Athletic Shoe Store Franchise Business Plan

The Athlete’s Foot Franchise will be owned by Jane and Howard Lefkowitz. Jane has been a public school teacher for the past 14 years in Dade County, Florida. Howard is the President of Sizeler Real Estate of Florida. Inc., which manages, leases, and develops 1 million sq. ft. of retail property in Florida for a NYSE REIT. Jane will run the daily operations of the business, including community relations. Howard will continue in his current position at Sizeler, but will assist in the buying, financial planning, and weekend coverage.

6.1 Personnel Plan

The personnel plan is included in the following table. It shows the anticipated salary of the owner, assistant manager, full-time associate, and three part-time associates.

Jane Lefkowitz will manage the store on a daily basis. There will be a salaried assistant manager. We anticipate one additional full-time employee. One of these three people will open and close the store each day. The three part-time associates will work nights and weekend hours. In addition, Jessica Lefkowitz will work an average of one night and one weekend day per week. Howard Lefkowitz will also assist on the weekends. Salary and hourly wage estimates are detailed in the table below.

Below we have created a brief job profile and anticipated employee characteristics for each position. As we have stressed throughout the plan, customer service and knowledgeable employees are a primary focus for The Athlete’s Foot.

Assistant Manager:

• Responsibility for opening and closing the store, receiving and stocking inventory, upkeep of the customer data base, visual merchandising and customer service. Also, share in the supervision and training of staff.
• This person would not necessarily need to be athletic or a runner. We are looking for dedication, honesty, strong work ethic and either some retail management experience or a strong business sense. Although a college graduate would be preferred, our salary projection may preclude that. This position has the most flexibility, due to the importance of experience and reliability. This associate would do less selling and more stock work and supervision than the others. A middle-aged woman whose children are in high school and is looking to get back into the work force may be an ideal candidate. In addition, a recent high school or military service graduate with a strong work ethic may also fit this position. This position will be eligible for a monthly overall sales incentive and annual goals bonus.

Full-time Associate:

• This position will be primarily customer service oriented. This person will also assist with store opening and closing, as well as receiving merchandise. We would anticipate that this individual would have several specific areas of responsibility outside of sales. Those might be vendor returns and sales floor pricing.
• This associate would preferably have a background in retail shoe sales. They need the flexibility to work nights and weekends as required. We would like this associate to be a local resident, active in the community, possibly in the sports programs. A runner would be ideal for this position, but, certainly we cannot count on finding a person with each of those credentials. This position will be eligible for a sales-based incentive program.

Part-time Associates:

• These associates would focus primarily on customer service. They will be working during the peak sales periods, in the evenings, and on weekends. They will need to be outgoing, friendly, professional, and presentable. They will need to be able to work well with children. While this type of position in our competition is generally filled with teenagers, we will be looking for local athletic teachers, coaches, and athletes who are looking to supplement their income. There will be a bonus program for generating leads on community contacts and sponsor programs, as well as for exceeding their sales goals.