A nonprofit to help nonprofits. The idea came to Dave Keil during a “literal walk through the woods in northern Michigan” in early 2020, and he’s spent the past two years building Franchise For Good as an organization that assists nonprofits as they scale and expand their impact.
Keil, president of brand acceleration and consulting firm Franworth, and his wife, Jenny, co-founded Franchise For Good as a 501(c)3 nonprofit entity, and it also serves as the philanthropic arm of Franworth. That connection allows Keil to tap into the expertise of leaders such as Franworth CEO John Rotche and Managing Partner David Barr, who support his efforts to apply the same tools that help franchise systems grow to the nonprofit sector. Jenny Keil brings experience from 20-plus years as an economics and management professor at Hamline University.
“The big ah-ha for me was, I had been on some nonprofit boards and knew how they operated … but I’d never really thought about it from a business perspective,” said Dave Keil, who before joining Franworth was CEO of franchises including Pure Barre, Haagen-Daze Shoppes and HoneyBaked Ham. “They face the same challenges as we do in franchising,” including stagnation without the right systems for marketing, operations and finance.
Franchise For Good provides four core services to nonprofits: a strategic assessment; branding assistance to articulate the mission, vision and value proposition; creation of a “clear offer—what is the core of what you do;” and a business plan. Keil noted it can also provide legal, operations, development and other assistance.
Franchise For Good’s first client, the Colorado Homebuilding Academy, opened its first BuildStrong Academy this spring in New Orleans in a partnership with retired New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and the Brees Dream Foundation. BuildStrong, which teaches construction trade skills to anyone seeking a new career path and helps with job placement, was founded by Pat Hamill, the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway company Oakwood Homes.
Keil said he met Hamill through his executive coach and the two began talking about “the booming real estate market and dearth of workers” going into construction and other trades. They now have three BuildStrong Academies open with plans to develop more than 20.
Other Franchise For Good clients include Nomi Network, which works to provide employment opportunities to survivors of human trafficking and women and girls at risk in Southeast Asia, and Us United, a nonprofit spreading a message of racial equity and unity through community service and creation of local chapters. It’s also worked with Corner to Corner, a Nashville nonprofit that trains Black women in entrepreneurship, and Combined Arms, which helps military veterans transition to civilian life.
As he works to provide services pro bono or at a reduced rate, Keil said he’s hoping to engage with others in the franchise community, including franchisors, to fundraise and attract donations to support Franchise For Good.
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