Like many of his candidates, Wes started his career with very little understanding of franchising, and the possibilities it could create. Wes fell backwards into franchising, when he met the founders of 101 Mobility, which at the time was a relatively small company, based in Wilmington, NC, where Wes was living. 101 Mobility had recently started franchising, and was looking to grow their Home Office team. Wes had spent the first several years of his career working for a large corporation, and had decided that the “corporate grind” was not for him, and was looking for a new opportunity. So, the timing of meeting the founders of 101 Mobility could not have been better. Wes took an entry-level position with 101 Mobility, where he worked with their existing Franchisees, to support them in a variety of ways. This proved to be an amazing experience for Wes, as it helped him quickly learn how franchising works, and the keys to a successful Franchisor/Franchisee partnership. It didn’t take long for Wes to get hooked on franchising, and ever since then, he’s immersed himself in it, learning everything he can about franchising.
Over his time with 101 Mobility, the company grew at a rapid pace, and Wes was able to grow with the company, taking on a variety of roles over his time there. As the company grew, and moved closer to a national footprint, Wes was asked to develop a National Accounts program, where he was responsible for identifying, and setting up national partnerships with the goal of funneling out more business opportunities to the franchise network. From there, Wes worked in Franchise Development, where he helped place many of the franchisees in the 101 Mobility system today. In his final role with 101 Mobility, Wes served as General Manager overseeing their Corporate owned markets, where he got to walk in the shoes of a franchise owner, with full P&L responsibilities for these markets. This really gave Wes an appetite for business ownership.
Over his time with 101 Mobility, the organization went from about 20 franchise units, to over 150 franchise units. All of this experience opened the door for Wes to transition to another franchise company, ShelfGenie, where he took the position as Director of Franchise Development, overseeing all of their franchise recruiting efforts. In his time with ShelfGenie, Wes was able to help double the size of the system. In addition to his role in the Home Office for ShelfGenie, Wes and his wife purchased the Wilmington, NC and Myrtle Beach, SC territories for ShelfGenie, and became franchise owners themselves. Wes and his wife, Kelly, continue to own and operate their ShelfGenie franchises, and are top-performers in the system today. In addition to their ShelfGenie franchise businesses, Wes and his wife had added another complimentary business in the same markets, and plan to continue adding to their portfolio of business in the Coastal North and South Carolina region.
Through all of this experience, Wes has thoroughly enjoyed working with candidates to evaluate the businesses he’s represented, and help them determine if they are a good fit for them. Now, he’s been able to translate his vast experience working for Franchisors, as well as being a franchisee, into a consulting service, where he works with candidates to help them understand franchising, and determine if it’s a good fit for them. If it is, then he’s able to help match them with franchise concepts that are a good fit for them, based on their background, experience, business and lifestyle goals. Wes does this by working with his candidates through a detailed investigative process that enables him to understand their ideal business, and match them with a franchise business that will be a great fit for them!
Wes lives in Wilmington, NC with his wife Kelly, and daughter McKenzie. He can be reached at: wbarefoot@franchoice.com or (336)509-2543.