Multi-Unit Franchisee Magazine Issue I, 2015 | Page 16

New Jersey.
A native of Pakistan, Hashmi, the
eldest of seven children, says his parents emphasized the traits of honest
and hard work and were “hard on us”
when it came to education. After earning a graduate degree from the Institute
of Business Administration in Karachi,
Pakistan, in 1971, Hashmi decided to
move to “the land of opportunity” where
he earned his second MBA in finance at
Western Illinois University. He worked
as a financial analyst at two large telecommunications companies before his
entrepreneurial spirit took over. After 20
years in the corporate world, he found
franchising appealing because of the
built-in customer base that comes with
a strong brand.
“With good brand recognition, you
can put up a sign, open the door, and
people are waiting to come in,” he says.
“With a non-franchise business, you have
to build business gradually.”
Hashmi used his own capital and understanding of numbers and projections
to grow the company, starting with Pop-

eyes. He added Burger King and ZIPS
Dry Cleaners in 2014 and now has two
Retro Fitness gyms under construction.
In five years, he hopes to have 100 Popeyes, another 50 or 60 Burger Kings, and
expand the ZIPS brand into new markets.
His decision to diversify was to avoid
“putting all his eggs in one basket.” A
former connection with Popeyes introduced him to the New Jersey-based
Retro Fitness brand, which provides
personal trainers, group fitness, and its
Cardio Movie Theater, featuring popular
movies to work out by. Initial plans are
for two gyms, one in New York and one
in Connecticut.
Hashmi didn’t have to look far for
his most recent investment. For more
than 10 years, he has been a customer
of a neighborhood ZIPS Dry Cleaners,
which gave him a firsthand look at the
same-day, low-cost, one-price business
model. ZIPS has also garnered attention
for its eco-friendly practices, including
the use of biodegradable bags and environmentally friendly technology and
cleaning techniques.

Founded in 1996 by a group of eight
competing dry cleaners in the BaltimoreWashington, D.C., area, ZIPS has grown
to nearly 40 locations in the Mid-Atlantic
region. The company has been franchising since 2006, but growth is on the upswing because of interest from multi-unit
franchisees, such as Hashmi.
With ZIPS, says Hashmi, finding the
right location that will also draw a loyal
customer following is key. Because garments are cleaned on site, the brand requires a larger facility than a traditional
dry cleaning establishment. Hashmi sees
great promise for ZIPS as a multi- unit
franchise.
While he may not have started in the
franchise business soon enough for his
liking, Hashmi is taking advantages of
all the opportunities coming his way. He
recommends anyone looking to prosper
in franchising to remember the advice of
his parents and stick to the basics.
“Planning and hard work are the two
ingredients for success in franchising,”
says Hashmi. “If you are persistent, your
planning and hard work will pay off.”

BOTTOM LINE
Annual revenue: $50 million.

ness pulse, look at forecasts, and adjust accordingly.

2015 goals: Grow annual revenue by 10 to 15 percent.

What are the best sources for capital expansion? We’ve been using GE Capital for the past four to five years.

Growth meter: How do you measure your growth? By number of
units and volume.
Vision meter: Where do you want to be in 5 years? 10 years?
More than 100 Popeyes units and another 50 to 60 Burger Kings in the next 5
years, while bringing ZIPS Dry Cleaners to Connecticut and New Jersey. In the
next 10 years, I would like our annual revenue to reach $150 million.
How is the economy in your region(s) affecting you, your employees, your customers? Fast food restaurants tend to fare better during
an economic downturn than pricier restaurants do, so we haven’t been affected
much. Dry cleaning is a recession-resistant business as well. When the economy
is bad, people still have to go to their jobs and job interviews. They still need
clean suits. They may go to their dry cleaners a bit less often, but they’re still
going in solid numbers.
Are you experiencing economic growth in your market? Yes.
How do changes in the economy affect the way you do business? We obviously have to take these changes into consideration and change
our policies accordingly (e.g., determine how fast or slowly we should grow).

Have you used private equity, local banks, national banks,
other institutions? Why/why not? They all have their place. To date,
our needs have been met by GE Capital. No need to turn to anyone else. If we
need to, we will.
What are you doing to take care of your employees? The numberone concern of most small-business owners is the happiness of their customers.
But that’s not possible unless you’re taking care of those responsible for keeping your customers happy: your employees. We provide a good work environment and offer cash bonuses based on sales and profits.
How are you handling rising employee costs (payroll, minimum
wage, healthcare, etc.)? Cost of labor is always a very sensitive topic. As
costs keeps rising, we naturally have to adjust our prices. While we try not to
pass these costs to customers, that’s not always possible.
What kind of exit strategy do you have in place? Working on it.
Don’t have one right now. Hope to have something rolled out in the next 12
months.

How do you forecast for your business? We follow trends and busi-

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