via Entrepreneur (By: Cheryl Munk) The coming year isn't likely to be a home run for franchise growth, but it won't be a no-hitter either. The number of franchise establishments in the U.S. is expected to rise by a modest 1.4 percent to 757,055 in 2013, according to a report released yesterday by the International Franchise Association (IFA). The industry grew by 1.5 percent in 2012. Uncertainty about the economy and fiscal issues are expected to weigh on the franchise sector in 2013, but it is still expected to outpace other industries in terms of growth, according to the report. The franchise industry is expected to add 162,000 jobs in 2013. That's a 2 percent increase from 2012 bringing the total to an anticipated 8.26 million jobs. According to their findings, the IFA … [Read more...]

Loan program helps veterans access capital at low rates to buy a franchise or start a business The VBF provides capital to veterans in the form of a non-interest bearing loan with very favorable repayment terms. The VBF was established to help veteran entrepreneurs get equity financing to start a franchise or another type of independent small business. Veterans who have been previously denied bank financing because of insufficient equity capital are encouraged to apply for VBF financing. Getting a small business bank loan is particularly challenging for veterans, who are less likely than others to have access to capital in the form of home equity, investments or a 401k that they have been funding for years. The VBF is managed by BoeFly, a New York-based marketplace that connects … [Read more...]

Originally posted by Mike Sheehan on Blue Mau Mau The credit crisis that began in 2007 is driving many of the developing trends in the franchise industry. Franchisors are refranchising, providing financial incentives and funding support to franchisees and pivoting toward multi-unit franchisees, all at least partly in response to credit access issues. Franchisor Funding Support & Franchisee Incentives With the franchise lending still facing challenges as recently underscored by a 2 percent year-over-year drop in the IFA/BoeFly Franchise Lending Index, many franchisors are beginning to take steps to provide or guarantee funding for prospective and existing franchisees. … [Read more...]

Originally posted by Laurie Kuilowski on TheStreet.com  Still, for all the effort being put into motion to turn more military vets toward entrepreneurism, in the end it is all about money. Starting a business or a franchise requires savings that not many military vets (especially the younger veterans) are like to have. One new organization taking an initiative to help more veterans access capital is The Veterans Business Fund, a not-for-profit organization created to provide financial assistance to veterans. It plans to launch on Monday its first low-interest loan for veterans. The organization was established in response to the high unemployment rate among veterans, many of whom are skilled through their military experience to become successful small-business owners, but lack … [Read more...]

Carol Tice, of Forbes, reports that franchising is one bright spot in an otherwise bleak job outlook for unemployed veterans. Most people probably think of fast-food restaurants when they think of franchising, but the industry is far more diverse than that. Many franchises involve getting out in the community or working outdoors, doing jobs from house painting to pet care to pest extermination and more. This is a mode of employment many vets find a more natural segue from service as opposed to working in an office behind a desk. One piece of good news for veterans who aspire to buying a franchise — a new nonprofit launched today aims to help more veterans find the funding they need to get started as franchise owners. The Veterans Business Fund's mission is to provide low-interest … [Read more...]

BoeFly was featured today in TheStreet.com for it's launch of the Veteran's Business Fund. The Veteran's Business Fund is a not-for-profit organization created by BoeFly and is specifically designed to provide the equity injection needed to obtain a small business loan in today's lending climate.  By providing low interest loans through the Veteran's Business Fund, Veterans can now obtain access to higher capitalized loans in which they would normally would not have access to. Said Co-President of BoeFly Mike Rozman, "We created the Veterans Business Fund to provide veterans with the supplemental capital required to satisfy the equity requirements for a small-business loan, and ultimately help make it possible for them to apply their military experience to owning a business while … [Read more...]

Originally Published in Bloomberg Businessweek.  Written by Nick Leiber , Small Business editor for Businessweek.com  The middlemen aren’t lenders and don’t act like traditional loan brokers, who tend to specialize in a single industry. Instead, the sites analyze would-be borrowers’ financial data to assess risk, then funnel their assessments to banks, credit unions, and alternative lenders. The amounts requested generally range from a few thousand dollars to a few million. While the firms make no guarantees a deal will close, they trumpet approval rates of 70 percent to 80 percent, along with the ability to slash the time it takes to process a bank loan from months to weeks. Executives at the four sites say they expect to complete a total of more than $1.5 billion in lending … [Read more...]

Atlanta's premier business talk show host, Allen Butler, is joined in studio by Mike Rozman, BoeFly co-president. During the discussion, Butler and Rozman cover the best way to seek a small business loan, whether or not banks are lending today, and the benefit of getting banks to compete for a small business owners financing needs.  Hear the story of how an Atlanta start-up of the franchise Kennedy's Cuts secured a start-up loan, or hear why emerging franchise brand, Fresh2Order, feels it is important to support franchisees with financing. … [Read more...]

A husband-and-wife franchisee team, Mark and Ebony Satterfield of East Stroudsburg, are preparing to open the Pocono area's first Saladworks restaurant this year, largely thanks to a $340,000 start-up Small Business Association loan, but they took a very uncommnon route to this area. The couple harnessed the effort of BoeFly, an online marketplace that works like a Match.com for small business lending by connecting borrowers with more than 2,200 lenders nationwide, based on compatibility between the borrowers and lenders. It curently has 6,000 borrowers enlisted. "We found BoeFly incredibly easy to use, and we were blown away at how many serious lenders we met," said Mark Satterfield as he and his wife are members of JTS Enterprises LLC. They plan on opening their franchise on the … [Read more...]

Ben Heineman of 1851 Franchise Project sat down with Co-Founder, Co-President, and COO David Nayor to find out his thoughts on what entrepreneurs can do to launch their dream. David recommends a mix of technology and word of mouth to bolster your business.  Read the full interview here. … [Read more...]