The Exit Plan with Alex Smereczniak
The Exit Plan is the weekly podcast about leaving the 9-to-5 to own a business, hosted by Alex Smereczniak, co-founder and CEO of Franzy.
Every week you get an unfiltered conversation with someone who actually left the 9 to 5 and built something real: how they did it, what it cost them, what they'd do differently, and what the numbers actually looked like. Franchise owners, startup founders, multi-unit operators. Real stories. Real playbooks. No highlight reel.
On this show, "exit" means your exit from the 9-to-5, not selling a company. If you're franchise curious or done trading time for a paycheck, start here.
New episodes weekly. Follow the show so you don't miss one.
The Exit Plan is produced by Franzy, the franchise marketplace where you research, match with and buy a franchise. Get started free at https://franzy.com
Formerly "How I Franchised This".
The Exit Plan with Alex Smereczniak
Latest Episodes
From Assistant Manager to Opening Stores in 3 Years | Darryl Gates, Big Dave's Cheesesteaks
At one of Big Dave's early grand openings, 20 to 30 new tickets landed every two or three minutes. Ticket times hit 30 to 45 minutes against a seven-minute target. Darryl Gates worked the grill for six hours straight, and the corporate team pul...
He Spent 30 Years Training Adults. Then His Son Was Born | Joe Pedatella, KidStrong
Joe Pedatella walked into Spa 23 in New Jersey as a trainer in 1998. He ended up owning it. For nearly 30 years his job was changing adults' habits, one person at a time.Then his son was born, and the question changed. A friend in his m...
He Was Franchisee Number One. Now He Runs The Company
Kyle Chiasson was 22, working a banking job in eastern Washington and on track for his CFP. He describes the feeling as sitting in a nice four-walled office with everything you think you need, withering away inside.Then his mom dragged h...
His Dad's Number Was Always 20. He Didn't Live to See It
Taylor Johns has had exactly one job his entire life. He was making pizza at seven years old in stores his grandfather opened in 1983, a grandfather he never got to meet. The company is named Karolina Enterprises, spelled with a K, after his si...
The NASCAR Driver Who Now Teaches Teens to Slow Down - Brad Coleman
Brad Coleman had a professional racing license at 14. By 16 he was running the 24 Hours of Daytona. He raced for Joe Gibbs, shared the No. 18 car with Kyle Busch, and drove for a team owned by Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach. Then he woke up in ...