In this FDD Talk post, you’ll learn the following:

• Section I – Background information on the Window Genie franchise opportunity, including relevant news updates

• Section II – Estimated initial investment for a Window Genie franchise, based on Item 7 of the company’s 2019 FDD

• Section III – Initial franchise fee, royalty fee, marketing fee, and other fees for a Window Genie franchise, based on Items 5 and 6 of the company’s 2019 FDD

• Section IV – Number of franchised and company-owned Window Genie outlets at the start of the year and the end of the year for 2016, 2017, and 2018, based on Item 20 of the company’s 2019 FDD

• Section V – Presentation and analysis of Window Genie’s financial performance representations, based on Item 19 of the company’s 2019 FDD, including information on the:

• 2018 average and median gross sales per transaction for the 58 Window Genie franchisees that were in operation and reporting gross sales for the full 12 months of the 2018 calendar year and responded to Window Genie’s questionnaires

• 2018 average and median gross wages paid to technicians, as a percentage of total gross sales, for the 58 Window Genie franchisees that were in operation and reporting gross sales for the full 12 months of the 2018 calendar year and responded to Window Genie’s questionnaires

• 2018 average and median closing percentage (number of services or jobs sold as a percentage of the total number of jobs or services quoted to prospective customers) for the 58 Window Genie franchisees that were in operation and reporting gross sales for the full 12 months of the 2018 calendar year and responded to Window Genie’s questionnaires

• 2018 average and median hourly billable rates for technicians completing the services for the 58 Window Genie franchisees that were in operation and reporting gross sales for the full 12 months of the 2018 calendar year and responded to Window Genie’s questionnaires

• 2018 average and median number of jobs generated per vehicle for the 58 Window Genie franchisees that were in operation and reporting gross sales for the full 12 months of the 2018 calendar year and responded to Window Genie’s questionnaires

Section I – Background Information

16 Things You Need to Know About the Window Genie Franchise

Named a Top Franchise for Veterans by Franchise Business Review

1.  In late October 2018, Window Genie was identified by independent franchisee satisfaction research firm, Franchise Business Review, as being just one of 80 franchises to qualify for its Top Franchises for Veterans list.

2.  Franchise Business Review, a market research firm that performs independent surveys of franchisee satisfaction, provides the only ranking of franchises based solely on actual franchisee satisfaction and performance. Franchise Business Review publishes rankings of the top franchises in its annual Guide to Today’s Top Franchises, as well as guides throughout the year ranking the top franchises in specific sectors.

3.  To identify the companies on the list, Franchise Business Review analyzed 18 months of data from over 26,000 veteran franchise owners representing over 250 brands regarding their overall satisfaction with their brands and their likelihood to recommend them to others. Window Genie’s franchisees were surveyed on 33 benchmark questions about their experience and satisfaction regarding critical areas of their franchise systems, including training and support, operations, franchisor/franchisee relations, and financial opportunity.

4.  According to Eric Stites, founder and CEO of Franchise Business Review, “The reality is that very few of the thousands of franchise opportunities available today are rated highly by their franchise owners. That’s the whole reason we do what we do, which is help prospective franchisees understand which franchises are the top opportunities based on the actual performance and satisfaction of franchise owners. The 80 companies named in this year’s report received the highest ratings from the veterans that own them on our independent satisfaction survey.”

Teams Up with Glass Doctor for Giveaway

5.  At the end of March 2019, Window Genie and Glass Doctor, both Neighborly brands, teamed up for a contest that awarded one homeowner with the gift of a clear view this past Spring. The prize package was valued at approximately $1,200 and included:

• Replacement of two residential insulated glass units by a participating independently-owned and operated Glass Doctor franchise;
• Interior/exterior residential window cleaning and a $300 gift certificate redeemable for qualified services by a participating Window Genie independently-owned and operated franchise.

6.  To enter the Clear View Giveaway, people had to visit either the Glass Doctor or Window Genie Facebook page between March 28 and April 28, 2019 and follow the instructions on how to enter and view the contest rules. The winner was announced on each brand’s Facebook page on May 3, 2019.

7.  Brad Roberson, president of Glass Doctor, said, “We find that most homeowners will put off repairing or replacing their damaged windows. Not only does this distract from the aesthetics of their home, but also could result in increased energy bills. Glass Doctor is glad to give away two replacement insulated glass units to help a family avoid this extra expense.”

8.  Rik Nonelle, president of Window Genie, added, “Window cleaning can be difficult, dangerous and time consuming. Most homeowners can’t or won’t do it themselves, and that’s where Window Genie comes in. Window Genie is excited to provide the gift of clean, clear windows this spring.”

Youngest Franchisee in Company History Takes Over Grand Rapids Franchise

9.  In late April 2019, a news story put out by the Grand Rapids Business Journal highlighted the story of Greg Christie, one of Window Genie’s newest franchisees and the youngest in company history at the age of 24.

10.  Back in December 2018, Christie purchased his Window Genie franchise from previous owner Ron Kuhn. Christie moved his home office to his native Holland (Michigan) and held a grand re-opening of the Window Genie franchise on April 1. Kuhn had initially opened the franchise back in 2017. It is the first Window Genie location for West Michigan and is still the only franchise in the area.

11.  According to Christie, “The opportunity became available to become a franchise owner through an acquaintance, the previous owner.” Christie also said that he has plans to add another truck to his Window Genie franchise.

