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Thanks for your question Tori. This is a great way to start our conversation about buying a business. Those are
really the three ways to think about buying a business.

Starting with a franchise, a franchise can be a great way to get started as a first time business owner. You get the benefits of an established brand
and marketing resources behind you, and you often get expertise into what areas and locations might be most beneficial for your business. Of course that support and brand come with a price, usually in terms of a franchise fee and ongoing royalties that come out of your revenue and decrease your profit.

Another option with a franchise is to buy an existing franchise location, rather than starting a new franchise location. This allows you to evaluate a business that has had some level of success in terms of building a customer base, and having a track record of revenue and profit, and an existing relationship with the franchisor. You can often buy the existing franchise from a current franchisee, or through the franchisor, depending on the situation. I tend to like this option for new buyers because it has the benefits of the franchise brand with the additional benefits of a track record of success.

In terms of buying an established (non-franchise) business, that can be a good option as well. You'll be working with an existing business owner looking to exit. You should understand why the owner is selling, and will conduct (as with any business purchase) due diligence on the business. You'll want to understand key issues like customer concentration, the businesses lease situation, and ability to retain employees.

Finally, a home-based business is often a much simpler undertaking than a physical business location. You'll have control over your own time, can often integrate the business with your own personal life and needs, and avoid some of the issues that some businesspeople don't like such as managing employees. I would caution you if you're thinking of taking advantage of a home-based business program that you may see advertised. Many of these are scams, so make sure you do your due diligence.

I hope that helps, thanks.

Hi Flex - In terms of comparing franchises, there are quite a few things to explore. First, I would get a broad overview of the market, possibly by creating a grid of all of the potential franchisors, what their up-front and royalty fees are, what support they provide in terms of brand value, marketing resources/advertising, location selection, and fit with your needs as a business-person. You can do a search on BizBuySell in our Franchise Directory, by state and franchise type. I just checked and we have 24 different fitness franchises on our site today.

Once you've narrowed your list to hopefully a few that meet your criteria and seem like the best fit for you, I would suggest speaking with other franchisees (both those recommended as references by the franchisor, and those that weren't recommended), to address your concerns, understand their level of satisfaction with the franchisor, etc.

The key criteria, aside from what I mentioned above, would be their turnover rate among franchisees, ability to re-sell and the rules/policies about that, and abililty to expand if you're successful (assuming that is of interest to you).

Regarding your question about "franchise within a franchise", I do know that it's possible, and have seen it before. Of course, you want to walk before you run, and you may want to lease out the smoothie bar or massage opportunity at first, to avoid taking on more than you can handle. Good luck with your journey, it sounds like a great path for you!