A Silver Lining Amid a Tough Year:

How Tim Busbee Discovered Our Flooring Installation Franchise

We’ve had a stellar year at Footprints Floors, as our flooring installation franchise is absolutely thriving. But that hasn’t been the case for everyone.

It’s been a bumpy year and a half for many, like Tim Busbee, one of our newest faith-based Franchise Owners, who is up and running in North Atlanta. Tim found our flooring installation franchise after losing his job due to COVID-19 layoffs.

Tim is a native of Savannah, Georgia, a seat of history, charm, and southern hospitality.

“I grew up in Savannah, Georgia and have spent most of my life here in the State of Georgia. I grew up loving sports, being outdoors and doing anything competitive,” Tim says. “My family is my passion but beyond that, I am an avid Atlanta sports fanatic, I love being outdoors and I’m a mechanical watch, wine, and equestrian enthusiast.”

Flooring installation Franchise Owner Tim Busbee

Tim’s Road to Franchise Ownership

Tim’s built a good life for himself and his family. He turned a solid education into a thriving business career at one of America’s largest companies. 

“After graduating from Georgia Southern University, I went into corporate America and eventually ended up starting a career with Enterprise Holdings in the metro Atlanta area,” Tim says. “Along the way I met my wife, Dani and moved twice for promotions. We welcomed our daughter Avery into the world while in Wilmington, North Carolina.”

Family and work go hand in hand for Tim. He’s achieved levels of success that many only dream of, and in a relatively short period of time. 

“I spent over 10 years of my professional career with Enterprise, rising through the leadership ranks, running multiple multi-million-dollar operations, and managing hundreds of employees.”

Tim worked his way up to the top of his field, but that didn’t mean he was safe. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, his upper management position was made redundant. Tim lost his job and had to scramble. He turned to his personal network for support.

“After losing my career with Enterprise due to COVID layoffs, I was in search of what my next career chapter would look like. In talking with my mentors and inner circle, the idea of franchising was brought to my attention,” Tim says.

‘Going back to corporate America was the last thing I wanted to do’

In talking with his personal network, Tim became aware of his latent love for entrepreneurship and desire to move away from corporate life. And this discussion is what started Tim’s journey to our flooring installation franchise.

“I realized going back to corporate America was the last thing that I wanted to do. Tired of office politics and companies not doing what they say they believe in. I had a vision for a better future for myself and my family,” Tim says. “I have always been an entrepreneur at heart. It was that entrepreneurial spirit burning inside me that paved the way for success in my professional career. COVID provided me this amazing opportunity to pivot and take that entrepreneurial spirit to the next step.”

Tim realized that his existing career skills would easily transfer into entrepreneurship through franchising. Unlike starting your own business from scratch, franchising with the right company plugs you into a business that’s structured, tested, and proven successful. You simply need the right personal traits to make it work.

“It was never about the cars at Enterprise, it was about people. It was about service and operating a system with a relentless pursuit of excellence. I realized that those ingredients are the same that make a successful Franchise Owner,” Tim says. “I never considered owning my own business before that conversation but what I realized is that what made me successful at Enterprise was I had an entrepreneurial spirit, loved running a business and could execute a proven business model with consistency.”

Flooring installation Franchise Owner Omar Linton

Journey down the franchising rabbit hole

The dream of being your own boss is almost universal. But not everyone has the courage to take the leap, particularly in troubling times.

Tim’s not that kind of man. Once he considered it and decided that this was the right move for his family, it was a done deal.

Tim moved forwards by consulting an expert – one of the many franchising consultants who’ve referred investors to our flooring installation franchise.

“I was referred to a franchise consultant, Anita Best, whom my father-in-law has known for years and thus began my journey down the franchising rabbit hole,” Tim says. “After getting to know me, Anita started putting a few franchises in front of me to review and Footprints was one of the very first ones.”

Industry consultants are increasingly referring their clients to Footprints Floors. They do this because of our great metrics, economics, and ease of operations. When Tim was introduced to our flooring installation franchise, his business acumen went straight to work.

