Business View Magazine September 2018

206 207 And today, we don’t just service Milliken carpets; we service all kinds of flooring and textiles.” BVM: How many franchise units does the com- pany have? Helton: “We have about 60 franchises in the U.S., and we’re also in six other countries: Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Australia, Brazil, and we re- cently introduced our first franchise in India. We have a strong name internationally, because Mil- liken is one of the largest flooring manufacturers in the world, and they have a presence in so many different countries.” BVM: Why would a potential franchisee want to become part of the milliCare family? Helton: “A prospective owner might talk with us because, first and foremost, we are the only nationally organized provider of commercial floor care maintenance - not just carpet cleaning, but hard surfaces, too, which includes tile and grout and specialty coating for a variety of flooring. There are mom-and-pops, there are janitorial companies, but there is really no organized na- tional competition for our franchisees. So, joining a national brand whose main focus is commercial floor maintenance offers real opportunities. “We are in an industry that is truly recession resistant. A lot of businesses make that claim, but for us, if the economy is doing well, there’s a lot of growth and a lot of new buildings, which gives us the opportunity to service those accounts. If the economy is doing poorly, the business owners, the building owners, and the facility managers want MILLICARE to extend the life of their flooring rather than invest in new flooring - so we are able to really shine when the economy is struggling. “We also have the backing of the Milliken Company, which is a global leader - that means we have ade- quate capital for expansion, state-of- the-art research and development, and corporate leadership support. Milliken owns over 7,000 patents and many of those patents pertain to floor care.We also have a number of proprietary products that no one else has access to. “Lastly, Milliken has been listed by Ethisphere Magazine as one of the world’s most ethical companies – and is one of only a couple of companies that has been included on that list all 12 years since the list has been com- piled. So, entrepreneurs can come to us with confidence that they’re going to be taken care of; we are a compa- ny that strives to excel in business