First-Time Business Owner Finds Stability and Demand Through the Fencing Franchise
Jay Rane’s career as a medical device salesman wasn’t terrible. He made good money — more than enough to support his family — but after seven years in a corporate job, he wasn’t happy. “I had to report to a team or my boss, had restricted PTO and sick days and was putting all my effort into working for someone else,” he says. “I was ready to be my own boss.”
So in 2023, Rane made the leap and purchased a Superior Fence & Rail franchise in Minneapolis. “You can make good money in corporate America, but more often than not, you can be far more financially independent when owning your own business,” he says. “When you’re financially independent, you have enough income to not worry about bills or your next paycheck.”
Franchising Offers Independence
Rane knew he was ready for entrepreneurship, but buying an existing business was cost-prohibitive, and he really didn’t know how to start from scratch. Franchising was the happy medium. “For a first business, franchising was ideal,” he says. “It allowed for lower equity and investment and allowed me to grow the business to the size that could support my family.”
Rane focused on the home services sector after doing copious research. “I knew it was more of a recession-proof business,” he explains. And although he knew nothing about fencing, when he called around to a few fencing companies and found all were booked seven to eight weeks out for installation, “I immediately knew there was a demand.”
After a conversation with company co-founder Zach Peyton, he chose Superior Fence & Rail. With more than 100 locations across the country, the nearly 25-year-old brand fabricates and installs over 12 million feet of fencing each year for residential and commercial customers. “Superior Fence & Rail provided me the opportunity to start my own company while using a tried-and-true playbook that comes with a built-in set of peers across the state or country whom you can lean on and learn from,” Rane says.
The company’s proprietary technology, in-depth sales and operational training and support, were also key. “Their model gave me the ability to structure my day around my obligations and responsibilities,” Rane says. A typical day might find him either working from home or the warehouse, connecting with vendors, working on pricing or marketing and overseeing operations. Some days, it’s deskwork and other days he’s out in the field, driving trailers. Demand for fencing ebbs and flows with the seasons, with spring and fall super busy, a summer lull and a quiet winter, which Rane says is ideal. “It allows us to recoup, review the past year, make any changes and prepare for a busy spring ahead.”
Accelerated Growth
After some initial hurdles in hiring, Rane now has a seasoned staff and business is booming: his Minneapolis franchise hit its five-year projection after its first full year in operation.
“It’s the best feeling when we get compliments about our crews and team or read reviews with customers expressing how much they love their fence and neighbors are calling from referrals,” Rane says. “It’s exciting to see that this is all coming from something we started just a few years ago.”
It’s been a grind at times, he admits, but at the end of the day, he knows he made the right choice. His newfound financial independence has provided not only income security but also freedom. “A large part of why I did this was so that after 5-10 years of a lot of hard work, I could grow the business to where I could step back and put more emphasis on life than work balance,” he says. “That freedom is an incredible source of independence, as well.” Rane encourages anyone on the fence (no pun intended) about starting their own company to just do it. “It’s a scary leap of faith,” he says. “But you will never regret trying, and when you succeed, you will never look back.”
Learn more about the Superior Fence & Rail franchise.
