By Michael Moorhouse
Even in a season of economic uncertainty, the franchising world keeps growing. Each year, more aspiring entrepreneurs are drawn to the franchise model—whether they’re looking to leave behind a corporate career, leverage years of trade experience, build a family legacy or expand an existing business portfolio. What attracts them? Proven business models, replicable marketing strategies, and robust training resources that make business ownership more attainable.
Franchising is a welcoming space where people from all personality types and diverse backgrounds can thrive. Some come into franchising with years of business experience, while others are just getting started. Yet among top-performing franchise owners, several shared traits emerge as key drivers of success.
Both for those who are considering entry into the franchising space and for those who long to take their current franchise business to the next level, these traits are worth identifying and cultivating.
Clarity of purpose
People get into franchising for all different reasons. Being clear-eyed about personal and professional objectives is important for determining what kind of franchise to buy, and how to drive that franchise forward.
For example, some franchise owners are primarily interested in achieving a certain lifestyle, perhaps enjoying greater work-life balance than what they experienced in their previous roles. For these owners, seasonal businesses may be worth considering.
For others, the goal is pure profitability—in which case, multi-unit or even multi-territory ownership may be on the table.
Regardless of the specifics, clearly-defined goals can provide direction for any franchise owner, helping inform any business decisions they make along the way.
Love of learning
Franchising can be ideally suited for lifelong learners, curious people and anyone who believes in the importance of continuous improvement.
Joining a franchise system entails plenty of learning opportunities, not just during the initial onboarding but also on an ongoing basis. For example, a good franchise platform will offer:
- Greater understanding of their industry, vertical and customer base.
- Initial and recurring training on franchise best-practices, encompassing operations, finances and more.
- In-depth training in technologies that have been vetted and chosen by the system, designed to help local owners operate more efficiently.
A love of learning ensures that local owners can quickly pick up on the basics of their franchise model, remain open to ongoing skills formation and provide a good example for their employees, demonstrating the value in coachability.
An implementer mindset
Some people are drawn to entrepreneurship because they want to build a business from scratch.
While there is ample room in the franchising world for dreaming big and thinking creatively, it’s also important to have an “implementer” mentality—the ability to internalize proven models and structures, to replicate them in a local context and to convert them into real revenue.
The top franchise owners tend to be operators who can execute an existing playbook with the utmost precision. Those who are detail-oriented and systems-minded tend to thrive in a franchise setting.
With that said, it’s also important for owners to identify ways to personalize their local branch, and to speak more directly to the needs of the local community. Adapting franchise systems to thrive in a particular city or region is vital for any local owner to succeed.
The ability to pivot
Speaking of adapting: While franchising emphasizes structure and replicability, there can be change in any business or industry. The best franchise owners can execute a playbook but also remain nimble, pivoting in response to major shifts. These shifts can encompass:
- Feedback from local customers
- Changes within the franchise platform, including new technologies or product lines
- Broader shifts within the industry
Successful owners need to know their franchise playbook inside and out but also be ready to absorb any necessary changes quickly and frictionlessly.
Community connections
In a successful franchise relationship, both the franchisor and the local owner bring something to the table.
The franchisor’s offerings include not just centralized training and support structures, but also a nationally-recognized brand identity—immediately conveying professionalism, trustworthiness and expertise.
The best local owners complement that national identity with community roots. They’re active and visible in the life of their city and town, they have a robust network of regional relationships and they are committed to serving their neighbors with integrity.
In short, top franchise owners know how to leverage a proven brand while deeply engaging with their local community to build trust and goodwill.
Franchise systems provide a setup for success
There are certain traits and skillsets that go a long way toward franchise success. All of those traits can be magnified and channeled by a franchise system, which provides the infrastructure needed for new and seasoned owners alike to achieve scalable growth and personal goal fulfillment.
Michael Moorhouse is president of Mosquito Shield, America’s trusted provider of effective residential mosquito and tick control service. Mosquito Shield, part of the Five Star Franchising platform of home service brands, was ranked the #1 franchise in pest control by Entrepreneur in 2023, 2024 and 2025.