Top Trends in Franchising for 2011
Jolly Backer, CEO of Fresh Healthy Vending “weighs in” on new franchise trends that he foresees for this year and beyond.
“As part of our research prior to the launch of Fresh Healthy Vending in 2010 we did substantial research into the trends most likely to impact the franchise industry in the years ahead and the following is a ‘snapshot’ of what we found” notes Backer. Key franchising trends that we indentified fell into several categories but we see these three particular ones enjoying 7-10 years of robust growth before we start seeing any market saturation.
Innovative healthy food offerings
“Green” products and services
Health and wellness businesses
Start a Fresh Healthy Vending Franchise Business
Junk foods are out and fresh healthy vending machines are in. Sounds quite surprising; nevertheless, it’s a huge development in the drive to end childhood obesity. Right, people are gaining control of their lifestyle, and they are becoming more and more aware of the chronic illnesses brought about by being obese or overweight. Meanwhile, along with this progress, the franchise industry is also booming with small and medium-scale entrepreneurs looking to make good investments in new healthy lifestyle businesses.
Like any type of business, reputation and trust are important; and to achieve this, your business should have great name recognition. It’s probably right to say that the success of a franchise business boils down to the name recognition. Consumers trust a business that has good transaction history and an untarnished reputation of doing excellent service to its market. When people see your vending machine in the corner of a busy street, they are likely to stop and drop in some coins or paper bills to get healthy stuff because they know your machine sells genuine healthy food options. So choose a franchise company like Fresh Healthy Vending that will give you a reliable start.
Vending Machines: Consumer Perceptions Are Changing
When we think of a typical vending machine, we conjure up images of salty chips, sweetened sodas and fruit juices, candies and chocolate bars, and ice cream—the kinds of food that give us excess fat that are just so hard to burn and impacts the increasing obesity rate and health care industry of America. But the good news is more and more people are starting to become aware of their health and know that junk foods are killing children’s lifestyle choices. Hence, the clamor for fresh healthy vending machines is increasing, too—much to the positive interest of both the vending machine franchise owners and the consumers who are looking for healthier alternatives.
In the recent findings of the Centers for Disease Control as many as two-thirds of adults in the U.S. are overweight or obese. This translates to the fact that almost 200 million overweight or obese people, and the number is expected to increase because the number of overweight and obese children 6 to 19 years old has tripled over the past 25 years. For this reason, President Obama, at the onset of his administration, vehemently called for the overhauling of vending machines in school campuses to include more nutritious products and replace junk foods.
Corporate Wellness Programs Including Healthy Vending to Lower Insurance Rates
Sedentary lifestyles, junk food vending machines, greasy fast food ala cart menu, and unhealthy school and workplace cafeteria meals; these are some of the frequently-mentioned contributing factors to the soaring rate of obesity in the country. And often said, continue to hurt the nation’s health care cost due the number of illnesses associated with uncontrollable weight gain.
In South Dakota, obesity rate has soared from 13 percent to more than 30 percent since 1995, making the state the ninth worst in the country in terms of highest obesity rate. According to Dr. Stephanie Broderson, the loss of farm labor, which used to be a good activity to keep youth in top shape, is partly seen to impact the self-reported obesity rate among its residents. Meanwhile, a CDC (Centers for Disease Control) report discloses that South Dakotans eat the least amount of vegetables in the nation, which somehow help explains the increased obesity cases compared to its neighboring states.
New Healthy Vending and Child Nutrition Bill About to Pass in the Senate
here is a new healthy bill that is awaiting Senate’s vote and it is aimed at improving school lunch nutrition. Called Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, the bill would increase funding per meal by $.06 so that fresh produce could be included with more frequency. Additionally, it would provide nutritional training for people working in school lunch programs.
We already know that several of the states’ school districts have been seriously monitoring its existing school nutrition guidelines and many are in fact overhauling their cafeteria’s ala carte menu to include more healthier options for students. And with the passing of this new bill, it is expected to add intensity to the nation’s fight in ending childhood obesity.
Children Need to Get Healthier in Schools
Education is the greatest wealth parents can pass on to their kids. Hence, it doesn’t come as a surprise why parents work so much just to make sure they afford the best schools for their kids. And when we say best schools we don’t only expect an excellent standing but also a healthier environment for our children.
Exactly, how do we know our children are getting healthier in schools? Or at the very least, enrolled in a school with great facilities, outstanding people, and a fit environment that encourages them to lead a healthy lifestyle?
Office Vending Machines Need to get Healthier
Injecting fun in the workplace and motivating employees to perform harder do not always involve monetary incentives. A simple pat on the back when an employee gives an outstanding performance or a piece of certificate acknowledging a person’s productivity output are sometimes enough to boost employee morale. However, there is a new buzz that’s going around the workplace nowadays, and it doesn’t only recognize employees’ performance, but also pushes for a healthy lifestyle.
Right, wellness campaign has extended its influence in several workplaces in America and is proving to be very effective in reducing sick leaves among employees. And with the decreasing rate of employees calling in sick to work, the cost in insurance claims of the work force has seen a significant reduction, too.
Childhood Obesity Rates Reduced by Fresh Vending Machines
There are some good things happening as the pressure for the Childhood Obesity campaign intensifies. One, many school districts are already overhauling some of the food choices in their ala carte menu to supply children with more nutritious foods. Then, there’s also a considerable makeover in some museums frequented by kids and parents to include healthier options in their in-house vending machines. Even restaurants and cafes in the metropolis are experimenting on new dishes that will satisfy the appetite of health-enthusiasts; likewise, health clubs are also up to speed in upgrading their services to promote healthy lifestyle through their top of the line equipment and healthy food choices.
But the fight for ending childhood obesity doesn’t stop there. Because schools are just as enthusiastic to do more, this time, they are welcoming the arrival of more fresh vending machines in their campus. Time to toss Doritos and M&Ms because more veggies, fruits, milk, 100% fresh juices are replacing some of the old-favorites. To date, 42 states have already passed regulations forbidding the high-calorie and high-sodium items that were marketed in traditional vending machines—good news to all parents who have always wished their kids are eating healthy even away from home.
Healthy Snacking Makes for Healthy Schools
With the start of the new school year comes the real test how students will come to appreciate the new healthy menus offered in school cafeterias. Are children about ready to embrace healthy lunches and healthier snacks while avoiding the tempting gaze of junk food vending machines? Of course, it would be good to know if schools will be carrying fresh healthy vending machines, too, to complement the changes in some of the food in their ala carte menus. But we can only hope so much and trust schools in their guided implementation of healthy food to combat obesity.
As we already know by this time, schools are seriously adapting the healthy challenge of ending childhood obesity by overhauling their menus to include healthier choices such as more milk, yogurt, and fruits and veggies—to the point of substituting some ingredients of all-time favorites with healthier mixes.
Vending Industry Seen to Explode over the Next 10 years
Following the healthy changes in the business practices of vending machines recently, the Global Industry Analyst Inc. (GIA) —known as one of the world’s largest market research publishers—publicized a comprehensive report that indicated the expected increase in the vending machine market of up to 35.2 million units by 2015. An emerging improvement that will renew the revenue potentials of the vending machines market after its growth was temporarily hampered by the recession that hit the global economic zone.
Essentially, it was deemed that compared with other business ventures, the vending industry has achieved major success in weathering the effects of economic downturn due to many factors, one of which, is its ability to give consumers a diversity in its product mixes. Additionally, vending machines have been an efficient answer to frugal living among cash strapped consumers, whose daily expenses have been greatly hurt by the rising unemployment.