Opening a Franchise at the Lake: Start With the Site

Most of what’s written about opening a franchise is about which brand to buy. Lists of franchise opportunities and the best franchises to own are easy to find. Much less gets said about where the store goes, even though the franchisor will have a say in it and the location is the one part of the deal you can’t fix after you open.

This post is about that part: what franchisors look for in a site, why frontage and traffic counts carry so much weight, and the paperwork that has to happen before you sign anything.

What Franchisors Look For in a Site

You usually don’t get to pick the location on your own. The Federal Trade Commission’s guide to buying a franchise warns that many franchisors keep the right to approve sites for their outlets and may not approve a site you select.

The good news is that the franchisor has to tell you how it decides. Under the FTC’s Franchise Rule, Item 11 of the Franchise Disclosure Document has to explain, if the franchisor helps with site selection:

• whether the franchisor picks the site or approves an area where you pick it
• the factors it weighs, such as general location and neighborhood, traffic patterns, parking and size
• how long it has to find, approve or turn down a site
• what happens if the two of you can’t agree on one

Read Item 11 before you start shopping for land. It is the franchisor’s own checklist, and it tells you which sites are worth your time.

Why Frontage and Traffic Counts Matter

“Traffic patterns” is on that list for a reason. A lot of franchise concepts, from quick-service food to auto services, sell to people who are already driving by. A site on a busy road puts the brand in front of those drivers every day without paying for ads just to be seen, so expect a franchisor reviewing your site to ask how many cars pass and how easily they can get in.

Along Highway 54 in Osage Beach, traffic past 6432 Osage Beach Parkway runs 32,000 to 38,000 vehicles a day, and the property uses J-turns for safer access in and out. We covered how access and stacking shape a site in our post on what a drive-thru coffee shop site needs, and most of it applies to any franchise with a drive-thru lane.

Visibility is the other half. 5231 Osage Beach Parkway can be seen from both the main highway and the business route, which gives a brand sign two roads’ worth of drivers.

The Paperwork Timeline Before Opening a Franchise

The FTC says you must receive the Franchise Disclosure Document at least 14 days before you’re asked to sign a contract or pay the franchisor or its affiliate. The FDD has 23 numbered Items, and the FTC suggests reading every one of them.

A few Items deserve extra time when the location is on your mind:

• Item 11 covers site selection and also has to state the typical time between signing and opening, along with what can slow it down: getting a lease, financing, building permits, zoning, weather and equipment delays.
• Item 12 covers territory. The FTC notes that without territory limits, the franchisor and other franchisees may compete with you for the same customers.
• Item 19 is the only place the franchisor can make claims about sales or earnings.
• Item 20 shows growth and owner turnover in the system, and lists current and former franchisees you can call.

Use the 14 days well. Call franchisees from Item 20 and ask how their sites were chosen. Look at land while you read, so you know what’s available. But talk to your attorney before you commit to a property, since the franchisor may not approve it. This isn’t legal advice; a franchise attorney is the right person to review the FDD and any land contract.

Checking a Site Against the Item 11 List

Here’s how our two Highway 54 properties line up against the factors the Franchise Rule names. Your franchisor’s own Item 11 may list more.

Before any of this matters, the use has to be allowed. Our guide to what C-1 zoning allows in Osage Beach covers the city’s general commercial district, and our commercial lot checklist walks through grade, utilities and access. Confirm the zoning of the exact parcel with the city before you sign.

See the Sites

Both properties are part of our portfolio of Lake of the Ozarks commercial real estate. If you’re working with a franchisor’s real estate team, send them the property pages. Renderings, video and specs are all there.

6432 Osage Beach Parkway

8.6 acres on Highway 54, 2 of them ready to build on now.

See 6432 Osage Beach Pkwy

5231 Osage Beach Parkway

About 3 level acres with city water and sewer on site.

See 5231 Osage Beach Pkwy