Franchising is a promising business model for young entrepreneurs
Summary
Young people are taking up franchising, driven by the trend towards autonomy and innovation. The sustainable segment such as photovoltaic energy attracts the attention of this audience.
Entrepreneurship is becoming a trend among younger audiences, such as Generation Z. According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, about 8 million young Brazilians, between the ages of 18 and 24, are ahead of their own businesses. This statistic reveals a growing desire, and increasingly earlier, for autonomy, financial independence and innovation.
In this scenario, franchising is in the sights of this entrepreneurial profile. With little experience in the business world, the franchising model is attractive to young people as it offers support, structure and expertise from the franchisor, facilitating this journey towards entrepreneurship.
This is evident in the numbers. For the second consecutive year, there has been a 10% increase in the acquisition of franchises by young people under 24, either directly or with the participation of their parents in the negotiations. Power Mais Energia Fotovoltaica, a sustainable solutions franchise, operates in a growing franchise segment and has attracted the attention of young entrepreneurs.
From friends to Power Mais franchise partners
The young Gabriel Borges Reis Paiva and Filipe Renan de Santana Santos are included in these estimates of young people who undertake franchising activities. Today they are 26 years old, but, when they invested in a Power Mais franchise, a location in Salvador (BA), in 2022, they were 24.
The two met during their freshman year at Engineering College in 2016 and struck up a friendship. Conversations about starting a business began during this time. “Whenever we had the opportunity, we would stop and talk about the future and what we wanted for our careers, so we always had a business idea,” Gabriel says. They simply didn’t know at the time that they would be in the solar industry.
Even after finishing university, the friendship remained and the idea of starting a business was not discarded. It was Filipe who, some time later, had the opportunity to collaborate and invited Gabriel to join the partnership. This eight-year complicity helps in the daily activity, but each has their own specialty, although they are involved in all the functions of the company.
“I take care of financial management and the network, while Gabriel is responsible for quality control of installations and customer service, we both take care of sales,” explains Filipe.
As for the difficulties of starting a business in partnership, Gabriel believes that it is not very different from starting it alone. “I think one of the great challenges of starting a business in general, both individually and in a company, is the beginning, because the company is like a child, which at the beginning depends a lot on its parents, and you have to be willing to fight for the company to succeed.”
Franchising makes it easier to enter the business world
Franchises are a good investment opportunity for young people because they are already a formatted business and follow a replicable pattern. In addition, they offer all the structure and support to make the operation easier.
Typically, franchises target young people in these two profiles: those who are looking to start a business to escape the traditional job market, in the CLT format, and those who want to expand their earning possibilities with a second source of income.
This is the case of partners Gabriel and Filipe. Both continue with parallel work. While Gabriel combines the Power Mais franchise with an electrical installation and maintenance company, Filipe also works in a marketing group and provides web services and computer maintenance.
Sustainable solutions have growth potential
One of the main factors driving young people to franchise is their affinity for technology. Lucien Newton, franchise expert and vice president of the consulting vertical at 300 High Impact Ecosystem, notes that younger generations are particularly adept at using technology tools to market and manage their businesses.
Among the various investment opportunities, Newton also states that there are promising segments that attract the attention of this audience and that continue to grow. Among these is the Sustainability segment, which includes solutions for renewable energy, recycling, urban agriculture and conscious consumption.
In addition to being a rapidly expanding market, other Power Mais locations have piqued the interest of the partner duo. “Power Mais currently has the most welcoming franchise relationship in the area, as it is a company with more than 10 years in the national market; the fact that there are no royalties and that the distribution of profits is made as sales occur. All of this weighed heavily on our decision.”
In this way, the two invested in a franchise unit, using the home office business model, but with the future intention of migrating to a store. “One of the reasons to start in a home office mode as well is the possibility of moving within the state in search of new potential customers,” they say.
The duo also reveals that Bahia is increasingly demanding sustainable solutions. The trend now is to create mini-plants to serve small businesses and farms. And in the residential sector, many are migrating from combustion-powered cars to electric ones, which implies the need for a charging system.
Despite the short time spent in the company, the two are satisfied with the results and optimistic about the future, and they also encourage other young people to become entrepreneurs. “Starting early to gain first experiences with business and how everything works can guarantee a bright future, especially in an area with such a stimulating financial return,” says Filipe. However, he emphasizes that despite the advantages, the investor profile must be down to earth, study processes and sales, and have the energy and creativity to deal with unexpected problems.
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Source: Terra
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
