We Bought A Franchise!
Join Jack and Jill Johnson on their rollercoaster ride as the fresh faced new franchise owners of Pink's Window services in sunny Palm Beach, Florida! Peek behind the curtain at the real deal of launching and expanding a franchise – the good, the bad, and the downright chaotic!
The Johnsons are set to reveal the highs and lows, the freedom, and the fortune that come with being your own boss. Tune in to the "We bought a franchise" podcast today! 🎙️🏝️
We Bought A Franchise!
Pink Trucks and Big Dreams: How David San Juan Bet on Himself
What does it take to leave behind a secure career and bet on yourself as a business owner? David San Juan's journey from law enforcement officer to successful franchise owner provides a roadmap for anyone considering the entrepreneurial path.
David joins Jack and Jill Johnson to share how he transitioned from a decorated police career (including SWAT and internal affairs) to corporate security before finally taking the leap into business ownership at age 41. With refreshing honesty, he reveals that his decision to purchase a Pink's window cleaning franchise required selling his house and tapping into retirement funds—challenging the myth that you need to be wealthy to start a business.
The conversation explores what truly matters in franchise selection beyond the glossy marketing materials. David's law enforcement background led him to thoroughly investigate Pink's before investing, finding authentic leadership and robust support systems that convinced him this was the right opportunity. Now managing his business from a home office and achieving significant success, he demonstrates how home service franchises offer a lower-cost entry point to business ownership compared to traditional retail options.
Perhaps most valuable is David's insight into successful franchise ownership: "Leadership is probably the top requirement—you've got to build a team around you that's going to make you successful." He shares how he places people smarter than himself in key positions, including having his ex-wife handle bookkeeping because of her expertise.
As David joins the Franchise Insiders team as a consultant, he brings a mission of helping others find their path to business ownership through transparency, authenticity, and practical guidance. His story proves that with the right franchise fit, proper support, and willingness to take calculated risks, it's never too late to build something for yourself.
Ready to explore if franchise ownership is right for you? Contact David directly at 305-496-4883 for a consultation based on real experience, not sales pitches.
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Send us your questions for an upcoming episode at 305-710-0050.
From your pals in franchise ownership, Jack and Jill Johnson.
Hi everyone, Welcome to the we Bought a Franchise podcast. I'm Jack Johnson.
Speaker 2:I'm Jill Johnson.
Speaker 1:And today we are here with a very special guest, david San Juan. And for those of you who are wondering, david San Juan is a man who has done many things in his life. He's a franchise owner, former law enforcement officer and now he's also a part of the Franchise Insiders as a franchise consultant. David, welcome to the show, hi.
Speaker 2:David.
Speaker 1:Oh, thanks, thank you for having me. We're so excited, you know we've. So David owns a Pinks franchise, as we do, and we've been kind of watching as David's been growing his business and managing his team and we've been very impressed by him and so we sort of started talking and having conversations and we mentioned to him that we were expanding our team and it, from day one, just felt like a great fit. We love, you know, david very much, has a mission of helping others and that aligns with Jill and I's mission. And, of course, to be a Franchise Insider's, franchise Consultant, you have to be a franchise owner or have owned a franchise in the past with a successful exit to be a franchise owner, or have owned a franchise in the past with a successful exit.
Speaker 3:So, david, let's turn it over to you, tell us about who you are and what you do, and we'll kind of take it from there. Yeah, you kind of nailed it there, jack. You know I didn't really sit back until recently, that my whole life I've been about helping others. Law enforcement at first I did as a job when I, you know, didn't get drafted to play Major League Baseball. I played Division I baseball in Miami at Florida International University. You know I thought I was going to play in the big leagues. It was my only goal at the time.
Speaker 3:And then I became a police officer and realized, you know, I really enjoyed it and I had to be the best type of police officer there was. And I kept moving up the ladder, kept moving units, some prestigious units like the SWAT team, k-9 team, you know. Then internal affairs. So I had a great, amazing career, learned a lot from my supervisors, mentors, friends, colleagues. Um, yeah, you know that.
