ZAGG franchisees come from various backgrounds, diversifying our larger company culture in a way special to the industry. Get to know the people behind the brand by chiming in with us every other month, where we chat with the boots on the ground that continue making the retail experience extraordinary.
July 2022 ZAGG Franchisee Spotlight: Ryan Hales
After running heavy equipment for an Anchorage construction company, Ryan desired a career change. A whopping 13 years later, he’s still a part of the ZAGG franchise family. Let’s dive into his experience and insight:
What has been the most rewarding part of being a franchisee? Running my own business.
What has been the most unexpected struggle? Running my own business 😉
Why did you choose the ZAGG franchise? I was on a vacation in Phoenix, AZ shopping at the Mills Mall. At the time there were two Ghost Armor kiosks with constant customer traffic. It piqued my interest because none of the Alaska malls had a service like this. When I got home from my vacation, I needed a new screen protector so I went to Best Buy and bought my first invisibleShield. I researched Ghost Armor and ZAGG and made inquiries to both. Ghost Armor never responded to me. (Thankfully) the ZAGG Franchise Director and his team responded to me less than 12 hours later with a phone call, and the rest is history.
If you could go back to when you opened your franchise, what would you do differently, if anything, and would you do it again? I would absolutely do it all over again. I probably would have tried to go in-line, as opposed to kiosk, a little sooner. We have had a ton of success with our in-line stores.
Have you always wanted to own your own business? Yes, I always wanted to work for myself and support my family.
Give us the lowdown on how you market phone repair!
How do you train employees? First and foremost, we try to hire employees with repair experience. We’ve invested in practice devices if we hire employees who need training. My lead tech starts each employee with iPhones 6-8+, have them completely break it down to the frame, and put it back together. Then we move on to X-11Pros. We train with iPhones first because that is 80% of what comes in for repair. Once those devices are mastered we will train Samsung and iPads. It’s a long process!
How do you set pricing? Pricing can be tricky. Our pricing starts at the cost of parts, then we monitor what our in-town competitors charge. We try staying competitive, but ultimately have an upper hand with the ability to bundle repairs, screen protectors and warranties on parts.
What’s your quoted turnaround time for customers? All iPhones usually take 45 min, Samsungs typically take 1 hour, and we like to hold iPads for 24 hours to ensure the adhesive holds correctly.
What devices do you repair? Pretty much every device that we can get parts for. If it’s broken we repair it.
What are some tips you can give to fellow or aspiring small business owners? It never seems like the right time. You will struggle, but as long as you are driven and have a good support network, just do it.
Anything else you’d like to add about your experience in the industry or plans for the future? ZAGG has opened many doors for us. I have called my go-to ZAGG Franchise guys many times to bounce ideas off of them. I try to do my research to see what other shops are doing so that we can do it better.
Thoughts on the franchise application and process?
I am a believer in our franchise network. We have tried, for the most part, everything ZAGG Franchise has suggested, and have had success. The addition of the employee and owner learning management system, as well as the franchisee HUB, are next level when it comes to training and having marketing material at a moment’s notice.
You can find ZAGG Alaska on social media:
All Alaska stores
Wasilla
Dimond
5th Avenue
