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Giving Something Back to America's Veterans: The VetFran Program
Military veterans often have characteristics that lead to success in franchising, and the VetFran Program is dedicated to lowering the barriers for veterans who want to own a franchise.
The Iraq War is producing another generation of U.S. Armed Services veterans hungry for post-war work. These new veterans join those from the earlier Gulf War, plus Vietnam, Korea, and even World War II, who are still active in the business world. For any veteran, the most difficult part of the mustering out transition can be getting started in a new job. To help with this transition, the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative, or VetFran, is designed to lower the barriers to veterans becoming franchise owners.
Franchise Ownership: An Ideal Fit for Veterans with Leadership Skills
Home ownership is sometimes described as the American Dream, but for the career-minded, the real dream is owning a business. Franchise ownership offers a ready path toward realizing this ambition. The challenges facing a new business include developing a competitive product line, establishing a recognizable brand, and discovering sustainable business methods. For veterans who choose franchise ownership, these challenges have already been conquered.
Doing business the franchise way offers a formula for success. Franchises account for over 40% of U.S. retail sales, a hefty market share considering that they represent only 12% of all businesses. Given their healthy volume, it's not surprising that more than 94% of newly-franchised outlets are successful.
What does it take to run a successful franchise? Leadership skills, discipline, and a strong work ethic are key ingredients. Not surprisingly, many veterans feel these are precisely the attributes that military service helped them developed. Consequently, franchise ownership and military experience can be an ideal fit.
The VetFran Program: Lowering the Barrier to Entry
The biggest barrier to entry for a new business is the upfront cost. In many ways, franchising can help reduce that cost and make financing more attainable, but it still takes some upfront investment by the prospective business owner. That's not a bad thing--the success rate of franchises would probably not be so high if franchisees didn't have to make a measurable commitment to get into the game.
Still, those upfront costs can be a challenge for new veterans. It is generally more difficult for people in the military to save substantial sums of money than for people in higher-paying civilian jobs.
To level this playing field, the International Franchise Association, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, created the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative, or VetFran. The design of this program is to make it easier for veterans to become franchise owners.
All veterans of the U.S. Armed Services who have been honorably discharged are eligible for the VetFran program. Some 200 companies participate in the program, and though the terms vary from company to company, the focus is on reducing the barriers to franchise ownership. This is done by focusing on franchises that require relatively small initial investments and then providing a unique financial incentive (i.e., one available only to veterans) to lower the initial down payment. Along with a small business loan, this can lower the initial investment to 10% of the total franchise cost.
Veterans have taken notice: in recent years, literally hundreds of them have participated in the VetFran program.
Entrepreneurship: A Privilege of Freedom
Entrepreneurship is one of the unique privileges of a free society. The VetFran program acts on the belief that those who have fought to defend that society should be given every opportunity to reap its benefits. If you have earned an honorable discharge from military service, you have earned the right to participate in this program. You may find it the path toward achieving career prosperity.
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