Business View Magazine - October 2016 33
However, out of the many potential franchisees that do
seek to run a Wild Birds Unlimited store, according to
Pickett, only about two percent are ultimately success-
ful. “They are very, very strongly vetted,” he asserts.
“We have a step-by-step process that includes a very
intense validation. They must reach out and visit both
personally and on the phone. We also require that they
visit our most recent online franchisee satisfaction
survey. We go through the franchise disclosure doc-
uments, ensuring that they get all of their questions
asked and answered. They must present a business
plan. We use a personality profiling too, to assist us
as part of the process.” Candidates must also have a
conversation with the company’s Chief Operating Of-
ficer, and/or the Director of Retail Operations prior to
being invited to what Pickett calls ‘Join the Flock Day,’
where candidates are vetted further at the company’s
headquarters in Carmel, Indiana.
“And we consider it very much a mutual approval pro-
cess,” Pickett adds, “to make sure that they’ve got re-
alistic expectations of the business; their obligation of
what they need to do to be successful; and that they
will implement the Wild Birds Unlimited best practices.
And at the same time, of course, they’re vetting us to
