Accredited by the Better Business Bureau since 2004, DirectBuy of Tinley Park, located at 18400 South 76th Avenue in Tinley Park, Illinois, earned their “A” grade based on 19 criteria, ranging from years in business to complaints received and resolved, to other service-oriented factors. Each criterion has a certain number of points associated with it, with a perfect score being 90 out of a possible 90 points. DirectBuy of Tinley Park’s “A” grade represents 85 out of a possible 90 points.

“We talk a lot about how much money members can save with DirectBuy Club and that is true, you can save a lot, but that can only take you so far,” said I.J. Sell, owner of DirectBuy of Tinley Park. “What helps us retain and attract members more than anything is that they save money and are treated well. That’s the real draw to DirectBuy Club. The ‘A’grade from the BBB is gratifying because it means on the whole, we are doing right by our members.”

For more than 38 years, DirectBuy Clubs have offered members the opportunity to enjoy enormous savings on home furnishings, home improvement items, entertainment and outdoor products, flooring, and accessories by purchasing from more than 700 brand-name manufacturers or their authorized suppliers. In addition to DirectBuy of Tinley Park, located at 1864 High Grove Lane, Suite 124 in Naperville, Illinois, DirectBuy has several convenient locations in greater Chicago (Chicago, Gurnee, Hoffman Estates, and Naperville).

For more information on a DirectBuy Club membership, you can visit http://www.directbuycares.com.

About DirectBuy Club

Since 1971, DirectBuy Club has helped hundreds of thousands of families enjoy a better quality of life, enabling them to buy directly from more than 700 manufacturers or their authorized suppliers. Buying direct makes members’ hard-earned money go much further, while having the selection and choice not available at any retail store. Access to confidential prices, local suppliers, and unparalleled selection helps make members’ dream projects a reality. The DirectBuy Clubs serving the greater Chicago area are part of more than 160 locations throughout North America.

Consumers interested in becoming members may obtain a Visitor’s Pass to attend an Open House by visiting http://www.directbuycares.com.

Locations of the DirectBuy clubs serving greater Chicago area: DirectBuy of Hoffman Estates, 2200 Stonington Ave Ste. 150, Hoffman Estates, IL; DirectBuy of Chicago North, 6325 North Avondale Ste. 110, Chicago, IL; DirectBuy of DuPage County, 1864 High Grove Lane Ste. 124, Naperville, IL; DirectBuy of Lake County, 3900 Washington Street, Gurnee, IL; and DirectBuy of Tinley Park, 18400 S. 76th Avenue Ste. B, Tinley Park, IL.

Mistake 3:
One of the common mistakes is, to be under impression that bigger the franchise organization, better the chances of success. However this is not always the case and often smaller franchise option also offer great value proposition to the investors.

Mistake 4:
To assume that the franchise business would be an easy business to sell is another common mistake. Do not let this thought to fool you , Research online and also talk to the business broker to understand the franchise market and the re sale market.

Mistake 1:
One of the common mistakes is, not using the service of a lawyer. It is highly recommended that you use a lawyer when you are thinking of buying a franchise business in UK. There are a number of documents which needs to be reviewed, such as the lease or the sub lease papers etc.

Before Ivan Wanat joined the team at Arrow Capital, he acted as the Principal at Atlantic-Pacific Capital, also known as APC.  As Principal, Wanat was responsible for the capital raising projects for the top hedge fund managers of the company.  This included sourcing the hedge funds, due diligence, the coordination of the various marketing activities of the company, and management of deals.

Before his time at Atlantic-Pacific Capital, Wanat worked for two years at Credit Suisse Private Fund Group as a placement agent.  There Wanat was responsible for due diligence, research for the company, and looking for hedge fund managers who needed a distribution partner.  Prior to that, Wanat worked with J.P. Morgan’s Hedge Fund Coverage and Private Placement Groups for six years as an investment banker, where he worked in hedge fund coverage, as well as debt private placement groups.

For education, Ivan Wanat earned a Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Finance from James Madison University.  Wanat earned his Master’s of Business Administration from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Arrow Capital Management, LLC

Arrow Capital Management, LLC was founded by Alex von Furstenberg and Mal Serure in July 2003.  The company began operations the same year.  The company is based in New York and acts as an alternative investment management firm.  Its primary focus is event-driven investing.  As of the end of December 2009, the firm was responsible for managing approximately $425 million in assets.

Leading Marketing and Client Service Efforts

Ivan Wanat’s new responsibilities will include heading up the marketing and client service efforts for the company.  The focus of these efforts will be institutional investors and consultants.  As the Director of Business Development, he will now report to the Co-Managing Members, Alex von Furstenberg and Mal Serure.

