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Nov
17
2021
OWNERSHIP

Veteran Franchise Ownership and Special Incentive Programs

Veteran Franchise Ownership and Special Incentive Programs

The UPS Store has special incentive programs to support veteran franchise ownership. 

After retiring or being discharged from the military, many service members find themselves wondering what’s next. In fact, almost 90 percent of veterans start a second career after leaving the military. Settling into a satisfying profession is a major step in transitioning back into civilian life. According to a survey conducted by The UPS Store, almost two-thirds of service members consider business ownership. This is not surprising, as the skills, values and experiences of veterans make them uniquely suited to own their own business.

There are a variety of startup resources available for veterans who want to become business owners. This includes access to multiple organizations and networking channels to help obtain funding, business training and certifications. The UPS Store is proud to provide further support by offering incentives to make veteran franchise ownership more affordable.

Mission:  Veteran Entrepreneurship

The UPS Store offers two veteran entrepreneurship programs designed to help qualified U.S. military veterans open their own The UPS Store franchise location.

VetFran Program

The UPS Store is a proud founding member of the International Franchise Association (IFA) VetFran program. Established in 1991 as a strategic initiative of IFA, VetFran includes over 600 member companies offering financial incentives, education and support to veterans interested in franchise ownership.

Through the VetFran program, qualifying veterans receive $10,000 off the franchise fee for opening a new The UPS Store location and 50 percent off the initial application fee. It’s our way of saying thank you to veterans for their service to our country. Within The UPS Store network, there are 223 veteran franchise owners operating over 400 The UPS Store locations who have utilized the VetFran program.

Ashwin Narayan, owner of two The UPS Store locations in Ohio says, “I’m retired Air Force. I was medically retired after 10 and a half years of service. When I got out of there, I said, what am I going to do with myself? You know, I have all these skills, but I don't know what I want to do. I have the skills to lead people, but I don't have the business skills, and the franchise model has the systems in place to teach me. I looked at about five different franchises, and The UPS Store was the one that just seemed to me like they had their ducks in a row.”

Navy veteran and fellow retail store owner George agrees, “My advice to people getting out of the military is simple: I wish I had known about this program when I got out.” 

The UPS Store truly is a worthwhile investment, ranked as a top franchise for veterans by Entrepreneur magazine.We have also been ranked #1 in the postal and business services category for 31 consecutive years and have remained in the top 5 overall Franchise 500 ranking for five years straight.

Veterans Franchise Give-Away Program

The UPS Store veterans franchise give-away program takes our appreciation for troops past and present to the next level. Launched in 2019, the program salutes veterans with nearly $300,000 in incentives by providing significant savings for 10 eligible veterans who submit a completed buyer’s application packet. Each selected veteran is awarded $29,950 in waived franchise fees to get their retail store up and running. The program runs from May to November and recently wrapped up its third year. To date, 34 veterans have taken advantage of the program to open their own The UPS Store franchise.

How to Start a The UPS Store Franchise

The UPS Store offers 40 years of franchising experience, a proven business model and well-defined operational procedures all backed by a nationally renowned brand name. We’re committed to helping all our retail owners achieve success. From our award-winning comprehensive training program to ongoing support, collaboration and camaraderie with fellow retail owners, our franchisees are never in business alone. We’re there every step of the way.

The UPS Store makes it easy to get started with our simple four step franchise approval process.

  1. Inquiry – Attend a national webinar to learn more about the business opportunity and value The UPS Store provides to franchisees and their communities. We offer a variety of location types from traditional to rural to non-traditionaland store in store centers that allow owners to tailor their retail store to best meet the needs of their communities.
  2. Application – Submit an application and financial documentation, review the FDD and interview with our team before making a final decision on the investment. Perform due diligence, conduct thorough research and talk to current owners in the franchise network.
  3. Funding – Once approved, candidates sign a letter indicating their formal intent to pursue owning a The UPS Store franchise and pay the initial application fee. This one-time upfront fee grants the right to use The UPS Store trademarks, name and related business systems.
  4. Booking – Complete any necessary financing, sign the franchise agreement and property lease and complete training. In addition to The UPS Store veteran incentives, there are a variety of flexible franchise financing optionsavailable for qualified franchisees through our partnership with Guidant Financial.

Favorable Conditions

Now is a good time to open a franchise business thanks to reduced competition, availability of prime real estate and increased access to capital. The foundational strength provided by the franchise business model combined with the essential nature of the postal and business services category makes The UPS Store a great choice for opening a franchise business.

Navy veteran Jimmy Ochoa opened his The UPS Store location in Bensenville, IL during the height of the pandemic after noticing his community lacked the services that The UPS Store provides. Although it was challenging to create market awareness for his store amidst the lockdown, he got the word out by raffling off gift cards, supporting other local small businesses, which in turn was helping his entire community persevere through trying times.

Owning a The UPS Store can be a very rewarding experience by enabling veterans to apply the skills honed serving our country to serve the communities they call home. To learn more about The UPS Store franchise opportunities, check out our upcoming webinars or reach out to our franchise development team.

