If you have been in the franchise industry for a while, or even if you are new, we’re sure you already know the name Patrick Elsner! But do you know Patrick’s story? How he started in the business, or how many people he has helped over the years? Well, you’re in luck because we sat down and asked Patrick to share all of his secrets!
How Did It All Start?
Prior to franchise consulting, Patrick was the manager of the St. Louis Cardinals radio network. Sounds like a cool job, right? So, what was the pain point that made him start looking at other opportunities? It is the same pain point we hear a lot at Raintree- “I was managing 28 salespeople and I couldn’t stand it. I was sick of herding cats!”
During his time with the radio network, Patrick was introduced to the franchising world as he found himself selling sports sponsorships to local Franchise Owners. The more he learned about franchising the more intrigued he was to start his own business.
Like a lot of people, when Patrick started to look into franchising he decided to work with a franchise consultant, someone to give him guidance and provide an expert opinion. Originally, Patrick was interested in a tax franchise, but through time what ended up happening was that he took over the business that had belonged to his own franchise consultant upon his retirement. Patrick saw it as an ideal opportunity, primarily because it meant no employees!
Now, 18 years later Patrick still enjoys what he does every single day.
What Does Patrick Look For in the Brands he Presents?
Being in the industry for 18 years, Patrick has seen many trends and franchise concepts come and go. Because of this, he has a specific idea of what he looks for in brands that he presents to his clients. He explains, “The brands I show must have a unique selling proposition. They need to put a different spin on a common model.”
In order to find these brands, Patrick usually sticks with emerging concepts because they are new and exciting. One of the reasons Patrick loves working with Raintree is our focus on emerging brands and our dedication to only working with unique options in the marketplace.
One of the Raintree brands Patrick has had success with recently is Footprints Floors, placing two new Owners this year: one in Atlanta, Georgia, and the other in Asheville, North Carolina. He says, “My advice to consultants thinking about showing Footprints Floors is, don’t! I want to keep the brand all to myself. But in all seriousness, at the end of the day, every consultant is looking to show a concept that validates well, has strong profitability, and a team that can sell. Footprints Floors has all of this and more.”
500 Placements Later…
That is not a made-up number! Over the past 18 years, Patrick has helped 500 entrepreneurs. The number is probably higher, but Patrick wanted to remain conservative. “I feel like I have found a lot of success as a franchise consultant because I understand the industry and I know what makes Franchise Owners tick,” he says.
For example, Patrick regularly picks the brain of a close friend of his who is the largest Stanley Steemer Franchise Owner in St. Louis to find out what will draw someone toward pursuing business ownership.
Outside of this knowledge and intuition, Patrick breaks down his success very simply, saying, “There isn’t a magic formula to being successful. It comes from hard work, dedication, and wanting to put the effort in. I have 75-plus people in my pipeline at any given time so I do my admin work at night or on the weekends to keep my days open for calls. I have made franchise consulting a full-time career as it should be. Consulting is not something someone should do on the side. The dedication to my clients is really what has allowed me to differentiate myself from the other 99% out there. Also, as the youngest of 10 children, I am competitive and I want to crush other consultants!”
Congratulations, Patrick, on being our October Consultant of the Month! Here at Raintree we are all motivated by your hard work and success in the industry and look forward to working closely together in the future.
