Salon Owner Taps Franchise Growth

Donato Vaccaro thought he'd open his first Great Clips hair salon last year, but a new job and a picky site-selection process delayed his plan.

It took Vaccaro, 50, of White Plains about 2 1/2 years from when he began researching franchises to his grand opening July 20 at Somers Commons at 80 Route 6 in Somers. Location mattered most for his mostly walk-in salon.

"There's a lot going on in that plaza: a liquor store, a bagel shop, a Chili's, a supermarket," Vaccaro said. "It's an active center that really helps out my business." When he began researching franchises, Vaccaro was an unemployed stockbroker. He has since found a new job as a financial consultant and plans to oversee Great Clips as a part-time job on evenings and weekends, with a salon manager doing much of the work.

It takes a six-figure investment to open a Great Clips franchise, the company's website says. The cost ranges from an estimated low of $108,250 to a high of $203,000, with the most expensive variable being the amount spent on improving a storefront. Vaccaro declined to discuss his exact start-up costs for the business, which created 10 new jobs for the seven-days-a-week salon.

Entrepreneurs like Vaccaro will open franchises at a greater clip than non-franchise businesses in 2013, said IHS Global Insight, a business forecasting firm. In its Franchise Business Economic Outlook for May, Global Insight projected that U.S. franchises will grow at an annual rate of 1.5 percent, compared with a projected 1.2 percent growth for all establishments in the 10 business lines where Global Insight tracks franchise performance.

Vaccaro said a benefit of franchising is tapping into the franchiser's expertise in hiring and other matters.

"There were no great hurdles that would deter me from opening another one in the very near future," he said. "The average (Great Clips) franchisee owns five salons after five years of opening the first."

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