Franchising Leads Owner In a Tango with Success

Franchising Leads Owner In a Tango with Success

by Andrea M. Ciccocioppo

Starting your own business is tough, no matter what the business. There is always competition and it takes a lot of hard work, long hours and, often, the rewards are few in the beginning. For many new business-owners, there is little support. No one to turn to when times are tough. But there is a way to avoid some of those pitfalls — consider buying a franchise. Just ask Jeffrey Van Boskirk. He’s danced his way to success with Arthur Murray Dance Studios in the lead, and he couldn’t be happier.

Arthur Murray Dance Studios is the oldest franchise business in the United States. The Harrisburg-area studio in Lemoyne opened in 1947 and has been teaching people how to spin around the floor in style ever since. Van Boskirk bought into the business in 1986 when he purchased the Lemoyne location. "I started working for them part time," he recalls. Five years later, he bought the franchise. His card is now full with four locations—Lemoyne, York, Lehigh Valley and Annapolis, Maryland.

Van Boskirk studied business and loves to dance. With this background he could have chosen to start his own studio instead of pursuing a franchise. "I got into it because, I found, if you research most businesses, franchises are the least apt to go out of business," he said. "One of the things I like about Arthur Murray is that I don’t have to carry any product and, all along the road they have trainers, books, and supplies which are available to help me. They’re very supportive. I can call any of the Arthur Murray studios anywhere in the world and get advice from them," Van Boskirk states. "I can grow because I have the knowledge of everyone else who’s in the same business and has been doing it longer than I have. That’s what I really like about a franchise and Arthur Murray in particular, because I have hundreds of people to learn from."

But that kind of support isn’t free. "I pay a certain percentage of all the fees that I collect for lessons for as long as I have the franchise," Van Boskirk explains. "I’m actually renting the name and the background and all the support which, to me, is well worth what I’m spending. I couldn’t just have Jeff’s Ballroom Dancing," he laughs. "I may be able to make it work, but I couldn’t have 10 employees in each and every school."

In addition to his franchise royalty fee, there are the franchiser’s rules and regulations which must be followed. "Our franchise is a little more lenient than a lot of franchises. I don’t have to order product from any certain person, but I do have to abide by strict Federal Trade Commission rules," Van Boskirk notes. And, if the franchiser isn’t happy, the franchise can be taken away. "If for some reason I have problems with the FTC, haven’t paid royalty fees or if I’m not presenting myself in the fashion that an Arthur Murray owner should, then they can start legal proceedings to take the franchise from me." At Arthur Murray, that isn’t likely to happen. You cannot purchase one of their franchises unless you’ve been working with them for five years. "They want to make sure everyone knows and abides by their rules," Vanboskirk notes.

Each franchise—from McDonald’s to Arthur Murray—has their own ways of doing business and their own rules and regulations. Van Boskirk advises anyone who is interested in owning a franchise to first research it—both for their regulations and for the cost—which varies by franchise. "A lot of franchises require you to put a lot of money down, but then they guarantee you that you’ll make X amount of money because they’ve researched the location, the traffic – everything. Most of the time, they’re correct, as long as you follow their rules and guidelines," Van Boskirk said. "But understand that it’s still work. The harder you work, the more money you can make."

For Van Boskirk, his dance with success comes as easy as following his lead partner, Arthur Murray Studios. "If I work hard, they’ll show me what to do and it will work no matter what," he explains, "as long as I follow their guidelines, I can’t help but make money."