What is the Best Time to Become a Restaurant Broker?

The best time to become a restaurant broker could be now. Recent research from Microsoft and LinkedIn found that a staggering 46% of professionals surveyed are considering leaving their job in 2024. That is higher than the numbers seen during 2021 at the height of the so-called “great resignation.” The researched surveyed more than 30,000 people in 31 countries between February and March 2024.

With a growing number of dissatisfied corporate workers seeking an alternative to their current work week, it’s no wonder that we believe now is the best time to become a restaurant broker. Here are some of the real-life stories of We Sell Restaurants franchisees that took the plunge and changed their careers.

✨The Shift from Corporate America:

Jeff Heidt left a Fortune 500 company and one of the world’s largest shipping companies to become a franchise partner at We Sell Restaurants. He found the brand through his wife who had worked with the firm multiple times over her career. Why leave corporate America for a business of his own and specifically, restaurant broker? He says, “I was in the corporate world with UPS for about 15 years. It had become a grind. I wanted a little better quality of life, a little better earning potential and a little more freedom in my life.”

Why was it the right time for Jeff to become a restaurant broker? He says, “Prior to joining WSR, I was in the corporate world and they kind of owned me to 12 – 14 hours a day. There was no getting off to take care of personal (needs). (This) really allowed me to free up some time during the day to do what I need to get done each day.”

A better quality of life is one of the most often cited reasons for franchisees to join the brand and decide the timing is right to become a restaurant broker. The stability of a franchise brand established for two decades, the training program and franchise support are all reminiscent of the corporate environment however, the work-life balance is a strong payoff along with the autonomy of being in business for themselves, but never by themselves.

After a very successful first year in his practice, Jeff Heidt expanded and became a multi-unit owner of the We Sell Restaurants brand. He is now providing the lifestyle he wanted for not only himself but others that have joined his thriving practice.

When you are considering alternatives to a corporate job, the timing may be right for becoming a restaurant broker.

✨Transitioning from a Labor-Intensive Franchise:
Paul Rogers shifted from a labor-intensive franchise model that required substantial amounts of staffing seven days a week to the “Restaurant Business with Banker’s Hours” by acquiring the We Sell Restaurants franchise after selling his stores.

In his former franchise operation, Paul had multiple stores open seven days a week. Staffing was his biggest struggle, and he was constantly recruiting, interviewing, hiring, coordinating shifts, and ensuring adequate coverage during peak hours. Operating salons, he had to deal with meeting customer needs and preferences for services. He also had to efficiently schedule all staffing to minimize wait times and maximize capacity.

The retail side of the operation also required cost controls and inventory management over the product sold at the store. These operational complexities led him to seek a brand that was based on his individual effort and results. He went from dozens of employees, the complexities of a retail store operation that was open seven days a week to zero employees, no retail hours and complete control over his schedule.

This work-life balance is the number one reason that now may be the best time to become a restaurant broker. As the business expands, it is possible to bring on other agents but that is typically an independent contractor situation, not an employee. Customers who are interested in restaurants visit as secret shoppers and interactions are typically Monday through Friday business hours versus seven days a week.

✨Selling Your Restaurant May Create an Opportunity to be a Restaurant Broker:

Ernie and Lori Kurtock also deciding the timing was right to become a Restaurant Broker after selling their Marco’s Pizza stores. Specializing in turnaround situations, they had a track record of transforming underperforming units into high-revenue success stores. Their decade of operations in the restaurant business created some strong results. However, they also became weary of staffing issues and operations of multiple stores.

After contacting We Sell Restaurants to sell their stores, they decided the path of restaurant brokerage made perfect sense for a couple with hands-on multi-unit franchise experience.

Tim Martin made a similar decision, only his last restaurant was an independent pizza concept. He sold his store with one of the We Sell Restaurants franchisees in the market and made the decision to join the brand as soon as the closing was over. Tim was able to experience first-hand the knowledge, marketing acumen and results generated by the process and knew his timing was right to become a restaurant broker.

These are not unusual circumstances for joining the brand. One-third of the We Sell Restaurants franchisees have sold their store and realized that a logical next career for them adjacent to the industry they love is the “restaurant business with banker’s hours” or the We Sell Restaurants franchise. Mike Smith, former owner of The Local Chandler in Arizona found the brand and says, “I first inquired about selling my restaurant and also inquired about becoming a franchisee. I sold my restaurant and became a broker, all within a year.”

From his experience, “All I know is restaurants. That’s it. It’s all I’ve done my entire life,” but once he interacted with the brand, “I just knew. I knew right away. This is what I wanted to do, and I really wanted to do it with We Sell Restaurants.

Signs it May be Time to Consider a New Career: Whether you are selling a restaurant, dissatisfied with your corporate career or tired of the operational complexities of other brands, the timing may never be better to become a restaurant broker. Some of the signs that it may be time to leave a corporate job could include burn out symptoms, being passed over for promotions or no longer feeling excitement or energy about the role you are playing at the company.

If you own labor intensive franchise brands and are becoming exhausted from the constant staffing demands, that could also signal the timing is right to consider an alternative career. Lastly, if you own a restaurant and want to scale back on hours or demands from the industry, the timing may be right to consider moving to restaurant brokerage. Overall, you must gauge your own personal readiness for the change, including your mindset and commitment to moving to a role where you are fully in charge of your destiny.

Optimal Timing for Becoming a Restaurant Broker: The market for selling restaurants has never been better, driven by an aging population looking to sell their businesses. In 2023, a total of 9,093 businesses were reported sold on BizBuySell, a 24% improvement over the prior year. This represents an enterprise value of $6.5 billion, compared to the previous year’s 9,054 at $6.3 billion.

Why Choose We Sell Restaurants?

The intensive training and support offered by the brand is one of the longest, most arduous and fulfilling in the industry. The first week is market study of the industry, the competition, local relationships, and immersion in the mindset of the buyer. Week two is an online training course on the BOSS or Broker’s Operations and Sales System, the technology powering the results of our franchisees. The next two weeks are instruction at our corporate headquarters with practical, field training and classroom training culminating in the designation of Certified Restaurant Broker. Lastly, there is follow up coaching for the first 100 days weekly with measurement against the business plan developed by the franchisee.
The world class training and support is another reason now may be the time to become a restaurant broker.

In summary, restaurant brokers come from all walks of life, but many are motivated by the culture, the training and support and the work-life balance offered by the brand. As you consider your own career, review these points, and decide if your personal timing is right to become a restaurant broker.

For more information on the We Sell Restaurants franchise, click this link for a meeting with our team. You may also find these resources helpful in your understanding of the brand.

Robin Gagnon, Certified Restaurant Broker®, MBA, CBI, CFE is the co-founder of We Sell Restaurants and industry expert in restaurant sales and valuation. Named by Nation’s Restaurant News as one of the “Most Influential Suppliers and Vendors” to the restaurant industry, her articles and expertise appear nationwide in QSR Magazine, Franchising World, Forbes, Yahoo Finance, and BizBuySell. She is the co-author of Appetite for Acquisition, an award-winning book on buying restaurants.