According to Serure, Wanat’s new position at the firm symbolizes the considerable expansion that the business has undergone and the new marketing strategies that are being put in place to help expand the company’s base of investors.

Alex von Furstenberg also expressed his excitement at adding Wanat to the team and the expansion of the organization.  Von Furstenberg believes that Wanat brings considerable experience to the team, along with a broad range of relationships with investors, thanks to his positions with other fundraising projects.

1.  Market research.  Just because there isn’t a particular restaurant in your neighborhood and you really think there should be, doesn’t always mean it’s a good idea.  In fact there may be a very good reason there isn’t one in your neighborhood!  (and market research will tell you this) Invest some good, honest, mental ’sweat equity’ in determining what the best location will be for your restaurant business opportunity
.  This will save you a tremendous amount of heartache in trying to drive traffic to your location.  Some excellent free sources of market research?  The Census Bureau, Your local Chamber of Commerce, The US Department of Commerce, Local Librarians, Trade and Professional Organizations, as well as Trade Publications are all excellent sources of Market Research.  At the end of the day though?  One of the best indicators of the type of demand (and traffic) you can expect at your restaurant is man-on-the-street surveys.  If your budget is limited and you can’t hire a firm to do this, (and there are plenty of firms that will) Take the time to go to the surrounding neighborhoods where you are considering setting up shop and take the temperature of the local community by simply coming up with a three question survey and going door-to-door talking to people that actually live there.  Not only will this help you guage the local level of interest in your restaurant, it gives you a great opportunity to do some grass roots first-stage marketing before you even open your doors.

2.  Give up on having a social life for 12 to 24 months.  It may sound strange, or maybe not, but if you are used to having a very full social calendar and are looking to start a restaurant franchise, you’re going to have to choose one over the other.  In the early days of your business you are going to have untold amounts of stress, you are going to probably grow more gray hair and may feel some days like you aren’t going to make it.  Especially after you make your first big mistake.  You will have employees that will let you down (good people truly are hard to find), you will miscalculate inventory orders leaving you short on some high-demand foods and left with a fridge full of expensive spoiling food that isn’t selling.  And you will just get plain frustrated.  Having a social life in between these stressors will be downright impossible in your first year or two.  Especially if you are truly bent on success.  So just take that first step by telling your friends and family that you are going to be unavailable for the next 12 to 24 months for most social occaisions (with the exception of truly important events like Weddings and Christmas of course).  Setting the expectations in advance will truly help your friends and family understand the journey you have begun.  And they of course, want to see you succeed!

3.  Finally, and this, in my opinion, is probably one of the most important steps to take: Learn how to market on the Internet.  There is a HUGE opportunity for competing in the local market on the Internet.  In fact, it is easier to own the first position on Google for your particular local geographic market than any other place.  The local market for the Internet is very under utilized, simply because most local business owners that cater to a local market (like restaurant franchise opportunities) don’t understand the in’s and out’s of getting on Google Local Search results.  Have you ever searched for a local business after hours only to find their phone number and location listed on a Google map, but no hours posted, maybe a weak website, no menu, etc?  Well, simply understanding some basic concepts of Internet Marketing will enable you to truly dominate on a local level whatever market you choose to go after.  Your dinner menu, weekly or nightly specials, event-based discounts, all are just some small examples of ways to attract business to your restaurant franchise, or any local business for that matter.

So where do you start?  Well, if your journey is anything like mine, you probably start thinking about the types of opportunities that you see every day.  Sandwhich shops with $5 dollar foot long marketing campaigns, pizza delivery franchises that have landmark Super Bowl advertising budgets, restaurants that use cows to pitch their chicken sandwhiches.  The list goes on.  The economy may come and go, but food?  People always have to eat.

Why is it so easy to make money online? You can leverage the internet and have it do the heavy lifting for you and not having to worry about employees and inventory and so much debt! The internet has come to save us all and allow us to create our own lifestyles and not struggle so much. One last thing.

I told you there was a better way! I told you do not start a franchise! Now what are you going to do?

I hope this helped and I hope you take action today and research online businesses and how well so many are doing working from home and staying with their families all day. Life is good. So let me share something with you.

He was is debt a quarter million dollars. At the end of one year of him opening his franchise, which was a restaurant, he noticed he was not making any money and was still in debt a quarter million dollars! What did he do? Your about to find out.

He turned to the internet and found an online business opportunity and now makes 5 figures a month, working from home, and only 3-4 hours a day.