If you are looking to buy a franchise, one of the most difficult questions you will be forced to answer is, "What kind of business shall I buy?" The best franchise for one person may not be the best franchise for someone else. One thing is true, however. If you select an option from among the 10 best franchise opportunities listed below, you can hardly go wrong.

1. Fast Food Restaurants

This particular sector is probably the most recognizable whenever the best franchise opportunities are discussed. All the big names - McDonald's, Taco Bell, Church's Chicken, KFC - are ideal franchise partners, but be prepared to pay top dollar to become part of their system. Lots of relatively unknown fast food companies are popping up every month, and each one wants to be the Next Big Thing. Getting in on the ground floor with one of them could prove an attractive option for the bargain-hunting entrepreneur. The top sub-sector within this group involves pizza, both for delivery and as a dine-in option.

2. Fast Casual Restaurants

Fast casual is the fastest growing element of the food service industry. Meals are cooked to order and restaurants have well appointed dining areas, but patrons order from the main counter rather than via a waitperson. As a result, operational costs are lower and turnover - getting more people in and out the door more quickly - is much higher than in fine dining establishments.

3. Convenience Stores

Once the gas station became a one-stop shopping experience, convenience store opportunities virtually exploded overnight. Some of the biggest names in franchising are involved in the C-store industry. While 7-Eleven remains the Holy Grail as a best franchise opportunity, there are dozens of local and regional chains looking for new locations and competent entrepreneurs.

4. Vending & Kiosks

The vending machine business has long been a desirable self-employment opportunity, made even more so these past few years with the advent of equipment that accepts credit card payments. The top choices among the best franchises in this sector are vending machines that rent DVDs by the day, as well as the old standbys: beverage vendors. Most franchise opportunities here provide suggestions as to where you can place your machines, but you're usually on your own when it comes to actually finding a spot. Some of the more successful kiosk franchisees strike master deals with retail stores - supermarkets and C-stores, in particular - that automatically opens up multiple spots for broader placement.

5. Packing & Shipping Centers

There are three or four major players in this sector, and one of the advantages to becoming their franchisee involves the special shipping rates you will enjoy with all the major independent carriers, such as UPS, DHL, and FedEx. These stores also offer private mailbox services, and many are even branching out into the online auction business, acting as a one-stop shop for people who want to sell their stuff on eBay but don't want the hassle of sorting through bids and shipping their items to winning bidders.

6. Fitness Centers

Health clubs are back in a big way, and these are some of the best franchise opportunities around. Specialization is the major influence these days - women only clubs, personal training gyms, martial arts centers in various disciplines, and so on.

7. Tax & Financial Advisories

Look at any best franchise list and you're bound to see one or two income tax prep centers among them. What was once only a quarterly business (January through April) has blossomed into a year-round opportunity, now that many franchisees also offer estate planning and other kinds of financial advice. Training in this sector is some of the best in the franchise world.

8. House Cleaning & Repair

This is probably the top mobile or work-from-home franchise sector. Anything that has to do with houses and their upkeep would fall into this category, and the best franchises include those that offer multiple services - not just cleaning people's carpets but also their furniture and drapes; not just providing maid services to the home, but also commercial cleaning as well. The home repair business is fairly recession proof and can include such services as interior and exterior painting, gutter cleaning or replacement, garage door services, and even landscaping.

9. Health & Senior Care

You can divide this sector up into two distinct options - retail type businesses and in-home care. For the former, there are plenty of franchise opportunities in the urgent care market, where someone needs to see a doctor right away but it's not a life-threatening situation. Sports injuries and accidents in the kitchen are several examples. The dental field is now franchising as well. In-home senior care is expected to explode over the next ten years, as Baby Boomers begin to retire in even greater numbers and look forward to living in their own homes for as long as they can.

10. Automobile Services

This is another field that features storefront franchising opportunities as well as mobile ones. Fast lube places are big business just about anywhere you go. Mobile dent and windshield repair is lucrative and easy to learn.

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Author: Cleo I Brewer
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