Veterans Franchise Small-Business Sales Hit 1,000 Milestone

As the nation prepares to observe Veterans Day on Nov. 11, the International Franchise Association announced today that its “VetFran” program, created to aid former military personnel in the transition to civilian life, has enabled 1,000 veterans to become franchise small-business owners and has 200 more sales pending, according to the association’s latest quarterly survey of participating companies.

IFA, founded nearly 50 years ago to represent the Franchising industry, re-established the program after Sept. 11, 2001 to help honorably-discharged veterans acquire franchised small businesses. In that quest, more than 260 franchise systems that are members of the association currently offer financial incentives, or discounts, to lower the up-front costs of purchasing a franchised establishment.

Formally known as the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative, VetFran is supported by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs via an official Memorandum of Understanding, but receives no government funding. VA has also honored IFA with its “Support Sector Champion” Award.

“As we pause on November 11 to honor America’s veterans, we also bear in mind the sacrifices that our military men and women continue to make around the world,” IFA Pres. Matthew Shay said. “The franchising industry not only recognizes the challenges faced by veterans, but demonstrates its commitment to making their return to civilian life more meaningful by providing a path to the dream of small-business ownership.”

“I would like to congratulate the participating franchises, the veteran-business owners and all of those who helped the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative reach this historic milestone,” said Scott Denniston, director of the VA’s Center for Veterans Enterprise. “This achievement solidifies what we have known for years--veterans make great business owners. We know that, and obviously the 264 participating Franchises understand the value a veteran-business owner brings to their brand.”

Franchises operate in more than 80 business categories ranging from accounting and tax services to senior care. Research by PricewaterhouseCoopers for the IFA Educational Foundation in 2004 determined that nearly 800,000 franchise establishments generate $1.53 trillion in economic impact or 10 percent of the U.S. private-sector economy and provide employment for more than 18 million Americans.

Originally the vision of Don Dwyer Sr., the late founder of The Dwyer Group of residential and light-commercial service businesses, the program is a voluntary effort by members of IFA which today represents nearly 1,300 franchise companies, 10,000 franchisees and more than 500 firms that provide goods and services to the industry.

Participating companies and the financial incentives they offer veterans can be viewed at the association’s Web site. Prospective business owners are also encouraged to take advantage of the association’s wide variety of educational information, including the free, online course “Franchising Basics,” to aid in their due diligence-investigative process.