Franchisor Marketing

New HQ for Kiddie Academy
According to the Baltimore Business Journal, Kiddie Academy, a 78-unit child-care franchise chain, is expanding its headquarters. The 24,000-square-foot facility, to be completed in early 2007, will house the 40 employees now based in a 9,000-square-foot office in Bel Air. A leader in early childhood learning, Kiddie Academy began franchising in 1992 and has 68 franchised and 10 company-owned academies.

Clockwork Adds Electricity
The Atlanta Constitution reports the electrical service and repair company Mister Sparky will be acquired by Clockwork Home Services.  This positions Clockwork, already the franchisor of Benjamin Franklin Plumbing and One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning, to expand into the national franchising of electrical services.” Patrick Kennedy, founder and CEO of Mister Sparky, will join Clockwork Home Services as vice president of franchise sales.

BP to Sell Gas Stations
According to published reports, BP is selling 16 of its flagship BP Connect gasoline stations and convenience stores in the greater Chicago area, including four in Northwest Indiana.  The company is also selling off 41 other BP branded gas stations in Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Ohio, according to NRC Realty Advisors, of Chicago.

IdeaFarm President to Address OXXO Care Cleaners Franchisees
IdeaFarm President Sean Kelly will deliver a keynote speech at the OXXO Care Cleaning franchise convention July 25th in Hollywood, FL.  Kelly’s “Relentless Promotional Marketing,” presentation teaches unit-level brand and sales building principles and tactics for franchise owners.  According to iFranchise Group CEO Mark Siebert, OXXO Care Cleaners  is an innovative, environmentally friendly dry cleaning franchise with twenty-five franchises sold in South Florida, and additional units planned for New York, New Jersey, California and Washington D.C.

Franchise Services Appoints Keith Galus VP of Marketing
Franchise Services, Inc. has appointed Keith Galus as vice president of marketing. Prior to joining the company, Galus was senior vice president of marketing for Fantastic Sams. He will oversee all corporate marketing and sales activities to support FSI’s network of nearly 1000 franchise locations worldwide. Franchise Services is the parent company of the printing industry brands, Sir Speedy, PIP, Copies Now, MultiCopy, inkTone and Digital Quickcolor as well as TeamLogic IT, a franchise network of technology companies servicing small- to medium-sized businesses.

Aikman to Wing It 3 More Years
Troy Aikman, three-time Super Bowl champion and Hall of Fame inductee, has extended his contract as Wingstop’s official spokesperson. Aikman originally signed on as Wingstop’s national spokesperson in October 2003.  Source: Wingstop press release.