Starting a franchise at 17. Scaling to 45 locations by 26

⏳ Read time: ~4 minutes

Welcome back to the Franchise Marketer Newsletter!

I have been away for a while, so I wanted to focus on family and pretty much shut everything out.

Good thing with that is that I have a lot of good content I have been meaning to push out, starting with todays edition.

On one of the recent episodes of the Franchise Marketer Podcast, I sat down with Michael Black from Success Tutoring.

He started the whole thing at 17 in a spare room.
He’s now 26 with 45 locations across Australia and New Zealand.
And he’s not slowing down.

The interesting part isn’t the speed. It’s the approach.

A quick snapshot

• Started in his parents’ house in Western Sydney
• Studied management and law while running it
• Built three company-owned centres before franchising
• Now at 45, aiming for 60 this year
• Long-term goal. Compete with Kumon’s 36,000 global locations

His line that stuck with me.
“We’re not trying to scale for the sake of scaling. We want a brand that lasts for generations.”

Clear vision. Clear intent.

Michael listed 30 marketing ideas when he started.

He tried every single one.
None worked.

What didn't work wasn’t even on the list.

Parents talking to other parents.
A family friend recommended the service.
Getting the first two students a result.

“It took six to eight months to get the first customer. Once we did and they got results, word of mouth grew it.”

A nice reminder that before AI, funnels and dashboards, trust still wins.

Before they ran a single Facebook ad, they grew through shopping centre stands.

Small table.
A stack of flyers.
Michael is talking to parents and booking assessments on the spot.

Two things happened:

That language became the backbone of their copy and content.
It’s not glamorous. It works.

Success Tutoring treats content like a living FAQ.

Someone asks a question. They make a video.
“What makes you different?”
“How does the model work?”
“How do you pick locations?”

No NDAs.
No mystery.
No hoops.

From a franchise recruitment point of view, this is gold.
By the time someone enquires, half the work is already done.

Some brands still make prospects sign NDAs for basic info.
Some charge money for territory lists.
Some hide everything and then complain about “low-quality leads”.

Michael’s view is the opposite.

No NDAs.
Show the playbook.
Let people qualify themselves out early.

It’s the same model we use at Jim’s.
Hours of YouTube content. Interviews. Franchisees sharing their own numbers.
The secretive operators hate it.
The right people respect it.

They market before they open.
And new locations often launch with 50, 80, or even 150 members already signed.

That means lower risk.
More confidence.
And a stronger start.

This is where most franchisors fall behind.
You can’t compete with that using a dusty brochure and five posts a year.

How they generate members:

• Paid social
• Google
• Local partnerships
• Shopping centre stands

How they generate franchise leads:

• Facebook and Google ads
• Dedicated franchise site
• Email nurture
• YouTube interviews
• Short-form video
• Digital PR

And here’s the pattern:
People reference content in their enquiry.

“I saw the YouTube videos.”
“I read the book.”

Content is doing the qualification for them.

One of their franchisees is 23.
Started as a student, became a tutor, then bought a franchise.

Young people do want franchising.
They just want brands that feel real.

Michael has a clear story, and he tells it.

• Spare room origin story
• TV appearances
• A book
• Consistent content

“People aren’t just buying the logo. They’re buying the mission and the team behind it.”

Founders who still refuse to get on camera are slowing their own brand down.
Attention has shifted. The founder needs to show up.

Planned. Six months.
Actual. Twelve.

Worth it.

The book helps prospects understand the model, the story and the values.
People throw out flyers.
They keep books.

Success Tutoring uses AI every day for:

• Drafting comms
• Curriculum updates
• Learning materials
• A free AI tutor on their website
• Scanning curriculum changes

But it doesn’t replace tutors.
AI assists. Humans explain.

Three groups you can’t ignore:

The customer.
The franchise partner.
Head office.

If one cracks, the whole thing does.

So he focuses on franchisee profitability, team support and consistent field visits.

“The best ideas come from franchise partners. McCafé and the Big Mac came from franchisees.”

Every new franchisee gets a microphone in their starter kit.
And they’re hiring an internal videographer.

We did the same at Jim’s. It changed everything.

In-house content is faster.
More real.
Less approval loops.
Film. Approve. Publish.

You don’t just need UGC.
You need franchisee-generated content.

One or two will run with it.
The rest follow.

To learn more about Michael, check out https://successtutoring.com.au/

One of my best mates got married and decided to get married in Tieling, China, which is a small town, according to them, with over 2 million people.

On the way back, we decided to stop by Seoul, Fukuoka, and Nagasaki before heading home.

Then, after that, a cousin decided to have his wedding in Noosa, so I was away for that as well.

This means a lot of content is to come!

Each week, I interview marketing experts or share insights from the strategies I have used to help grow Jim’s by 2,000+ franchisees.

Listen on Spotify and iTunes.

If you would like to be a guest or would like me to cover a specific subject in an episode, please reply to this email.

Before you go…

Yes, I work with brands outside of Jim’s.

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