Speaker 3:Then I went into corporate, corporate america, left law enforcement early and saw some changes happening in law enforcement. It's not exactly what I signed up for originally and that led me to to corporate, uh, security, been doing that for now almost seven years. Um, extremely blessed and grateful for the opportunities I've gotten. And then, yeah, recently decided you know it's time to do things for myself. Maybe better late than never. Just turned 41 and got into my first you know, reading up on businesses and found Pink's. And here I am. Then found you all and, yeah, just excited to be here Again going back to helping others. In every single part of those careers it was about helping others and now I just want to help others find the path that I found, hopefully sooner in life than later.
Speaker 1:That's such a great point, Jill and I have talked about that for years that we probably should have started as business owners five years before we did. And you're right. And then, once you get into it, you're like man, why didn't I do this sooner? What position did you play in baseball?
Speaker 3:I was a shortstop middle infielder, kind of played everything, but primarily shortstop second base.
Speaker 1:Cool, I was really good at striking out in key moments.
Speaker 2:I was in right field where the ball never comes, so you know.
Speaker 3:They're all important, somehow, someway.
Speaker 1:I'll never forget, like in high school. So I was a mediocre baseball player but, you know, would have good games here and there. But we went up against a guy who had been drafted by the Mariners and this dude threw me some smoke where I was like holy smoke, I don't deserve to be anywhere near this person, like three strikes and done so. It really is, but it illustrated for me the difference right between one level of playing baseball and another. And I think the same is true for business ownership. And the same is true for franchises, Like I saw today someone post on LinkedIn about having this magical list of the top franchises, and there's no magical list. I think what it's really about is finding a way to harness your skills and your talent into the right franchise. And that's where I think you know, with David we were also aligned because we showed him our process of taking people through our personality assessment, which hundreds of franchises use to say how does this new applicant fit them compared to our top performers? And so it.
Speaker 1:The same is true in sports, like if you look at certain baseball teams, like for me I think about like how the Oakland A's were 20 years ago. They had a certain thing that they were looking for in baseball players and it wasn't necessarily the normal stuff, right, the whole money ball thing they were looking for on base percentage. They started to look at the game a different way Franchising a similar thing has happened, where people are now starting to make money in franchising with these home services franchise like Pink's Windows versus the traditional path of owning it Exactly, and what we're finding is is that you can scale a business with much less expense, right? I mean, David, do you have an office for your Pinks? Like, how does that work?
Speaker 3:No, you're looking at it. This is my home office, this is my office. This and the truck. So whenever I'm out there with the guys, it's running around in a pink and blue van.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's it. And so most people, when they think about franchising, they have no idea they can do it this way, and instead of having to start with a million dollars to open your pizza franchise, you can start with $150,000 and get a truck and get a team and go out there and go to work, and so that's's what's so cool about franchising is, is that finding the fit that's for you? Now, somehow you found Pinks, and it was it through Cody Sanchez. Is that how you found Pinks?
Speaker 3:It was. You know I say it's a blue in the face. I owe a lot to Cody Sanchez. We've now met once on one of our owner's calls on Pinks, and you know, but I've read her book, I've seen all her podcasts and just, she just changed the way I thought about life and business. So, yeah, I found her. I found her through one of her YouTube videos, I found pinks.
Speaker 3:I was like there's no way this window cleaning company, you know, is doing what it's doing. And I, as being a police officer, you know, I somewhat think trying to find the worst in things and people first before finding the good. And you know I I took a deep dive, trying to find out what is wrong with this business. How is this possible? And I just couldn't. And then once I met brandon and carter on the on the call, and they're just the same two goofy guys that they were on the video and I'm just like they're real, they're not faking it for the camera and faking it to get franchisees that these are who they are. And to this day they answer the phone every time I call.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so I, you know that's how I found pinks and when I tell people about the support that we have as pinks franchise owners, the weekly sales calls, all the data that we have. Not every franchise does that. You look at Rezzy brands. You look at Steven Montgomery again. I mean his story I'll never forget. We were in Disney world at a conference. We were with our son and we're walking through Disney world and we run into Steven Montgomery. Cause we were there for the same conference and so we stopped Steven and we wanted our son to hear this. I asked Stephen.
