on helping you learn and grow? It’s certainly worth the time to do the research and see if that’s a viable option for you. It doesn’t hurt to learn, and it doesn’t hurt to look.”