2023 Entrepreneur's Franchise 500 Top Rated for Veterans badge

We Proudly Support Our Veterans

Participating partners with the VetFran program, The UPS Store offers qualifying veterans $15,000 off their franchise fee to start their new business. To learn more, contact The UPS Store Franchise Development Team.

Entrepreneur's Franchise 500 Ranked #4 in 2023 badge

Ranked for over 30 Consecutive Years

The UPS Store has been ranked #1 in the postal and business services category for over 30 years and remains in the top 5 overall for the seventh consecutive year according to the Franchise 500 list.

Kristin Howard

Franchisee, Michigan

The reason my husband and I decided to go into franchising and specifically with The UPS Store, is the different opportunities we're given with the business. The UPS Store has name recognition as well as opportunities to expand.

Debbie Adams

Franchisee, Kentucky

What I enjoy most about being a The UPS Store owner is working with my customers. We are the solution specialists for our customers.

Jim George

Franchisee, Illinios

My favorite part about The UPS Store network is the camaraderie with other franchisees. Everybody loves to help everybody else. You’re really part of a family.

Greg Murray

Franchisee, Florida

The interesting thing about The UPS Store is that when a customer walks through the door there's an extremely high probability that they're coming there to do something that is important to them. So at the end of the day, what we do for customers is very important and they are trusting that we are going to do it well.

See the Full Testimonial

Mariana Huberman

Franchisee, Washington, D.C.

One of the things that I love about The UPS Store franchise system is that you're not ever in this by yourself. The franchisees of The UPS Store network are great.

Heidi Morris

Franchisee, Colorado

The thing I enjoy most about being a The UPS Store franchisee is I get to get up, go to work and know that I'm helping other business owners succeed in what they're doing.

Bob Brown

Franchisee, Tennessee

Owning a The UPS Store franchise has changed my life because it's finally given me the opportunity to engage my customers and my staff and be able to take real pride in what I do. As a franchisee, we get faced with solving peoples' problems every day and we do everything we possibly can to try to help.

Marie Jensen

Franchisee, Oregon

My favorite thing about The UPS Store is the variety. I love the variety of customers, I love the variety of services; getting to know the customers, meeting their needs, finding out how we can help them accomplish what they need to accomplish and seeing how happy they are. That makes me ecstatic.

Learn More About Marie

Tad Mollnhauer

Franchisee, Florida

With the products and services that The UPS Store provides we can make a difference in people's lives and that is the best reason for being a The UPS Store owner.

Joy Batchelor

Franchisee, Idaho

What makes being a The UPS Store franchisee worthwhile at the end of the day is the customers. The customers treat us like we're family.

Paul Erchinger

Franchisee, Texas

One nice benefit of owning a The UPS Store franchise for me has been that it gives me the opportunity to be more involved in the community. As I make relationships with others it seems like no matter what the environment is, in one way or another business comes out of that and that's not my objective—it's been a secondary benefit to being involved in the community.

Chris Reminder

Franchisee, Ohio

There are several things that I really enjoy about being a The UPS Store franchisee. First and foremost it allows me to get to know the people in the local community and that is a lot of fun. We get to see people on a regular basis. We get to know their life stories. That's a lot of fun.

Bruce Jones

Franchisee, Kentucky

Since we have joined The UPS Store, our life has changed by just having more time to spend together as a family. We've been very fortunate with the stores that we have and we have a great staff that looks out for our best interest and we look out for theirs.

Lonnie Williams

Franchisee, Oklahoma

What makes The UPS Store so successful is it gives each individual an opportunity to grow with the network and just meet the challenges that are brought to them on a daily basis. Every day gives us a new opportunity to help another person, to help another small business, to answer a question and to solve a problem.

Jeff Graham

Franchisee, Alabama

I love my customers. I love my employees. I love every person, every face that comes into my store. I enjoy every day going into work and I can't see doing anything else for the rest of my life.

Stacie Stigar

Franchisee, Alaska

I think that this franchise is so successful because of all of the resources that are available to us as center owners—we have marketing materials, we have so many different opportunities for help from the home office, and it just really makes for a great franchise.

Don Pollard

Franchisee, New Jersey

I think the thing that makes this franchise successful is a number of things. First of all we have an outstanding system, we have a great product, a great brand, and we're able to attract dynamic people to run these centers and run the business. So I think when you put all that together it really provides for a winning combination.

Mary Ellen Nichols

Franchisee, Tennessee

The thing I love about the franchise is that you have the UPS name backing you but yet you also have the autonomy to make your own decisions to promote.

Laura Griffin

Franchisee, Florida

In the eight short months I've owned my The UPS Store it has really changed my life. I've gone from being an employee of someone else to being an employer of my associates. It's a big responsibility but it's exciting every day.

Sandy Scandrett

Franchisee, Wisconsin

Being a The UPS Store franchisee has improved every aspect of my life. It's very rewarding financially, professionally, and emotionally. I have a large number of regular customers who are really, really appreciative of everything we do.

Kristie Robison

Franchisee, Alabama

I would say owning a The UPS Store location has changed my life to where I have more time and flexibility. In owning your own business you get your store up and running and you get employees that you can trust that are going to help keep your store running. This allows me to attend my two boys' ball games and also travel and do things with them so it has really changed my life for the better.