Speaker 2:I'm like when you started that one painter, how much money was in your pocket? $12. And Trey remembers that to this day because that's probably what he has in his bank account right now. No, but I think I like what you said about just the transparency. You know brandon and carter are who they are. Yep steven is who he is. We are who we are and you are who you are, and this is why I think this, you know, this next step for all of us is is a big deal, because it's so important to connect with the person that you're working with and and know who they are. So that's why we like getting to know you today. And you know, jack and I always and I always laugh how some people, when they talk to us, they're like wait, we're talking to you. You guys are the same people that you are on your podcast and that's it. We are who we are. We.
Speaker 2:There's no like fake persona like who you see here is who you're going to meet in person, who you're going to talk to on the phone, but I think that then that builds that trust. So you know, we saw that with Pink's too, and you know, here we are taking kind of the next step.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think that brings up a question and I'm curious about this with you, david, in terms of having these businesses now, do you find with you and your wife, when you guys are sitting down at the dinner table at night, are you talking about? Is there, is there like a line? Do you say, ok, we can't talk about business, only personal stuff, or do you find yourselves talking about your businesses and dreaming about the future? Tell me, tell me about that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm kind of driving my wife crazy. Um, in the past year I've, you know, like shifted my mindset completely and now all I do is think about what's next, what's next for the business, what's next for us. You know, just yesterday she got mad at me because I was on my phone at dinner and she brought up a good point Like there's a time and place and I need to prioritize the family, especially now. I just had a newborn last week, so a new addition to the family and thank you. And yeah, like you know, we do talk about business a lot.
Speaker 3:I get calls from my general manager all day long answering his questions or just speaking to him about what's going on with the business. But you're right, that's all I think about right now. And some of my friends are calling me like, hey, you're going into this consulting thing, Like are you crazy? How many jobs are you going to have? I go as many as it takes that one day I don't have to work and I could just make money while I sleep. So as many jobs as it takes.
Speaker 1:Well, and let's be fair about the franchise consulting thing is that it's, you know, it's something that complements your existing business, and I think your existing business complements it, because what we want to do is help people understand what franchise ownership's all about, to understand that there's no such thing as a business that you're going to buy and it's just going to run itself. Um, you're going to have good days and bad days, but the difference is is that you're scaling an asset, you're building something and, unlike the job, if one day you decide you no longer want, no longer want that business, you sell it. So, as being a franchise owner, you have options, and I think in life it's good to have as many options as possible versus the only one option when you work for someone, which is you can be fired right, you get to keep your job, or you can be fired, and someone else gets to decide when you get fired, versus when you're a business owner, when your back's up against the wall.
Speaker 2:It's you.
Speaker 1:You get to make those decisions. You get to make the call to say how do we fix this, how do we move forward, how do we lead the team and inspire them to victory? And you have that now and that's how you're going to be so good at helping other people who are thinking about this and exploring is. Tell me what it's really like. Like what is what is life like as a franchise owner, david? How did you land that big commercial contract? How are you managing your team? Those are the things that people really want to know about.
Speaker 3:No, a hundred percent. And like I just called you this week, right Um, first hiccup ever in the in the business and I, the thing I also enjoyed about starting a franchise over just doing a startup myself, was the support. The support that I could call Jack and ask him a question related to marketing and or I could call you know so-and-so anybody. Whatever question I have, I look for somebody maybe on our Slack channel that has some experience and reach out to them and figure out a way to do something better or to fix something. And you know, that was probably the most valuable thing to myself when deciding to get a franchise was the support.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you're in business for yourself, but not by yourself, I mean do it on their own, but there's something to be said about having the support and someone and we always talk about this as someone cheering for you. They're invested in you and your future and they want you to succeed, so they will take the time to help you. They will a good franchise or a good partner. They want you to do your best, so they are going to take that extra time to work with you and answer your questions and do anything that they need to do to help you.
Speaker 1:And there's a real easy way for all of the people who we work with to make sure that's what's happening and it's what actually drove David into joining our team is that there's a thing called validation, where you get to talk to existing franchisees and you better talk to at least three to five of them, um, and ask the questions are you getting that support? Do you have great marketing materials to go out there and compete with other people? Um? Are you able to talk to other franchise owners? How's the camaraderie, how's the vibe? Is there a franchise conference? If you hear things like there's no franchise conference, franchisees aren't happy, then you know that's not something you're going to invest in, and so that's what we look for is strong culture, strong support, to know that that stuff's there for you. But I would add this caveat Some people say I want to talk to the person that wasn't successful, that closed.
