Mark knows franchising!! From being a franchisee, to being a successful franchisor in multiple concepts, he knows both sides of the table. You will be able to use his 30 years of franchising experience to help make your American Dream come true. As those who’ve competed against him on the business scene have learned from watching from behind, Mark Gilleland has proven the old axiom that it’s tough to hit a moving target.
Being the first person brought on to build the Pro Image, a franchisor of retail stores selling licensed-sports products, Mark was one of the main reasons that the chain grew from 1 to more than 250 stores in a seven-year period of time. Serving as the National Leasing and Sales Director, he sold over 100 franchises and personally negotiated over 150 leases for Pro Image franchisees, working with mall developers nationwide. As chairman of the company’s leasing committee, he helped formulate leasing criteria used in selecting the best locations for Pro Image stores. His real love, however, was selling franchises and helping franchisees get started toward their great American dream.
The magic continued with Nach-o Fast, which he co-founded and for whom he served as President. He organized, staffed, and oversaw the entire corporate staff. So impressive was this fast food concept that Mark and the story of Nach-o Fast was featured in Forbes Magazine as one of the nation’s most innovative franchising concepts.
With INVU Portraits, Mark served as vice president of the most creative children’s portraiture concept in decades. In just 18 months, he helped the company triple it’s number of franchisees, led the development of marketing and promotional concepts, and formulated guidelines for relationships between the franchisor and its franchisees that have been emulated by many other franchise companies.
During this time he has owned and operated a franchise in the food industry –Sandwich World, and two Pro Image franchises. Having been a franchisee, he knows what it takes to own your own business and has experienced the satisfaction that comes from making a franchise concept work.
A real people person who always puts his family and friends first, Mark’s reputation as an honest and fair yet aggressive businessman has endeared him to business owners, developers, leasing agents and suppliers alike. He’s active in his church and community, enjoys golf, and can still hit the baseline jumper with regularity. He’ll score for you as well. Mark lives in Layton, Utah and can be reached via email at MGilleland@FranChoice.com or at 801-444-0308.
