Rare flat-fee royalty delights multi-concept owner, Chad Hames

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Meet Chad Hames, owner of two complementary franchises, Boulder Designs and Border Magic. Hames wakes up every morning loving his career!

A decade ago, just shy of his 28^th birthday, Hames became a multi-concept franchisee when he purchased a Boulder Designs franchise, and a Border Magic franchise, both brands owned by the same franchisor in Waco, TX.

In this recent interview with Dr. John P. Hayes, Hames explained how he used to dream about owning his own business. Sitting behind a desk all day was cramping his style, he elaborated, and he wanted to find a career where he could get outside some of the day and work with his hands.

Two unusual franchise concepts

Border Magic is the only franchised company in the nation that specializes in decorative concrete landscape edging. In addition, the company also offers decorative walkways, stepping stones, and commercial concrete curbing. A “sister brand,” Boulder Designs, is a one-of-a-kind business. It’s franchisees create custom boulders from sand and concrete to any shape and size you (or a customer) can think of!

Each brand requires an initial investment of $70,000, and requires a $495 flat-fee, monthly royalty, which Hames said attracted him to the businesses. With a background in sales, Hames was confident that he could attract customers, and he was happy not to pay a royalty based on volume, but instead a set monthly fee.

Hames did things the “right way”

Hames admits that while he was initially “ready to go” when he heard about these concepts, his bankers and accountants slowed him down and encouraged him to take time to be sure he was making the right decisions. For one thing, he didn’t have the required $140,000 for the two franchise fees, so he had to borrow the money using traditional sources. Fortunately, he had established both credit and trusting relationships with bankers in his small town, and that made the financing easier once he decided to move forward.

Hames’ accountant – he still uses the same accountant 10 years later – helped him understand the franchise disclosure document, and with additional input from his lenders, he was well aware of the commitments he was making when he decided to become a franchisee – twice in one day.

Now with 10 years’ experience, Hames is as enthusiastic today as he was when he first bought his businesses. However, he doesn’t underestimate the importance of the due diligence that he completed prior to buying his franchises. It’s a lesson every would-be franchisee should hear!

Categorised in: Franchise Concepts

This post was written by Dr. John Hayes