Finding the right location for a restaurant franchise has never been simple, but it has rarely been as consequential as it is today. Rents are elevated. Construction costs have climbed. Permitting timelines stretch in ways that eat into a franchisee’s runway before a single bowl is served. In that environment,…

There is a problem hiding in plain sight inside franchise development. Brokers and developers are routinely losing 3 to 5 hours a day to operational tasks that have nothing to do with being in conversations: CRM updates, follow-up emails, calendar wrangling, and candidate scheduling that quietly crowds out the conversations…

When you talk to Daniel McCarty, you don’t get the feeling you’re speaking to a man tinkering at the edges of an old idea. You get the feeling you’re talking to someone tearing the whole thing down, just to rebuild it better. From his home base in San Antonio, McCarty…

There are brands that follow the market, and then there are brands that seem to arrive exactly when the market is ready for them. Konala (pronounced Koe-Nah-Luh) sits firmly in the second category. Named after founders Trace and Jammie Miller’s two rescue dogs, Kona and Nala, the brand carries a…

Michael Jacobson did not set out to revolutionize the floral industry. He set out to help his uncle sell a flower shop. What happened next is the kind of story that makes you believe a little more in the combination of timing, curiosity, and a willingness to follow an unexpected…

There is a version of the working parent’s morning that everyone knows too well. The alarm goes off before the sun does. Breakfast is whatever survives the scramble. The drop-off runs long, the commute does not cooperate, and somewhere between the car and the desk, the gym visit that was…