‘Meet the New Boss’, Say Franchise Seekers

By: Michael Alston for Franchise Insights

October 15, 2025 – Boomers are retiring in droves, and Gen-X and Gen-Y (Millennials) are the largest cohorts among franchise buyers. One thing they all have in common is the desire to control their own destinies through business ownership. 

While the pandemic and its aftermath shaped the characteristics that aspiring owners sought in their franchises of interest, “being my own boss” remains paramount, and more important than financial rewards. But in our most recent August and September surveys, for the first time “lifestyle rewards” gave way to “side business to supplement income” for third place ranking among motivations.

As we’ve seen in over five years of surveying small business startup sentiment, control over one’s destiny is the primary driver to saying ‘yes’ to a business purchase.

Consistent with our very large sample of interested franchise buyers, “being one’s own boss” remains the primary motivator cited by entrepreneurs researching franchise ownership across the Franchise Ventures network of online franchise lead generation brands.  

• “Be my own boss” was the most selected response when asked “Why do you want to own your own business?”– at 85.2% of the respondents in September 2025.
• The survey allowed for multiple responses, and many entrepreneurs also selected “Income Potential” as an additional reason – it ranked a strong No. 2 at 65.7% in September, similar to the 61.8% of responses seen in December 2024.
• For the first time, “Side Business to Supplement Income” displaced “Lifestyle Rewards” for third place among motivations. This suggests greater interest in shared or part-time ownership, or a less-risky path to starting a new business while retaining other income streams. Cited by 44.4% of respondents in September 2025, this motivation was previously ranked fourth at 43.3% of respondents in December 2024.
• “Lifestyle Rewards” is the fourth most common motivation, at 42.6% of respondents, dropping from 47.1% in December 2024. This driver includes the benefits of working from home, setting flexible hours or running a seasonal business. Aspects of work flexibility rank closely behind financial considerations among characteristics that prospects find attractive in franchises, with some differences between women and men seeking franchises. The pandemic gave individuals a taste of greater work flexibility, and they now seek opportunities with the confidence that remote work can be productive and help to achieve better work-life balance, while employers have largely enforced “back to office” requirements. 
• Finally, “Tired of Climbing the Corporate Ladder” was fifth, cited by 28.2% and down from 40.2% of respondents in December 2024, and closer to 32.7% seen in July 2024. This affirms that many aspiring small-business and franchise owners bring a depth of professional experience to their new ventures. In our September 2025 survey of aspiring business owners,  39.3%  were leaving full-time jobs.

Franchise buyers want to know “what’s in it for me”. Knowing what motivates buyers is key to sales.

Many of these individuals already have experience with business ownership. In the most recent Small Business Startup Sentiment survey, 17.1% of respondents said they were already current business owners, and the businesses owned by franchise buyers include other franchises.

The benefits of business ownership, including the control of one’s destiny and the perceived returns from the hard work of building a business are worth the risks, and for many, the disruptions of the pandemic became the impetus for taking the first steps.

This Franchise Insights analysis is drawn from September 2025 surveys of individuals inquiring about franchises for sale among the brands of  Franchise Ventures.

Franchise Ventures is the leading franchise lead-generation platform for potential franchisees to thousands of growing franchise systems in the United States and Canada. Its franchise lead generation brands include Franchise.com, Franchise Solutions, Franchise Gator, Franchise Opportunities, Franchise For Sale, SmallBusinessStartup.com and BusinessBroker.net, and together they provide the largest aggregation of prospective franchise buyers in the U.S.

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Published on Tuesday, October 14th, 2025.