Archive for Items Categorized 'Avanti Magazine', only excerpts shown, click title for full entry.

Easing The Burden Of Rising Labor Costs

  One of the bigger issues causing tremendous concern for 7-Eleven franchisees these days is the wave of minimum wage increases spreading across the country. As small business owners it’s very troubling to see cities raising their minimum wages from $7.25 an hour or a little more, to as much as $15 an hour, because […]

On The Path To System Improvements

  Running a successful 24/7 convenience store business is challenging during the best of times, but it becomes downright discouraging when your franchisor creates more problems before solving the ones you already have. That has been the situation for franchisees over the last several years, but things as of late have been changing, and SEI […]

National Coalition Solicits Franchisee Opinions And Views

  As your General Counsel, one of my roles is to ensure that the issues we advance on behalf of the National Coalition accurately reflect the priorities, concerns and viewpoints of not just the Executive Officers and the Board, but also of the constituent franchisees who are members of the FOAs that comprise what is […]

Holistic Review Or Smoke And Mirrors? Survival Of A Franchisee.

  ‘Smoke and mirrors’ is a metaphor for a deceptive, fraudulent or insubstantial explanation or description. The source of the name is based on magicians’ illusions, where magicians make objects appear or disappear by extending or retracting mirrors amid a distracting burst of smoke. The expression may have a connotation of virtuosity or cleverness in […]

Too Many FOAs Is A Serious Problem

  I’ve been in the 7-Eleven system for a very long time and I’ve seen my share of ups and downs. As the Vice President of the FOAC and Vice Chairman of the National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees (NCASEF), I am very aware of the activities of other 7-Eleven FOAs throughout the country […]

FIW: The Way We Knew It

  Over the last several years, franchisees have been embroiled in a great number of conflicts with SEI over policies, processes and program changes we believe have caused more harm than good to storeowners. The Financial Impact Worksheet (FIW) was one of those processes that caused our relationship with 7-Eleven to get contentious and reach […]

A 10-Year Versus 15-Year Franchise Agreement

  Over the last few months there has been talk about the new franchise agreement coming out within the next few years. The majority of franchisees are due for an agreement renewal in 2019, so the discussion always turns to what the agreement was like when we first franchised into the system versus the agreement […]

The Proof Of The Pudding Is In The Eating

  7-Eleven franchisees over the last several months have been experiencing momentous change in approach from SEI management that seems unprecedented in the recent history of the National Coalition. Although the two organizations don’t always see eye-to-eye, franchisees have seen SEI reaching out on both national and local levels to work more closely with franchisees, […]

National Labor Relations Board Attacks The Franchise Model

  One of my most important roles as General Counsel of your National Coalition is to monitor legal developments that could have an impact on your franchised businesses. One of the most important and widely reported such developments are proceedings brought by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against McDonald’s and several of its franchisees. […]

As Franchisees See It When ‘Everything Old Is New Again’

  Australian songwriter and performer Peter Allen—along with his writing partner, Carole Bayer—created a popular all-time favorite song of the ‘70s, the classic “Everything Old Is New Again.” Among the lyrics, which evoke a timeless truth: Don’t throw the past away You might need it some rainy day Dreams can come true again When everything […]