Robert Cresanti, who served as president and CEO of the International Franchise Association (IFA) through the end of March, now holds a seat on the Sport Clips Haircuts Board of Directors. The franchisor, founded in the early 1990s, specializes in hair care for men and boys in sports-themed sites.
Sport Clips President and CEO Edward Logan praised the addition to the franchisor’s board. “Robert has been a friend to Sport Clips and a tireless advocate for the franchise business model,” said Logan, while pointing out that thousands of locally-owned businesses comprise the franchise industry, which employs more than eight million people.
“Our founder, [my father] Gordon Logan, worked with and in support of Robert during his tenure at the IFA through efforts for franchising as a business model on Capitol Hill and as an IFA and IFA Foundation board member and VetFran chairman,” the younger Logan continued. “Having Robert on the board strengthens our franchisee relationships and opportunities as well as the support we provide to more than 18,000 Sport Clips team members.”
For his part, Cresanti said he is “deeply honored to be able to work with Edward and Gordon in service of their amazing franchisees.” While leading the IFA, Cresanti said “the No. 1 question” he was asked was what franchise to buy. “I always said the same thing in response, ‘Finding truly great people as your franchisor is the best way to go,’ ” and he emphasized that Sport Clips more than satisfies that requirement.
In November 2020, Cresanti announced that he would leave the IFA position when his contract expired this past March 31. He was vice president of corporate affairs and government relations at SAP America Inc., a Fortune 500 company, from 2009 to 2014, the year that he took the top spot at IFA.
A career of service
The former IFA head’s experience includes establishing Cresanti Associates LLC, an international business, technology and public affairs advisory firm based in suburban Washington, D.C. His service in Washington has included advising three presidents. He was confirmed as undersecretary of commerce for technology before later being named the most senior chief privacy officer in the federal government. He co-chaired the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, served as a legislative counsel for Congress, and handled banking and technology legislation before several major congressional committees.
He also led communications and public affairs for two technology trade associations, the Business Software Alliance and the Information Technology Association of America, or ITAA, and the Intellectual Property Exchange International, or IPXI. In addition, Cresanti was managing director of a New York Stock Exchange-traded ETF (exchange traded fund).
He holds a law degree from Baylor University School of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Austin College, both in Texas. Cresanti, who is fluent in German as well as English, also holds a certificate of European Community Law from the University of Glasgow Law School and completed master’s degree course work at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
A franchise that gives back
Sport Clips, headquartered in Georgetown, Texas, just outside Austin, was founded in 1993; franchised in 1995; has more than 1,800 locations in the United States and Canada.
Sport Clips ranks 17th in the Entrepreneur magazine “Franchise 500” for 2021 and is listed in Franchise Direct’s 2021 “Top 100 Global Franchises.” Entrepreneur also honored Sport Clips as a 2019 Top Franchise for Veterans. The company gives preferential pricing for veterans’ haircuts and is the “Official Haircutter” of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). Sport Clips provides “Haircuts with Heart” through its annual Help A Hero fundraiser that has contributed $8.7 million to the VFW.
The franchise’s other philanthropic efforts include a national partnership with St. Baldrick’s Foundation, the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants.
Sport Clips sponsors NASCAR’s Joe Gibbs Racing team and partners with other professional sports teams as well as the NCAA. To learn more about Sport Clips, visit sportclips.com.