Louisville, KY --(PR.com)-- Maggie and Brian Harlow, owners of Sign-A-Rama Downtown in Louisville and recent inductees into the Sign-A-Rama corporate Hall of Fame, will embark on a speaking tour across Europe on behalf of the national Sign-A-Rama franchise group. The couple will make stops in Paris, France; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Milan, Italy; Frankfurt, Germany and Madrid, Spain, October 17-26.
"As an international franchise operation, it is crucial for franchisees around the world to learn from each other," said Scott Mast, vice president, Global Performance, Sign-A-Rama. "This is a direct opportunity to have some of our most accomplished franchisees interact with others in Europe."
"Sign-A-Rama sets out every year to bring successful franchise owners from the U.S. to visit other countries in order to spread good ideas and energy that America seems to have in excess," said Maggie. "It's a huge honor to be selected and is an opportunity of a lifetime for Brian and me to meet other entrepreneurs across Europe."
Sign-A-Rama approached the Harlows to participate in the tour because of the success of their franchise as well as personal success stories. The Harlows opened their Sign-A-Rama location in 2003 and did over $1.2 million in sales during that first year of business – a franchise record for a new location. Their sales last year were $1.7+ million, preceded by $1.1+ million in 2007. The Harlows have also been honored with several other corporate franchise awards including the 2008 President's Award, Outstanding Achievement in 2006 and 2004, Mentor of the Year in 2005 and Rookie of the Year in 2004. Additionally, the Harlows are set to open the call for their 4th annual Signs of Support nominations this month. Through the Signs of Support program, the Harlows donate approximately $20,000 in free and discounted signage to non-profit and charitable organizations in the Louisville community.
"Maggie and Brian are Sign-A-Rama franchise owners who are both accomplished and professional individuals who can mentor and teach others on a first-class level," said Scott Mast.
As part of their presentation, the Harlows are producing a video showcasing their staff and the operational highlights of their store.
"Brian and I were beyond elated to be selected to visit the European Sign-A-Rama franchisees to talk about how we built our business here in Louisville and are looking forward to the chance to learn from other franchise owners as well," said Maggie.
According to Mast, Sign-A-Rama aims to help fellow franchise owners grow and learn how to better operate their stores by learning from those with a successful business model already in place.
"The message is simple. By learning from franchises with successful business practices, others will be able to follow their success," he said.
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