“There were certain things I was looking for in a franchise: service industry, smart business model, good economics, low cost to entry and scalability,” Tim says. “I realized Footprints checked those boxes quickly. Intangibly, I was also looking for a company with a certain culture and set of values that I identified with. Footprints’ ability to also check that box is what ultimately led me to come on board.”

Flooring installation Franchise Owner Omar Linton

A Smart Franchising Decision

So, Tim wasn’t arbitrarily drawn in by Footprints Floors. He was specifically looking for a strong franchising opportunity in the services industry.

“I like the home services industry because it has a lower investment to entry, requires a skilled person to travel to your home and turn a screw or hammer a nail. That type of service will always be in demand, you can’t outsource it and the internet can’t do it.”

Operating in the home services market gives us a definite advantage over franchises in other industries, like the restaurant business. There are certain advantages that are just built-in, like no real estate investment or staff requirements. 

“The business model is really smart and has good economics. There is a lower cost to entry than other businesses, there is relatively no overhead because you are working from home and carrying no inventory. The expenses are related to operating and marketing expenses and are within your control.”

And our proprietary IP and outstanding customer care take it the rest of the way. Tim puts it this way: “Footprints brings a professionalism and sincerity for quality service to a fragmented marketplace where consumers are thirsting for it.”

It all added up to a smart decision for him.

“There was no single ‘a-ha’ or ‘lightbulb’ moment for me. As a cautious risk-taker, I had many boxes that I wanted to check off in order for me to make this commitment,” Tim says. “For me, Footprints’ ability to check off all of those boxes during each part of the validation process was what confirmed it for me.”

Tim clearly took his time making the decision. Much of this happened during his Discovery Day process, where he met the people behind Footprints Floors.

“Meeting [Founder] Bryan [Park] and the corporate team was an essential part of my own process for choosing a franchise,” Tim says. “If I was going to commit to becoming a business owner in this franchise system, I needed to ensure that the people I would be working with at the corporate level and the support system met my standards for excellence.”

We feel the same about our Franchise Owners. And we look for potential new owners who share our values of family, good solid work, and dedication to service. Our Discovery Day process is a mutual evaluation. 

“Meeting Bryan and the corporate team confirmed the culture of the company and the set of values that the business was founded on and continues to operate on today,” Tim says. “I liked that I didn’t ‘discover’ anything new. It was a confirmation that everything I learned through the validation process was verified in person and even expanded upon.”

Discovery Day is the beginning of a relationship marked by trust and open communication. “The corporate team has been a great example of the culture of the company,” notes Tim. “They are extremely welcoming and professional. They have already offered support and guidance and there is an exciting enthusiasm about their role and the company overall.”

Freedom and Flexibility

Tim is fully on board now and has had some time to reflect. “I’m looking forward to putting my success in my own hands and I’m excited about the flexibility and financial freedom that I can provide for my family.”

“I believe that success comes down to people, and how you treat them. If you take great care of your employees and contractors, then they will take great care of your customers,” he says. “If you build a culture that is customer-centric and everything you do and say backs up that you care about providing a quality of workmanship and professionalism of service, then customers are going to take care of you.”

And this top business executive turned flooring franchise entrepreneur has some solid advice for anyone looking for a solid franchising opportunity.

“My advice to a potential Franchise Owner is to get to WHY. Most of the validation process is figuring out the WHAT the company does and the HOW the company does it,” he says. “Although super important, the real question you should be asking is WHY does the company exist, WHY do they get out of bed in the morning, WHY are they successful and does that line up with your own WHY.”

President John F. Kennedy introduced the world to the idea that every crisis presents an opportunity. This was based on a misinterpretation of a Chinese word. However, it’s an idea proven true by enterprising folk like Tim Busbee.

We’re proud to have Tim as one of our Franchise Owners.

Are you interested in having your own flooring installation franchise? Our exclusive territories are increasingly popular, going quickly, and won’t always be available.

Please visit our franchise website to see what’s available in your area and to get more information.

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