For 'corporate refugees,' a chance to be your own boss

With the unemployment rate on Long Island still stubbornly high at 7 percent, more and more unemployed people are turning to franchises as a way to make a living, according to a Roslyn Heights-based firm that is one of the Island's largest franchise brokerages.

The franchisors are coming from all over the country in the form of restaurant chains, fast-food outlets, computer services and cleaning businesses, said Ken Stein, president of the Kensington Co., which has helped sell 60 Dunkin' Donuts stores and two Hooter's restaurants on the Island in the past three years.

"Right now, jobs have all but completely disappeared," Stein said. "People realize they might have to own their own companies. We call them corporate refugees."

But the franchise world is not for everyone, Stein warns. His company is holding a free seminar, "Meet the Franchisor Workshop," at the Four Points Sheraton in Plainview Tuesday. 

"There are people every day of the week we tell not to go into the franchise business," Stein said. They often don't have the capital to keep themselves going while the business builds up, or they simply don't have the business acumen to make it work.

Since June three national companies have announced plans to bring franchises to the Island:

In the fast-food arena, Sonic Corp. said it would open franchise outlets here, and Pudgie's announced plans to expand. FastSigns International said it would be bringing sign stores to the region.

Three factors make the Island attractive to franchisers: a well-educated and well-trained population of executives; a relatively high level of consumer spending, and lower rents brought on by the recession.

Stein said six franchisors are coming to the event Tuesday, some from as far away as California and Hawaii. With the economy being what it is, he said, "I think we're going to have upwards of 300 people."