Though the newest Wild Birds Unlimited (WBU) franchise store owners value the recommendations and support given by the franchisor, they’re enjoying their autonomy and being in charge of their careers despite these difficult economic times.
Joe and Sharon Kaestner’s store in Huntersville, North Carolina has been open for eight months, and David Covey and Mary Anne Kenefic’s store in Mesa, Arizona has been open since March of 2009. Both stores are meeting goals developed by the individual owners and trending ahead of system averages for new stores.
“At the time we started down the path of owning a WBU franchise the economy was still pretty good,” said Joe Kaestner, co-owner of the Huntersville store. “The big down-turn happened in September 2008, less than one month before we opened our doors. By that time we were fully committed, so we kept going and decided to act as if the economy would rebound soon. We decided to approach our first year as if we were a two or three year old store and set our monthly goals accordingly. So far, we are right on track,” added Kaestner.
The Mesa store owners were not as far along in the process and had to makes some key decisions about opening a business during the recession.
