Erik Van Horn is an entrepreneur, advisor and the co-founder of Front Street Equity Partners, a strategic advisory and private equity investment firm focused on the franchise industry.

After purchasing his first Liberty Tax Service franchise, Erik went full throttle, eventually growing to 42 locations. After that, Erik built out the blueprint to successful franchising, buying seven more brands as a franchisee, exploring the franchisor space and making a successful 8-figure exit to private equity.

For entrepreneurs looking to build an owner-absentee business, franchising can feel like a logical journey. So today, I’m sitting down with Erik to get the scoop on the franchising world. What are the steps to success? What are the pitfalls? And how can interested investors make their first move into franchising?

Erik Van Horn Tweetables

• “For a typical entrepreneur or someone that wants to leave their 9-to-5 or doesn’t have a job anymore and they want to be self-employed, franchising is kind of an easy next step for them as a franchisee because they just go in and they should just execute what the brand has proven to be true.” – Erik Van Horn

• “If I’m going to be an investor in a brand, I want that brand to be proven.” – Erik Van Horn

• “Look for brands that have high employee retention and the employees actually enjoy working there because it’s a good work environment and they can’t make more money anywhere else.” – Erik Van Horn