Empower Brands' CEO Scott Zide Discusses Strategies, Trends, and Differentiation

Known for shaking up the franchising scene with innovative strategies, Empower Brands is all about empowering entrepreneurs. With a lineup of diverse franchise concepts such as, Jan-Pro, Canopy Lawn Care, and FRSTeam, the company is paving the way for their business owners to shine. In this interview, CEO of Empower Brands Scott Zide, dives into his experience, insights, and what he says sets Empower Brands apart from the competition.

How has the landscape of franchising evolved in the last year?

Zide: Like all businesses franchising has had to shift, adapt, and evolve with the times. Through inflation, recession, restrictive labor environments franchising has had to adapt. At Empower, because we possess key differentiators in the home services sector we’ve continued to see growth and profitability. Despite headwinds we’ve continued to grow.

What emerging trends do you see shaping the industry in the coming year?

Zide: First and foremost we live in a digital world. Franchisors are going to have to invest in and employ technology so they can focus on the customer experience and changing customers. Your new customer wants a personalized experience, they want the work done faster, and they want you using the latest and greatest tech.

What strategies has Empower Brands implemented to support franchisees?

Zide: Focus on unit level economics and the success and profitability of our franchisees. A lot of our resources stem back to our support teams. Over the last year our support team has doubled in size which lends itself to greater care and expertise for our franchisees. We’ve also just deployed the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) for not only our corporate teams but down to our individual franchisees. Lastly is our commitment and investment in both technology like AI and data, and using both of those to be more innovative.

How does Empower Brands differentiate itself from competitors in the franchising space?

Zide: Our size and scale allows us the resources to innovate and invest in initiatives to expand our products and service offerings more rapidly. Culturally we differentiate by putting our people first no matter what brand you work for. Bottom line, the success of our franchisees is always at the forefront of what we do.

What qualities or characteristics do you look for in potential franchisees?

Zide: We are looking for someone who is a driven, type A, and a motivated individual. Potential prior franchising experience but not a dealbreaker. Sales, marketing, or business background. Leadership skills. Background of building and developing teams. Optimism and a glass half full outlook. They have to want to be part of something bigger than themselves.

How has the pool of potential franchisees changed in the past years?

Zide: The pool is beginning to skew a little bit younger. Millennials are moving into the driver's seat. Starting to have families, generating wealth, and looking to work for themselves. Candidates are also looking for tech and innovation. That’s the world we live in now. I would say we’re also seeing potential candidates who have loftier goals want more out of life than we’ve seen in the past.

What advice would you give emerging franchisors looking to grow their concept into a thriving system?

Zide: Focus on the success of the franchisees. Put your support team in place before the franchise system grows. Ensure you have proven systems. Use technology where you can.

Looking ahead, what are the goals for Empower Brands in terms of franchise expansion?

Zide: Growing where we’re at. We have a significant amount of white space left within all of our brands. We want to nurture what we have while focusing on the customer experience and differentiating from our competitors.