CANCUN, Mexico — Aire Serv Heating & Air Conditioning Inc. contractors had the opportunity to snorkel in and parasail over the deep blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico during their Fall Conference 2002 in Cancun. They also attended a number of idea-sharing seminars. It was business before pleasure.

The setting brought out representatives from a majority of the 69 franchise owners in the United States and franchise owners from the United Kingdom, too. Roger Goertz, Aire Serv president, was very enthusiastic about the current state of affairs at Aire Serv, which marked its 10th anniversary at the conference.

“You can make your dreams a reality using the tools we have available,” Goertz told attendees. “You definitely have a leg up on the competition.”

Dina Dwyer-Owens also spoke with attendees. Dwyer-Owens is president and CEO of The Dwyer Group Inc. The Dwyer Group, located in Waco, TX, is a franchise holding company with six subsidiaries, including Aire Serv. There are over 900 combined franchises in the U.S. and nearly 400 in other countries.

Dwyer-Owens showed a film clip from a recent television news station, which featured a program sponsored by franchisee Mr. Rooter® to bring single mothers into the plumbing labor force. Dwyer-Owens also told attendees that The Dwyer Group was ranked 65th in a listing of the nation’s 100 fastest growing small businesses as published by Fortune Small Business Magazine.

AIRE SERV STATS

Here are some Aire Serv facts and figures:

The average age of a franchise business is 3.23 years. Some franchises are over six years old, while others are two years old or less.

The total of franchises sold in 2001 was $19.4 million. The projected figure for 2002 is $24.4 million.

Sales mix projected for 2002: 52.0% replacement sales (expected rise to 55.5% in 2003); 29.9% service and repair (expected decrease to 23.7% in 2003).

Franchisees are also located in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Saudi Arabia.

Goertz livened up the indoor atmosphere by throwing a 10th birthday party for Aire Serv franchisees, adding that he hoped to be around “to celebrate our 20th birthday.”

“It has been 10 fantastic years,” said Goertz. “We’ve succeeded in building a national franchise from scratch with quality contractors, not quantity.”

Publication date: 11/04/2002