Company History

12.  Window Genie was founded in 1994 by Richard (Rik) Nonelle in Cincinnati, Ohio. Although Nonelle had a degree in marketing and finance and a background in sales and management, he knew nothing about the window-washing industry. However, when Nonelle was 29, he decided that he didn’t want to work for someone else and set out to start his own business.

13.  After ruling out other more costly industries, Nonelle took the advice of a friend who said that he should get into residential window cleaning. Initially, Nonelle thought that no one besides rich people used window cleaners, but after some research he realized that residential window cleaning was serious business.

14.  Nonelle started out only offering window cleaning, but soon realized that customers wanted more – they liked their gutters cleaned, their concrete pressure washed, and their exterior siding cleaned, among a variety of other services. So Nonelle began adding these services and by 1998, he was ready to start franchising the Window Genie concept.

15.  Over the next few decades, Nonelle expanded the Window Genie franchise around the United
States. In 2016, Window Genie was acquired by Neighborly, formerly the Dwyer Group. Following the acquisition, Nonelle has remained as president of Window Genie. Today, there are Window Genie locations in more than 29 states.

Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500

16.  Window Genie did not rank on Entrepreneur’s 2019 Franchise 500 list.

Section II – Estimated Costs

• Please click here for detailed estimates of Window Genie franchise costs, based on Item 7 of the company’s 2019 FDD.

Section III – Initial Franchise Fee, Royalty Fee, Marketing Fee, and Other Fees

• Please click here for detailed information on Window Genie’s initial franchise fee, royalty fee, marketing fee, and other fees, based on Items 5 and 6 of the company’s 2019 FDD.

Section IV – Number of Franchised and Company-Owned Outlets

Franchised

2016

• Outlets at the Start of the Year:  87
• Outlets at the End of the Year:  103
• Net Change:  +16

2017

• Outlets at the Start of the Year:  103
• Outlets at the End of the Year:  112
• Net Change:  +9

2018

• Outlets at the Start of the Year:  112
• Outlets at the End of the Year:  126
• Net Change:  +14

Company-Owned

2016

• Outlets at the Start of the Year:  0
• Outlets at the End of the Year:  0
• Net Change:  0

2017

• Outlets at the Start of the Year:  0
• Outlets at the End of the Year:  0
• Net Change:  0

2018

• Outlets at the Start of the Year:  0
• Outlets at the End of the Year:  0
• Net Change:  0

Section V – Financial Performance Representations (Item 19, 2019 FDD) and Analysis

• This representation is a historic financial performance representation about a subset of the franchise system’s existing outlets’ past performance during the calendar year beginning on January 1, 2018 and ending on December 31, 2018.

• The subset of outlets whose information is included in this financial performance representation share the following characteristics: the outlets all 1) completed the questionnaires that were sent to them, 2) were open prior to mailing the questionnaires, and 3) were open sufficiently long (twelve months or more) to compile data to report on the questionnaires.

• As of December 31, 2018, the company had 126 Window Genie businesses in operation in the United States, all of which were franchised businesses.

• Of these, 103 franchised businesses, operated by a total of 89 franchisees, were in operation and reporting Gross Sales for the full 12 months of the 2018 fiscal year (i.e., January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018 (the “Reporting Period”)).

• The 89 franchisees (representing 103 franchised businesses) were sent Window Genie’s financial questionnaires.

• Of those, 58 franchisees, representing 65 franchised businesses (seven of the 58 responding franchisees operated two franchised businesses each), responded to the questionnaires, and the data they reported was relied upon to create the financial performance representations in this Item 19 (the “Reporting Franchisees”).

• The information provided below does not include information with respect to (i) franchised businesses that were not in operation for the entire Reporting Period and (ii) franchised businesses that did not respond to Window Genie’s financial questionnaire.

• Nine of the excluded franchised businesses closed during the Reporting Period. Of the nine businesses that closed during the fiscal year 2018, 0 businesses closed after being open for less than 12 months.

• Neither Window Genie nor its independent certified public accountants have audited or verified any of the sales figures reported to it. Franchisees are not required to use generally accepted accounting principles when reporting these figures.

• The franchisees that were not mailed questionnaires had only been open and conducting business for three months or less prior to the mailing of the questionnaires. These franchisees were determined to not have sufficient data to report due to the short period of time that their franchise was operational.

Part 1 – Average and Median Gross Sales Per Transaction for Window Genie Franchisees for the 12 Months Beginning January 1, 2018 and Ending December 31, 2018

• The following table represents the average gross sales per transaction, or stated differently, average invoice price per service reported by the Reporting Franchisees for 2018.

• “Average Gross Sales Per Transaction” means the average “gross sales” received by the Reporting Franchisees per transaction in 2018 for each of the services identified in the table below, as reported by the Reporting Franchisees to Window Genie.

• “Gross Sales” means the total revenues and receipts from whatever source (whether in the form of cash, credit, agreement to pay, barter, trade, or other consideration) that arise, directly or indirectly, from the operation of or in connection with your Business whether under any of the Marks or otherwise.

• Gross Sales exclude sales taxes collected from customers and paid to the appropriate taxing authority and any other bona fide refunds, rebates, or discounts that Window Genie authorizes in writing. Gross Sales also exclude sales from any Excluded Services (as defined in a mutually executed Excluded Services Addendum).

A.  Average Gross Sale Per Transaction in Dollars