I’ve seen it many times. A certain market or industry becomes "hot" and all the sudden franchises start popping up all over the place. For example, a few years ago the 24/7 fitness market took off. In the Des Moines, Iowa area there were all kinds of fitness franchises that entered the 24/7
Incorporation and LLC Formation
Lesson # 3 From Hard Luck Franchisees: Franchisor Reservation of Rights to Sell or Transfer Business
This is Lesson #3 in a five-part series on the top reasons I’ve seen franchisees fail.
Tucked away in nearly every franchise agreement is a provision that very few franchisees consider when they are purchasing a franchise business. The provision I am referencing gives a franchisor the right to sell or transfer its business…
Business Partnerships Need Communication
Mike Colwell of THE BIZ posted a presentation I have on Partnering for his Raising Capital series. One of the biggest things a partnership needs is communication. Like any good marriage, communication is the key. Business partners that communicate effectively are much more likely to be successful. Also, proper documentation is a key. Without…
Iowa Business Specialty Court Pilot Project
The Iowa Supreme Court has announced that it is beginning a three-year project for an Iowa Business Specialty Court for complex cases with $200,000 or more in dispute. To begin the project, three Iowa judges will be hired for the court based upon their educational background, judicial and trial experience with complex commercial cases…
Evaluating a Franchise Opportunity
In meeting after meeting with prospective franchisees I am asked what I would look for in a franchise opportunity. It’s not an easy question. But trust me when I say that all franchise opportunities are NOT created the same.
What separates the good franchising opportunities from the bad franchising opportunities in my experience? Here are…
Employers Should Consider Policies on Ownership of Social Media Accounts
Daniel Burnick of the Alabama Employment Law Report has an interesting post on a case involving a disputed Twitter account where the employee left his employment, changed his Twitter account name and then kept all the followers he had with his former employer.
In Kravitz v. PhoneDog, Kravitz used @phonedog for his Twitter account…
IASourceLink is an Online Resource Tool For Iowa Small Businesses
IASourceLink.com is a new online resource available to help small business owners and entrepreneurs across Iowa. I haven’t had a ton of time to explore the site but I impressed with the information available on my initial review.
One neat feature is the Iowa Business Concierge service available in collaboration with MyEntre.Net. The business…
Choosing the Business Entity that’s Right for You
Do you know the difference between sole proprietorships, partnerships, corporations and limited liability companies? Do you know whether to set up an S corporation or is a C corporation better for you? Are limited liability companies really all that and a bag of chips?
If you are considering a business you should join me for…
Be Aware of Independent Contractor Misclassification
In my last post I shared my ABI Quick Bits Interview on Wage & Hour Lawsuits. In that interview I discussed how I often hear employers reference "1099 employees". I cautioned that you should make sure not to confuse independent contractors and employees. They are separate worker classifications and it’s important the your workers…
ABI Quick Bits: Wage and Hour Lawsuits
I recently sat down for an interview with Leisa Fox of the Iowa Association of Business & Industry to discuss wage and hour lawsuits. For a blog post I wrote on the topic see here.
Be sure to check out the other Quick Bits videos on a variety of business topics from