Severna Park Business Becomes Franchise, Plans 200 Locations

Dave Klappenberger has made his first recruit and plans to travel around the country to find 199 more.

The founder of Severna Park's Klappenberger & Sons has decided to franchise his paint contracting business. In December, Alex Malinow signed on as his first franchisee. Malinow will handle the Howard County territory.

But Klappenberger plans to have 10 such operations by the end of this year. His long-term goal is 200 franchisees nationwide. He'll be traveling to trade shows and career fairs to find candidates.

"A perfect franchisee is not another entrepreneur," Klappenberger said. "I'm looking for somebody who wants to follow a process, who wants to have their own business but would like some guidance, some mentoring and direction." The number of franchise jobs continues to grow throughout the country. The ADP National Franchise Report found a nationwide increase of 48,600 franchise jobs in the month of December.

That's mostly from restaurants, which added nearly 33,000 franchise jobs. But auto parts and dealers, accommodations and personal services had significant growth in December as well.

Odenton Town Center plan gets an update Odenton Town Center plan gets an update Still, experts say there is a lot business owners must consider when it comes to franchising or expanding their operations on their own. Not every business will work as a national franchise; some can only be tailored to specific geographic areas.

Franchisees whose operations are not successful could damage the brand, University of Maryland associate professor Brent Goldfarb said.

"You see everything and it really depends," said Goldfarb, the academic director of the university's Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship.

"The flip side of that is you have less control over what the franchisee is actually doing. Sometimes there can be some brand risk. What do you do when a (franchisee) is not upholding standards? � You have to make sure the brand quality is not eroded." New Chesapeake Regional Tech Council director looking to make connections New Chesapeake Regional Tech Council director looking to make connections Annapolis-based Lice Happens made this move in 2013 and now has eight franchise owners. Founders Nancy Fields and M.J. Eckert use a consultant to find new operators, but don't have a targeted plan for how many they'd like to have.

Their mobile business sends workers on home visits to eliminate insects and teach prevention methods.

"It's quite a challenge for a successful business owner to shift from their operation to then allocating time and resources to a brand-new business," Fields said.

"If you're going to look at a number game, you're not looking at the entire picture. There are actual human beings investing their hard-earned money into the franchise operation. They have needs you must meet early on." Klappenberger came up with his growth strategy after reading "The Secret," which emphasizes the power of positive thinking.

He said he decided to take his company from $500,000 to $1 million a year. Then his wife saw an article about franchising and he decided to do that.

He began the process � which includes legal paperwork, establishing a training plan and drawing up other guidelines � in spring 2014.

He mentioned the franchise idea to Malinow, who had been a manager at Sherwin-Williams. Malinow later decided to sign on and began training late last year. Now he has a few painters who work under him, but he must handle all administrative tasks.

"I always dreamed about having my own business, so starting this young is great," said the 23-year-old Malinow, who lives in Baltimore County. "You feel proud of everything you do. You own it, it's yours, your brainchild, your baby." Klappenberger agreed. Last week he was on his way to trade show in Philadelphia to find others like Malinow.

"I love capitalism; it's a fantastic way to have financial freedom," Klappenberger said. "I'm not a millionaire, but I'll get there. And I would like to show other people how to make money ... You can work smart and hard and get wherever you want to go."

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