What do you all think of this company? I had thought about buying a franchise until I spoke with the woman in charge of them. When I spoke to her, it was obvious that "Ms. Happy" had no idea what she was talking about. They claim to be growing rapidly, but I doubt that especially with Ms. Happy in charge.

I was just wondering what you all thought. I may start my own animal control company similar to what they do, but I don't want to be associated with this company. Ms. Happy was a miserable b**ch on the phone and really had no idea what she was talking about.

I don't think much of them.

What Co.?

Don't !

I TALKED TO THEM YEARS AGO AND THEY SAID THEY ALREADY HAD AN OFFICE IN LOUISVILLE AND THERE WASN'T ROOM IN KY FOR ANY MORE. LOUISVILLE IS 4 HOURS AWAY FROM HERE. ANYWAY I WENT WITH A ALL ANIMAL CONTROL AND AM REALLY HAPPY WITH THEM, BUSINESS HAS REALLY GROWN FROM WHEN I WAS TRYING TO DO IT ON MY OWN. JUST MY OPINION.

Roaddawg,

The better question is to just ask yourself do you want to be a franchise (which has benefits for some folks) or do you want to be wholly
responsible for everything in your startup? Some folks like having the ad materials, equipment, training etc...that these franchises do
to help them along.

Some folks on this forum once owned or worked for these folks and other franchises and have their reasons for going solo that range from
more money to more control or happiness.

I think when some folks start they find too many variables that if not business inclined can be overwhelming. Since they are franchises some
can be great operators, others might not, that is just the nature of franchising, just like pizza hut, subway, roto rooter or any other out there.

Good luck whatever you decide, there are folks happy on both sides of the fence, I operate in one of their areas here and pass them often and
as david said, I don't really think about them, one way or the other.

Justin

Yeah, I don't know why Kevin Clark even lets Happi answer the phone. I called CC HQ around 1994 and said I wanted to buy a franchise and she said someone else just bought the rights to my service area...then she hung up. There was no, "Thanks for your interest, but sorry". There was no attempt to put me in contact with the franchisee so I could work for him. There wasn't even a "goodbye". Just a click at the other end of the line. She was just plain rude with absolutely no phone manners at all. So I fired off a letter to Kevin to explain what happened and he sent me an apology letter...he sent it, not her.

This is a wonderful post. Thanks to my good friend Al Krier, I have know Kevin Clark, ( The owner of the Critter Control franchise ) and Happi Truan, ( The gal you're talking about ) for nearly all 25 years that I have been in business. I have gone on cruises with them and have met a lot of their franchisees. ( Most of whom are still in business ) I have a lot of respect for many of their people. The guy who owned the Critter Control franchise in the Milwaukee area was more than just a competitor, he was a friend.

I will tell you right now, that if you are a great salesperson and know nothing about animal removal or pest control, a franchise may be your best bet. If, however, you are in a attic and it is 120 degrees, you may not want to share any part of your hard earned money with a franchise.

As far as Critter Control goes, I think the whole franchise started going downhill when Mike Dwyer, the president, decided to quit and buy a hardware store, but that's just my opinion. ( I'm guessing that other franchises like Wildlife Solutions and A All Animal Control would agree )

One thing that I have noticed is that not a single Critter Control agent has posted anything on either this or LT's site that I know of. ( Perhaps they're not allowed )

All I will add is to let your business sense decide your business stuff. The Individuals are not the part to worry about (important, but not the meat and potatoes). Call a franchise out of your area and ask them your questions. Regardless of the franchise, McDonald's or Critter Control, the folks that know are the ones running the individual businesses under the franchise rules. Mike D used to ask if you wanted to make 100% of ten thousand or 90% of 100,000.00 as an example of owning a franchise or doing your own thing. Pros and Cons both ways.

I pretty much agree with everything Tim said. Whether or not to buy into a franchise depends mostly on your skill levels, both at WC and running a business. You need both in order to thrive as a WCO, and franchises can help if you have weak or no business skills. One biiig consideration is whether you want to be 100% independent or not. Most folks in this field kinda tend to walk their own line.

I looked at their potential earnings in my area before I started. Numbers looked good but
I'd rather do it by myself. With the amount of miles I put on my rig I would think I would have seen them somewhere.

I will refrain from saying anything about cc, but as far as Happy, She has been in the business for a long time now.

You are a better man than me sir.

Cc was the first company I contacted when I decided to enter the industry. I had the same experience that roaddawg did. She did me a favor because after that I decided to start on my own.

Come on Phil, who else do you know that dyes their hair that white?

Is that a s*** pot being stirred?

Rich, not as far as I'm concerned. If Happi or anyone else is in Cleveland we'll take about old times as usual.

Same here.

I have a lot of their former customers. That should tell you enough.