Franchise Update Magazine Issue IV, 2014 | Page 45

Debbie Shwetz,
Nothing Bundt
Cakes

Grow Market Lead

F O U N D AT I O N S F O R G R O W T H

J.B. Bernstein, keynoter

served as conference chair. Satmetrix,
and The Wall Street Journal were Platinum Sponsors. Benetrends and Hot Dish
Advertising were Gold Sponsors.
Day 1: In-depth intensives

Wednesday morning kicked off early with
registration opening at 7 a.m. As attendees
gathered, a growing buzz filled the lobby
outside the meeting rooms as old friends
exchanged greetings, new acquaintances
were made, and participants settled in for
the day’s two all-day simultaneous tracks:
the CEO Summit, and four sessions for
sales executives and suppliers.
Nearly 50 franchise CEOs—the largest
group yet—signed on for this year’s intensive all-day summit, sponsored by MSA
Worldwide. One of the most remarkable
parts of the CEO Summit is the chance
for founders, CEOs, and presidents to
spend a day with their peers, discussing
their common problems and hearing how
others are dealing with them. A guarantee
of confidentiality encouraged openness
among the executives, and discussions
were lively and frank. The focus this
year was “Walking the Talk.” Friendships
Gary Gardner

formed that the attendees said they plan
to continue.
Nearby, franchise sales and development executives chose between two allmorning sessions, “Mastering Franchise
Sales Fundamentals” and “Identify, Attract, and Recruit the Right Prospect.”
Two more concurrent afternoon sessions
followed lunch 胊q ե