From one store to multiple locations, Joni Lien, Founder of SupperWorks takes us through the SupperWorks story. This a great, inspirational interview on how to franchise a business. We learn the difference between having one store and working ‘in’ your business and becoming a visionary, business development builder in her role as a franchisor. Joni explains the essential elements needed to become a franchisor and how her franchise model has changed over the years.
Originally, the founders planned to open the first Oakville, Ontario store and then a second location. Franchising wasn’t even a consideration. That all changed when Macleans magazine featured SupperWorks in an article soon after they opened our doors. After that came countless TV, newspaper, and magazine interviews, and customers came from as far as Ottawa. Requests for SupperWorks franchises came from customers who loved the service but didn’t live in Oakville.
If you live in Canada SupperWorks has a special offer for you. If you live outside Canada, then this fabulous garlic chicken piccata recipe is just what you need for dinner tonight!
Joni Lien Bio
We got our start in the summer of 2005 when a friend saw an article in Oprah Magazine about how “meal assembly businesses” make family dinners easy to prepare and also save money (compared to restaurants and take-out). “Meal assembly” is a concept that had been around in the US for a few years, but there were no meal assembly businesses in Canada at the time. We didn’t have entrepreneurial backgrounds but the idea resonated so strongly that we took a leap of faith, mortgaged our homes, and launched SupperWorks in Oakville, Ontario in November 2005.
Today, SupperWorks is the leading meal assembly business in Canada, with multiple locations in Ontario and have now added home and office delivery across the country. We’re proudly 100% Canadian owned and operated.
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