Sometimes in your career or entrepreneurial journey, you have to take risks to achieve rewards. Knowing when to take a leap of faith is just as important. Gaining this understanding through my own franchise journey is what led me to ultimately leave behind my 20-year career in a top position at a franchisor giant for a brand-new and unexpected opportunity with a lesser-known one, hungry for grow.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always had interest in owning a small business and entrepreneurship. I’m not sure why, but it’s been percolating inside of me since my youth. Despite being bitten by the entrepreneurial bug, starting a family in my early twenties led me instead to choose a more traditional corporate path at first due to the stability it offered.
With an undergraduate degree and an MBA in hand, I landed a role as a salesman for an office equipment corporation. My exceptional people skills and love for storytelling proved key to my success in this career. Although I did well financially, I didn’t feel truly fulfilled. Nervous yet determined, I decided to take the plunge and buy a franchise.
After a few years of financial building and growth, my wife and I took on a small business loan and opened our first franchise, an Anytime Fitness location in Minnesota. Like many small business owners, we scraped together finances to secure funding, liquidating every account except for my 401K. It wasn’t ideal, but you have to do what you had to do.
Although the plan was to start with one location, just months into our tenure, the ability to secure a second location was presented. It was too good of an offer to pass up! We tapped into every financial path for the first location in order to build the second, meaning I had to borrow money from my mother-in-law. Take it from me – borrowing money from your in-laws is never a good idea. But fortunately, taking that risk paid off. Two locations lead to three and before we knew it, we had five!
Instead of pulling out any profits, we reinvested every dollar back into the businesses. To keep our financial heads above water while growing our business footprint, I continued my corporate sales role. My passion for franchise growth and high-end sales eventually merged when I became the Director of Business Development for Self Esteem Brands, the parent company of Anytime Fitness. In this role, I honed my skills in franchise development and sales. My drive to close deals and recruit others led me to become a top producer in the space. After years of solo contributions and advancing to become the company’s VP of Sales, I had the opportunity to coach other franchise development professionals, sharing the strategies that made me successful.
I spent close to 20 years at Self Esteem Brands until I found Apex Leadership Company, a dynamic school fundraising franchise that pours millions of dollars back into elementary and middle schools around the country. Jamie Krasnov, the brand’s CEO, recruited me to become the VP of Franchise Development. Leaving an established global company for what felt like a startup was a chance to test all the sales skills I had acquired over my career and contribute to a brand whose mission I’m passionate about. Friends and family often ask why I left a mature, global holding company for something similar to a startup. My answer is simple: Apex is on the cusp of doing BIG things!
While we may seem scrappy now, Apex is growing at an exceptional rate. Over the last two years, our team has grown overall revenue by 200%, raised over $70 million for schools, and expanded into new markets. With little to no competition, the potential to scale this brand is truly limitless.
In the role, it’s an honor to collaborate with our dedicated franchise network and welcome new franchisees who share my passion for Apex’s mission. As a Black business leader, I feel a deep responsibility to advocate for all our franchisees, especially those from marginalized communities. I understand the unique challenges that minority entrepreneurs face and I am committed to creating an inclusive environment where diverse voices are heard and valued. My goal is to ensure that every Apex franchisee has the tools and support they need to thrive, and to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs to pursue their dreams.
While the future is uncertain, I’m glad I took the leap. Every day, I challenge myself to grow Apex Leadership Company’s impact on schools nationwide and to help our franchisees succeed. It’s a ride I’m sincerely enjoying!