Speaker 1:My thought is that's not someone that can help you. The person that can help you if it's me, when we're looking at a franchise, if we're looking at it personally, I say give me the person that joined in the last three years. That is kicking ass. I want to talk to that person. How did you do it, what makes you different? What are the things you did um. And then maybe after that I might say, okay, now let me balance that with the middle of the pack performer. But you know, it's like the other day our son trey. He came home with a test um, he got 24 out of 25 jill's. Laughing because I'm harping on this 24 out of 25, correct. They gave him what amounted to, I think, a, b.
Speaker 2:No, it's not a B. You still don't understand it.
Speaker 1:The top scores a four.
Speaker 2:He got a 3.5, which is still excellent, and he got one wrong, but percentage wise he probably should have still gotten a four, but they gave him a 3.5.
Speaker 1:So what did we do?
Speaker 2:Well, we tried this before, but it did work this time. Um, he went and asked them. He said why did I get a 3.5? And he showed them and, um, lo and behold, he comes home yesterday with a four.
Speaker 1:So they, they changed the grade but they made him work for it. They said okay, let's meet in the middle. How about you get another chance at the one you got wrong, and if you get it right, we'll give you a four? But the point is this and this is what we talk about with our GM is that sometimes we have to not be afraid to ask the question how do we get what we want? It's like we're doing a subcontractor project and the subcontractor came in at a really high price and he, of course, wanted a bunch of money up front, and it was like no, we're not going to accept that. And the guy a day later is like hey, I'll lower my price and I can start tomorrow. We have. We should never be afraid to ask for things you never know, right. I don't know how we got on that tangent, but anyways.
Speaker 3:Hopefully it helps you out there. I couldn't agree more Like I, I'm the first to ask for help when I need it. I'm not going to sit here and think I know everything or or above anyone. Like if I don't understand a question or I don't understand a statement, I'll ask you hey, you know, I know what ROI stands for, but just an example. If you keep seeing using the word ROI, I'll be like excuse me, what's ROI? And I have no problem with asking questions.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, that's how you learn, that's how you get better.
Speaker 1:That's great, and, for all of you out there, david is, of course, now a full-time member of the Franchise Insiders. He is being trained on the finer arts of franchise consulting and helping people become franchise owners. So he is already a dangerous franchise consultant who can help you with Jill and I, of course, backing him up. And so for those of you out there who may want to contact David and work with him on your franchise search, david, what's the best way for them to reach you? Can they text you?
Speaker 3:You can text, call email. I think you're going to put it up on the site pretty soon. I think it should or should be already be there. But any way of communication, you know, if I don't answer right away, I'll get back to you, you know, within the hour if not.
Speaker 1:Give us the best number for them to contact you.
Speaker 3:The best number would be 305-496-4883, 305-496-4883. That's my personal cell. I always have it on me.
Speaker 1:And you guys have to see, when we announced David on LinkedIn, the outpouring of people saying you got a good one, you guys are so lucky, this is a great dude I mean literally like 30 people, like just like singing your praises and I, david, I think that speaks volumes is that you know to have your network sort of chime in and cheer you on the way they did. It speaks to how you work with people and I think for anyone out there that's considering business ownership, just to have a conversation with you, to learn about your journey and how you did it and how you might be able to help them, I think is going to be so empowering. And for those of you who are seeing this video on YouTube, david, of course, has his own landing page on our site and that'll be linked on this YouTube video as well. David, what else? Any other thoughts or things you want to add about your journey into business ownership?
Speaker 3:No, I think, like you said, I think I'm pretty real. I think I might say things I shouldn't say, but I just wear my heart on my sleeve. I had to take out from my deferred comp, from my retirement. I had to use the sale of my house in order to you have to find a way. I think what I'm trying to get at is you just have to find a way to do it. No more excuses that you know I don't have the money, or you gotta be rich to start a business. That's. That's all false. You know, and you know I would.
Speaker 1:I just dying to help. Even if I just help one person with this consulting business to make that decision and take that leap, then I consider it a success. That's always been our point. We were like you, david. We sold our house to start Franchise Insiders and I think it's something sometimes when people get distracted by shiny objects, it's exciting to think that you might be able to work with someone that owns 100 franchises that is his family owned. But it's quite another to work with someone that knows what it's like to build, to put all your money on the line, to sell an asset, to have those sleepless nights while business builds, and to come through the other side and really make it. That's the advice most people need.
