Don Pennell, owner-operator at SpeedPro Northpoint in Savage, MD, has achieved a lot in his 25+ years providing large-format printing and visual communication services in the DC area. Now, he’s starting the next chapter of his entrepreneurial journey as SpeedPro’s first ever independent-to-franchise studio conversion.
We sat down with Don to discuss his experience as a longtime business owner, uncover why he decided to take the plunge and franchise after so many years in business, and explore what he loves about being a part of SpeedPro.
Tell us a little about your entrepreneurial journey. How did you get into printing and business ownership?
My brother and I started Northpoint Graphic Studios in 1999. The owners of a company we were working for wanted to retire – they were like adopted grandparents to us – and we purchased the assets of that business. They’d been doing graphics around the Washington, DC area since 1954, so our studio has a very long history.
You recently joined SpeedPro as a franchisee. You’ve been a very successful operator. Why wasn’t this the right path for you sooner?
Honestly, I always had this understanding that in franchising you were locked into lots of fees, and you had to do it their way or no way, and I didn’t wanna get into that.
I love being an independent business owner. I like to do things my way, and I never looked into it. I did work with a lot of franchises over the years and always saw them as successful, but I started this with my brother as a family-run business, and I just never even looked at that model back then.
What about the franchise model became more attractive to you? What clicked where you were thinking, “This makes sense for us in a way that didn’t in the past?”
A couple of years ago, we were actually looking to sell the business. It was not working for what the two of us wanted to do. I ultimately bought my brother out, and he retired, so it was up to me to figure out the next steps.
I read an article in Signs of the Times magazine that was written by someone in my area who had sold her printing business to a franchise company. So, I reached out to her, and we talked a little bit. When that conversation started, I was still thinking about selling the business. After talking with her, I started doing some research on franchises.
My first thought was that there are so many different ones that already had a footprint in our area: Signs by Tomorrow, FastSigns, and so on. But then I came across SpeedPro, who I hadn’t heard of at the time. So, after researching them and looking into them, I saw that their model matches mine very closely in terms of the type of printing that they do and the type of clients they go after.
So, I reached out to them to ask for more information, and that’s how it started. Once I found out more about them, things really shifted, and I suddenly wasn’t excited about getting out of the business anymore; I was thinking, “Hey, even with my brother leaving, this might be a way for me to continue to grow the business.”
So, that’s how I landed at SpeedPro. The whole process was probably a year and a half in the making.
You said you looked into SpeedPro and thought, “Oh, they already work like me and think of the business the same way as I do.” Can you speak a little bit more specifically about what resonated?
First, they specialize in wide-format printing and interior displays and that kind of stuff. They’re real into the wide-format printing, which is the main part of my business. A lot of the other sign franchises do more exterior signage and things like that, and they see wide-format printing as secondary.
Plus, after talking with their franchise development manager, I learned that they do a lot of work with the trade, which is something I’ve been doing for many years. A lot of my customers are wholesale trade type companies.
After more and more research, I also found out that, while they’re a lot smaller when it comes to number of locations, SpeedPro is up there with the top franchise sign companies when it comes to per-unit sales.
How is life different for you, for your team, and for your customers, now that you’re working with SpeedPro? What can you do you couldn’t do before?
I’ve got a home office now. I’ve got corporate behind me to answer questions and their marketing department to support me.
In 27 years, I never marketed myself. All our work has come word of mouth and referrals over the years. I’ve never actually gone out and done a marketing plan. Now, I have a marketing department that is there to help me identify new verticals to go after and build the ark to achieve those goals. I don’t have to manage the website or spend as much time on social. That’s an amazing thing that I feel like I’m just starting to get into with them.
Plus, they have the equipment support. They have an entire production support department. If your printer’s not working right, you can call them rather than calling the manufacturer.
But one of the biggest things that led me into SpeedPro was the owners. Going through this process with them, I spoke with five or six different owners to do validations. And every one of them was so warm and welcoming and answered every question I had.
The owners have an email chain that is called Ask the Owners, and we’re all on there every day asking each other, “Hey, have you done this sort of thing?” Or, “Do you have a vendor for this?” Or, “Hey, I got a check in the mail that’s not mine. Can you tell me if it’s one of yours?”
That support system is so powerful. To talk with somebody you know is walking that walk is everything when it comes to finding the right vendor or locating a studio that’s perfect for a client project you need help with. That’s what’s unique about all the different studios. We all have the same capabilities, but we each have our own little niches, too. So, we’re helping each other out.
I’ve already used the system in a couple instances where a SpeedPro in another area has printed and installed a project for me. Before, I would have to print it here, pack it, ship it, and find an installer in that area. To be able to work with another SpeedPro directly is a complete added plus to this that I never expected to have. My brother was one family member. But now I feel I have 130 plus families out there that are helping me get through this and be successful. And I’m happy to be there for them too, ’cause I’ve been doing this for a while.
You said earlier that you were very close to selling this business just a few years ago, and now it feels like you’ve got a real renewed enthusiasm for the space. So, what do you feel is next?
I wanna continue to grow. I always felt like there was this next level that I could go to, but I never knew how to get there. As they say, I never got to work on the business because I was always working in the business.
So, now that I’m wearing a different hat, I think that these goals that I’ve always dreamed about are very attainable. SpeedPro’s got a proven model and a structured way of going after businesses to generate sales that they teach you, and I think that’s gonna take us to a level we’ve never, ever experienced.
And when my time comes to exit, whether it be five or 10 years down the road, I’ll be in a very strong position to do that. When the time comes to bow out, I’ll get the corporate support of the sale. That’s what’s great about franchises that I never thought about: that when you leave, your legacy is still gonna be there because there’s a whole team behind it that’s gonna facilitate that smooth transition. That part of the franchise system is, again, something I never thought about, and it’s a huge asset.
Looking all the way back to 1999, if you had the whole journey to do over again, would you potentially look into franchising earlier? Why or why not?
I don’t think we would’ve gone that direction right away, seeing as we were buying the business from people we were so close to. But looking back 10 years ago, 15 years ago, if I would’ve found out about SpeedPro and understood how much there is to what they do, I would have done it in a heartbeat.
People that are asking me why I’ve done it, I’ve told them I should have done this years ago. If I’d have done this 10 years ago, who knows where I’d be at right now? There are other sign companies out there like me that might be smaller – five to 10 employees – that have no plan for the future. And to be able to join a team that can help you not only grow your sales at that point, but attain an active plan for years down the road is a huge plus.
And it’s worth saying, I have been warmly welcomed by the people at SpeedPro, all the way from Paul Brewster, who’s the CEO, to the other studio owners. I visited their corporate team in Denver a month or so ago, and when I got back from that, I couldn’t wait to get to work to start even more into this. They’re a great bunch of people. I could not say anything bad about them, and my biggest takeaway from this is, really, I wish I would’ve learned about them earlier.
But I’m a firm believer that things happen for reasons. The universe has a way of making things happen. And I think this is why I’ve been selected to do this next journey, and I think that it’s gonna be a great one.
