In the business of business

Alicia Robinson

Cedric Ferrell is making a career out of putting other people in

business.

From his Costa Mesa office, Ferrell runs the Entrepreneur’s

Source, a company that helps people decide if they want to start a

franchise business and matches them with franchise options. He opened

his business last fall and has since worked with more than 250

potential entrepreneurs.

A franchisee himself, Ferrell is one of 250 representatives his

company has across the country. They offer free information to people

who are considering opening a business and connect them with

companies looking to grow through franchise locations.

“The education [that we offer] is really designed to help people

bring clarity to what they want their life to look like from an

employment standpoint,” Ferrell said.

To assess potential clients, Ferrell asks them about their career

experience, why they’re looking to change jobs and what they want to

achieve by owning a business.

If they’re still interested, he narrows down a few options from

about 150 companies that want to expand through franchising. The

companies are generally small to mid-sized, such as Irvine’s

Interface Financial Group and Orange-based Budget Blinds. The typical

investment in such franchises ranges from $75,000 to $150,000,

Ferrell said.

With the multitude of business options available, Ferrell can help

make researching them more manageable, said Mike Weiermiller of

Huntington Beach. After a referral by Ferrell, Weiermiller is looking

at companies that offer franchises in home improvement, copying and

printing, and health food and fruit smoothies.

“In my mind, he saved me a tremendous amount of time,” Weiermiller

said.

While he hasn’t decided whether to take the plunge, Weiermiller

said, if he makes the decision to start a business, it will be an

informed one.

“I think it’s become a bigger reality for me, a more serious

option for me as I’ve gone through the process with Cedric,” he said.

“It’s really going to come down to, do I want to take the risk?”

Ferrell gets paid commission by businesses when they sell

franchise rights to entrepreneurs he’s steered their way, but he said

he’s not disappointed when potential clients decide owning a

franchise isn’t for them.

“Probably the lion’s share of people that I talk to or work with

or are inquiring have a job, and they’d rather keep their own job,”

he said. “To me, everybody is a good candidate for owning a business

until they get all the facts, and then it’s for them to decide

whether they can go into business or not, because it’s not for

everybody.”

After six months in business, Ferrell has eight clients who are

seriously considering franchise options. While that seems like a low

rate of success, Ferrell said he’s helping people make an important

decision and it only takes a few franchise sales to keep him going.

“A lot of what I do is more psychological than anything else, but

it’s not difficult to make a living,” he said. “Given the number of

people that are interested in self-employment, there’s no shortage of

work.”

Ferrell will offer a free franchise showcase on March 25 at the

Embassy Suites in Santa Ana. For information, call (877)449-3420.