Franchise News

Text Box: And there’s a lot of major factors we believe for the growth of Hispanic businesses. First of all, the Hispanic population is exploding. Technology is a big contributor. Three other factors I really want to mention, Hispanic women growth. With the growth of Hispanic women-owned business, that has contributed to the growth of Hispanic-owned business. Hispanic youth. Many people need to realize right now Hispanic – half of our population, 42 million people, is under the age of 27. One of every five children under the age of 5 is now an Hispanic child; 2.5 Hispanics are born every minute in this country. That means since I’ve started this speech, about four people have been born. So it’s just exploding. And as the youth start to gain the entrepreneurial spirit, you’re going to see a growing influence of Hispanic-owned business in the country as it continues to expand.

Text Box: The number of Hispanic households earning over $100,000 a year grew 140 percent over the past decade, compared to just 77 percent of the general population. We’ve also seen the growth of these Hispanic entrepreneurs at events throughout this country. In fact, at our convention last year in Milwaukee, we had 3,500 Hispanic entrepreneurs to attend this convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This year in Philadelphia we expect it to be the largest Hispanic business event in the history of this country. And you can see why. If you look at just the chart there, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut are some of the fastest growing areas for Hispanic businesses, and they’re all just right down the road from Philadelphia. You’ve also got to include Virginia and DC in those numbers, and Maryland. So we expect that to be the largest Hispanic business event in this country.

Text Box: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
WASHINGTON, D.C. Transcript by:
Federal News Service
Washington, D.C. JACQUE MASON: I’m Jacque Mason, assistant associate director of the US Census Bureau, and we want to thank the Department of Commerce for allowing us to come to our home mother ship to have this – share this great, exciting news today. The Survey of Business Owners on Hispanic-owned firms.

Text Box: OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS FOR VETERANS There are two-hundred franchise companies that are offering great incentives to veterans to purchase a franchise. Many companies offer veterans a 15% discount off the franchise fee. To, date, nearly 500 veterans in forty-five states have taken advantage of this program: more than 120 are in various stages of negotiation. A list of participating companies is available on the IFA’S website: www.franchise.org

Text Box: The International Franchise Association has made owning a franchise operation more affordable for veterans with the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative known as "VetFran". The program allows veterans to acquire a franchise with a down payment of 10 percent or less of the initial franchise cost, which generally ranges from $45,000 to $150,000 for a small business. Express Personnel Services is an active participant in the VetFran program, offering a 25% reduction in our franchise fee to military veterans who qualify for an Express franchise. Currently, VetFran is limited to franchises with initial investments up to $150,000, the maximum loan amount on which the SBA offers 85 percent loan guarantees. Additional information may be found at the following web sites: www.franchise.org
www.vetbiz.gov
www.military.com

Text Box: SprayGreen Lawncare Service, Inc., has spent over 20 years serving the special needs of the landscape industry. We have perfected our product over the years, making it the only one available that provides both complete lawn care and pest control.

Text Box: Since our first sign center opened in 1985, FASTSIGNS® has become a leader in one of the world's most dynamic franchised industries with a growing store network that spans the globe. Our franchised centers use state-of-the-art computer technology to create custom signs and graphics for businesses and organizations of all sizes. One of the most important factors to our success is the quality and commitment of our franchisees. Highly driven strategic entrepreneurs, our franchisees receive extensive training and support—and every possible competitive advantage. We carefully select them, making sure that our franchise opportunity meets their goals and aspirations for business ownership.

Andrew Gunkler, Chief Franchise and Development Officer, for the Al Copeland Investments' Restaurant Division. We welcome Andy aboard with more than 25 years of experience in Franchise and Finance. Andy's experience comes from companies such as: East Side Mario's, in Toronto, Canada, Houlihan's Restaurant Group, Kelsey's International, Elephant Bar, and Quaker Steak and Lube. Andy has been successful in structuring programs, identifying opportunities, introducing strategic marketing plans and concepts that support market expansion and changing corporate needs. He is skilled in development of cooperative relationships throughout all organizational levels. He is a versatile and proactive business development and financial professional with a consistent record of success in venues that range from managing $100 million portfolios of Fortune 500 Clients and marketing franchise agreements for leaders in the food service industry. He has outstanding, presentation, negotiation, and leadership qualifications. Andy has a B.S. in Economics and a Minor in Psychology from Wabash College. Andy has a versatile and impressive background and we welcome him aboard.

Press Information
For Immediate Release
May 12, 2010

CONTACT: Martha O’Gorman
Chief Marketing Officer
(800) 790-3863 ext. 8022
martha.ogorman@libtax.com

Liberty Tax Service’s Tax Season Growth a Record among Big Three Tax Companies for 2010

(Virginia Beach, VA) Liberty Tax Service is the only top three tax company to demonstrate overall system growth during the challenging economic climate of 2010. The Company reports a steady increase in tax returns and revenue for the most recent tax season. Throughout this decade, Liberty Tax Service has demonstrated solid gains in an industry formerly dominated by tax giant H&R Block (NYSE:HRB). For the eighth straight year, Liberty Tax Service has grown by more tax returns than both Jackson Hewitt (NYSE:JTX) and H&R Block combined.

Liberty Tax Service prepared 8 percent more tax returns in 2010 than in 2009. System wide revenues increased 25 percent from fiscal 2009 to 2010. The Company continues to offer competitive choices allowing its growing customer base to choose between professional services in brick-and-mortar locations or do it yourself online tax preparation with its eSmart Tax product.

Aggressive marketing coupled with a strong commitment to customer service have been key factors in building a successful brand in thirteen years. Since 1998, the Company has grown from 119 offices located in Canada, to over 3,500 throughout the U.S. and Canada today.

“Our continued ability to offer customers a range of filing and bank product options is another factor in our success this year,” Liberty Tax Service Founder and CEO, John Hewitt, reflected. “The Liberty Tax Service franchise opportunity is #9 on the fastest growing franchises list of the 2010 Entrepreneur “Franchise 500. Our franchise opportunity has an affordable price, and we are poised to add 600 new offices by January 2011.”