The Best 10 Franchise Opportunities in 2023

The franchise business model provides an accessible way for you to invest in a new business or expand or streamline your current operations. From restaurants to home service brands, franchise businesses play an influential role in many industries.

And with good reason! The knock-on effect of shared marketing support, corporate training and recruiting resources and institutional knowledge is a considerable advantage for owner-operators.

How to Evaluate a Franchise Opportunity

If you’re thinking about starting a new franchise, do your research. While most brands will offer plenty of information, it pays to evaluate key factors or yourself before committing.

Market – What are the local and national trends for this type of business? Compare franchisor customer demographic information with similar information in your city or operating region.

Timing – Certain industries are more susceptible to economic downturns than others. Determine how recession-prone the industry is and whether it’s a good time to open a new business.

Training and education – You may not need considerable initial training if you’re an experienced business owner. Newer owner-operators may need assistance with technical skills, accounting and other business basics. Compare your current skill set with the training programs from the franchisor to ensure you have the support you need to succeed.

Crunch the numbers – Get down to the nitty-gritty to nail down every restriction, fee, royalty and other detail of the franchise agreement. Get a legal expert to examine and explain the contract before you sign.

So, what’s the best franchise opportunity in the year ahead? We take a look!

Related: Complete Franchise Rebrand: A HomeSteady Case Study

The 10 Fastest Growing Franchises in America

These franchises check all the boxes:

1. a growth-centric fee structure
2. ongoing training and support
3. cost-effective solutions to reduce initial barriers to entry

Below are the fastest-growing franchises in four top categories: home service franchises, fitness franchises, coffee franchises and food franchises.

The Fastest Growing Home Service Franchises

There’s no place like home. Home services include a mix of emergency services like plumbers or glass repair and seasonal maintenance like landscaping and HVAC.

1. One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning – One Hour is one of the most flexible franchise options on the market, making it ideal for experienced HVAC professionals and first-time owners. One Hour holds an estimated 37.3% market share for residential HVAC services and supports franchisees with ongoing training.
2. Astrawatt Solar Energy – Talk about upside. The residential solar energy industry is valued at $100 billion and is expected to exceed $260 billion by 2030. With less than 1% of market penetration achieved, few franchises such as this solar panel installation and maintenance business offer this level of growth potential.
3. Molly Maid^â – Home cleaning service Molly Maid is a nationally recognized brand that offers exceptional marketing support across more than 450 locations nationwide. The perk? Recurring revenue. Weekly, bi-weekly and monthly cleaning appointments offer reliable revenue. 89% of the average Molly Maid location’s revenue is recurring!
4. College HUNKS. Hauling Junk – Owners of this low-cost franchise are immediately tapped into both the junk removal and moving industries. This provides flexibility to navigate seasonal demand fluctuations and reduces exposure to economic uncertainty. The brand has been on a meteoric rise, with average franchise revenue increasing 113% between 2013 and 2019.

The Fastest Growing Fitness Franchises

Post-pandemic, all signs point to a strong recovery for gyms and fitness studios, with consumers eager to socialize and stay healthy.

1. Body Barre – This female-focused barre studio franchise offers a 3-year return on investment potential and access to the $12 billion US fitness market. With monthly and annual memberships, revenue is primarily recurring,  although drop-in and package sales also pad the bottom line.
2. Mayweather Boxing + Fitness – Licensed by former professional boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr., this boxing-centric studio recently eclipsed 100 locations across the US. Small class sizes allow for a smaller footprint than other fitness studios and, like many fitness companies, the business generates a healthy recurring revenue stream.

The Fastest Growing Food Franchises

Food is always a winner. The purchasing power of franchisors gives fast food and retail food chains a pricing advantage over competitors and keeps franchisee profit margins healthy.

1. Slim Chickens – While Chick-fil-A gets the headlines, Slim Chickens has tremendous upside. With more than 140 locations, this Arkansas-based brand is hyper-focused on growth, which means lower costs of entry and increased direct support for new franchisees.
2. Jersey Mike’s – The franchise just topped 2,000 locations, but the brand is committed to supporting owners with personalized support. Total store revenue increased 64.4% between 2019 and 2021 when sales hit $2.2 billion.

The Fastest Growing Coffee Franchises

1. Scooter’s Coffee – On pace for 1,000 locations nationwide by 2024, Scooter’s Coffee keeps things simple: sell great coffee, offer light foods and desserts and keep store footprint to a minimum with strategic drive-thru locations.
2. Aroma Joe’s – Like Scooter’s, Aroma Joe’s keeps real estate expenses low with a small footprint – some stores are 50 square feet! Minimal staff and low operating costs make it an accessible business for new and experienced owners alike.

Marketing Matters: How Will the Franchisor Support Your Marketing?

When deciding on a franchise to purchase, get the details on how they handle local and national marketing efforts. Can they clearly define and deliver effective marketing campaigns and do they have an accessible portfolio of marketing materials for local franchises to access? You might as well just hand them our Franchise Marketing Playbook!

Let’s Grow Together

Oneupweb has over two decades in the franchise marketing space. We’ve worked with industry-leading franchise companies to make sure their local operators are in a position to succeed.

Put our experienced team of designers, developers and content marketers to work for your local franchise. Reach out or call (231) 922-9977 today to get growing!