Speaker 1:Most people that we work with they're like us. They don't have a trust fund, they don't have millions of dollars, but they want to build it. So franchising it's never going to be that the franchise. You're going to buy a franchise and it's just going to do it for you. You've got to make it work for you. You've got to make it work. But if you've got that hustle and that drive and I would say this, and I want your, your guy's opinion on this I think a franchise owner has got to be able to lead a team and I think they've got to have massive urgency to drive sales. What do you guys think?
Speaker 3:I agree. I think being a leader is probably the top you know. You got to be able to build a team around you that are going to make you successful. That's that's my secret sauce. Like, um, I just find people smarter than me and put them in the positions. Like you know, I have my ex wife running my books. I don't know the first thing about bookkeeping I'd be the first one to to admit that but she does. That's what she does for a living. That's what she's done for 20 plus years. So, for a living, that's what she's done for 20 plus years. I trust her with my finances. Leadership, you're right. Sales, I think, and with being a franchise consultant, is not just a sales. I think it's the personal part and telling the story. I think that's going to lead to more success for myself and for the team. It's just telling our story.
Speaker 2:What do you say? Hire people smarter than you and put trust in your team and know that you can't be an expert at everything, but you know, be willing to learn and to change and to fail fast and move forward. And you know in all aspects of being a franchise owner or a franchise consultant too. So, and then, obviously, I really love the transparency be who you are, you know, just give real information, share your story, share your, your wins, but share your, your, your fails too, because that's also very important to show how you got to where you are. And then you're real and you're talking to real people that are going through something similar. Um, and I just think that that again is so important in you know, finding people who will be successful franchise owners.
Speaker 1:Yep, and sometimes, by the way, it's not going to be right. You know I was talking to a franchise about this. Today We've got a client that she has 150 grand to her name, which Jill and I had like 30 grand to our name when we started Franchise Setters. But we were willing to throw that all on the line. We were, we were okay with it. There was no one we were going to blame. There was no one we were going to sue. We were willing to bank it all.
Speaker 1:This gal, she's very nice, but she's so nervous, and the franchisor and I were speaking this morning and we both agreed it doesn't feel right. And we, we don't want to take anyone's money that it doesn't feel right. So we, we don't want to take anyone's money that it doesn't feel right. So that's part of being a franchise consultant too, and this is what we say to every one of our clients is the first thing we need to determine is is franchise ownership right for you? And if it is right, let's find you the brand. But if it's not, that's okay too. It's not going to be right for everyone.
Speaker 2:I agree, and I think one thing we've also learned, along the lines of working with clients too, is when you invest in something like a franchise or a business, you have to know that it may not work out, and investing is that it's a risk and the reward can be amazing, but it also can be so. If she's uncomfortable with this amount of money and we always talk to people Are you comfortable losing it? Are you? You know, I don't want this to wipe you out Are you comfortable losing it, because I think that that's really important when we're doing that, having those real conversations.
Speaker 1:When you and I invested in Pinks this is literally a conversation we had we said this is how much it's going to cost. Will it break us if it doesn't work, and break us if it doesn't work. And the answer was no, it won't break us. Then let's go for it.
Speaker 2:And if it did, no way in hell would we?
Speaker 1:Right, but that's. I think you have to have that, that, that conversation. So so much more to talk about. David, we're so thankful to have you on the team and there's so many people you're going to help. I'm so excited to to work together, both as Pink's franchise owners, but also as franchise insiders, I think, for all of you out there, if you want to work with a good guy who's done a lot of great things in his life, who really wants to lead through servant leadership, that's David. Sam Juan, we're thrilled to have you on the team Very excited.
Speaker 3:I can't thank you all enough for this opportunity and, yeah, looking forward to the future together.
Speaker 1:Let's go All right, everyone. Well, you know the drill. David gave you his phone number. David, I'm gonna let you give it one more time. If you want a pre-franchise consultation contact, David at 305-496-4883. 305-496-4883.
Speaker 2:Operators are standing by All friend. Thank you so much for your time.