We’re offering an affordable franchise opportunity in a SURGING industry, so it’s not surprising that our growth shows no signs of stopping!
Footprints Floors has a new owner, Chico Negual. He was so confident in our franchise that he didn’t just buy one, but three territories in West Houston, Texas!
We got the chance to talk to Chico and see what his experience was, learn more about him, his background, and what led him to become a Franchise Owner.
From Finance to Flooring
Chico has an impressive list of qualifications. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the University of Arkansas, a Master’s Degree in Finance and Economics from West Texas University, a certification in Quantitative Finance, and also has Project Management Professional PMP certification.
Both Chico and his wife were originally from Jacksonville, Arkansas, and relocated to Houston in 2014. He’s owned a lab testing franchise in the past, from 2009-2014, but this didn’t suit him as he was trying to run it as an absentee owner, which didn’t work out.
Funnily enough, Chico actually came across our franchise by accident! He had been looking for a business that was unique, simple, flexible, and profitable. In his words, “I was looking for a unicorn and I’ve been looking for it for years.”
Chico stumbled on an ad for Footprints Floors and was interested in our declaration of a reasonably-priced highly profitable flooring business opportunity. He submitted his info and didn’t think much of it, but in a few days, he got a call from us to chat about the franchise. He started the conversation without high expectations but came out of it hooked.
This isn’t the first time that this has happened, of course. Our model is unique because we took the standard idea of a flooring company and reinvented it to be a simpler, more efficient, and extremely affordable franchise model.
An Affordable Franchise in a SURGING Industry
The average investment is between just $68,130 – $95,580 for a single territory. You don’t need employees or a showroom because it’s all home-based. This means that you can manage your business and hire subcontractors to do every single job for you. You don’t pay rent, there isn’t any build-out and no HR costs.
Best of all, the low overhead required for starting a Footprints Floors franchise means high potential for profitability, with many of our Franchise Owners reporting a breakeven period of just several months on the job! On top of that, we have outstanding economics – we reach and service more customers than any of our competitors. Our average system-wide revenues are $747,401.*
Perhaps best of all, we have unmatched backend support, with a corporate call center that handles everything from lead generation to appointment scheduling to customer service! Our support system is industry-leading, and no other private flooring franchise has replicated our proprietary system.
In addition, our flooring franchise support team covers customer service, lead generation and marketing, and all ongoing support functions. All this and more has meant that Footprints Floors ranked #463 on 2021’s Entrepreneur 500 list- a prestigious honor for franchise brands of all sizes.
Chico has said that he feels Footprints Floors is the right fit for him because of its unique business model, but also because he’s always been attracted to the service industry and providing people a service.
Besides these aspects of our affordable franchise, Chico also said: “Many things attracted me to this business model, but the centralized call center made all the sense in the world to me. Having a call center schedule appointments for you lowers your overhead and allows you the additional time to do estimates and check on jobs. I also like the flexibility of the business as well as the family-friendly schedule.”
It’s easy to see why Chico feels this way because we love making sure that our Franchise Owners have a good work/life balance. As a Franchise Owner, Chico is able to spend quality time with his wonderful wife of 6 years and his three children, who are 4, 2, and 7 months old, respectively.
Chico enjoys learning new things, expanding his knowledge through courses, books, and interactive lessons. Achieving new goals and renewing the bar to a higher setting keep him challenged continuously and leave him with a deep sense of accomplishment. He also enjoys golfing and trading.
Chico’s Franchise Journey
Chico’s attention may have been caught by our affordable franchise business model and how we’re built around a centralized call center, but when he learned about our commitment to customer satisfaction and outstanding service, he was even more intrigued.
“I learned about how they market and advertise online with the ability to scale up or down as necessary,” he recalls. “Then I considered the current industry standards and the great potential for improvement and it began to make more and more sense.”
Chico’s personal experience with contracting services for home improvement projects also played a key role in his decision to franchise with Footprints Floors.
He recalls, “Earlier this year my wife and I hired a contractor to build a deck and extend our patio in our back yard, and just a month ago we had our roof replaced by a contractor. We’ve had a lot of recent experiences with independent contractors, some have been good, others have been horrible. Our recent experience with a contractor ultimately sold me on the idea that residential contractors need to be held to a higher standard. The proven system that this company provides, plus the revenue potential is a winning combination.”
Chico also liked the idea that he could start out in the booming home service industry with minimal overhead and resources. Our affordable franchise is also easier to control and scale, unlike restaurants where you generally require significant initial investments and many more key employees to start. We love hearing it, Chico!
After attending Discovery Day at our headquarters in Colorado, Chico was able to see firsthand what our affordable franchise offers in terms of support and to get to know Founder Bryan Park and the rest of the corporate team.
He says, “Discovery Day was unique and very insightful. We had the opportunity to meet the owner, go out on some jobs, and go out on a couple of estimates. I feel like we got the chance to see what a ‘day in the life’ felt like. Additionally, we got to see the home office and meet the corporate team.”
We do Discovery Day for precisely this reason, because we want our prospective Franchise Owners to know what they can expect when they join us. We don’t want them to have any surprises, in line with what our Founder had in mind when he started Footprints Floors.
Chico enjoyed meeting the whole crew, describing them as “very personable and down to earth. They were very knowledgeable and easy to work with.”
As for the best part of his experience with the Footprints Floors corporate team so far, Chico says that that would be his franchise development coordinator, Brian Knuth. “Brian Knuth has been outstanding,” he says. “He was never pushy or rude, always very professional and very knowledgeable about both the business and franchising in general. I didn’t feel as if I was being sold to or deceived by the numbers. He also made himself very available to me and was very transparent, which are attributes I greatly appreciate.”
Looking Ahead to Flooring Franchise Success
Chico believes that proper planning and execution are the key to succeeding in this business. Following the proven system, having the skill set to help customers and providing excellent customer service is how he plans on success. On advice to potential Franchise Owners, Chico says to do your homework. Not just on the business, but also potential territories available.
When looking ahead to his future as a Footprints Floors Frachise Owner, Chico has this to say: “I look forward to the freedom and flexibility of my workday. I also look forward to having control over my income, expenses, retirement planning, and vacation scheduling.”
Footprints Floors is a home-based, affordable franchise that puts the focus on a quality customer experience. With no inventory, showrooms, or payroll staff to worry about, and a corporate call center handling lead generation, appointment scheduling, and customer service queries, Franchise Owners can concentrate on growing their business and enjoying a flexible, healthy work-life balance.
If you’d like to follow in Chico’s “Footprints” and open an affordable franchise in the surging home improvement industry, now’s the time to act!