Our Franchise Consultants & Franchise Attorneys

At FranSource, we are committed to providing the highest levels of franchise development assistance and support with honesty and integrity. Since 1997, our franchise consultants and franchise attorneys have assisted companies throughout the U.S. in developing and operating successful franchise companies. If you are considering franchising your business, we invite you to contact us to schedule a free consultation. In addition to sharing information about our franchise development process and services, our franchise consultants and franchise attorneys can assist you in determining if franchising your business is the best method of expansion.

Stephen Vandegrift

Co-Founder and President

Mr. Vandegrift has more than 35 years experience in franchising. Having operated businesses early in his career as both a franchisor and franchisee, the advice and guidance he provides clients comes from practical real-world experience. For startup franchisors, Mr. Vandegrift’s comprehensive understanding of the franchise relationship ensures that every aspect of the franchise operation is properly established. Working in conjunction with our senior franchise attorneys and consultants, he is personally involved in the development of each client’s franchise operation. Mr. Vandegrift also advises existing franchisors, providing advice and guidance that help them achieve higher levels of success, In this capacity, he has been responsible for generating millions of dollars in franchise fees, royalties and product sales for our clients.

Robert Scofield

Senior Advisor, Restaurant/Retail Operations & Training

Mr. Scofield is a veteran of the restaurant industry with over 35 years of hands-on experience in all phases of restaurant development and operations. In addition to personally developing over 15 restaurant concepts, he has advised and worked with many national chains, including General Mills, Marriott Corporation, TGI Fridays and Specialty Restaurant Corp. His expertise includes an emphasis on profit building and cost controls through the use of proven technology systems, systematized processes, and robust training programs. Mr. Scofield’s extensive experience regarding every aspect of restaurant and retail operations enables him to fully analyze our clients’ existing operations and provide valuable insights and suggestions that improve operational efficiencies in preparation for expansion.

Joseph McClellan

Senior Consultant – Business Development

Mr. McClellan has played an integral role in franchising for more than 40 years. A former speaker for the IFA annual convention, Mr. McClellan is well known for his franchise sales seminars and training programs for franchisors and franchisees. His techniques in the art and science of franchise qualification and sales are used by many national franchise companies. Mr. McClellan has been instrumental in developing successful franchises in the restaurant, communication, entertainment, real estate, weight loss and residential service industries. Mr. McClellan’s extensive franchise knowledge and experience benefits all aspects of our clients’ franchise operations.

Scott Vandegrift

Senior Consultant – Retail/eCommerce

Mr. Vandegrift is a veteran of the retail and e-commerce industries with nearly 25 years experience in operations, customer service, project management, training and development, quality management, knowledge management and strategic development. As Senior Product Manager for an international retail clothing franchise, his responsibilities included developing solid technology and process road maps for various domains including customer service, operations, fulfillment, order management, payment processing and gift card solutions. Mr. Vandegrift utilizes project management best practices to build business cases around technology capital investments and is fluent in Agile project methodology. Mr. Vandegrift received his Bachelors in Business Management from Cedarville University and his MBA in Business Management and Change Leadership from Keller Graduate School of Management.

John Landolfi

Senior Consultant – Franchise Sales & Operations

Mr. Landolfi has more than 30 years of experience in consulting and management, with an extensive background in franchise sales and operations. For more than 18 years, Mr. Landolfi supported both the franchisor and franchisee sides of franchise operations through his role with Coverall Cleaning Concepts. In addition, based on his numerous awards and honors for establishing successful regional offices, Mr. Landolfi was the first Coverall employee to be awarded the opportunity to become a master franchisee. In this role, he was instrumental in creating hundreds of successful franchise owners through his innovative training programs, enhanced customer service techniques and development of new opportunities for franchisees. Mr. Landolfi received his B.S. degree from Montclair State University.

Keith Kanouse

Franchise Attorney

Mr. Kanouse is an experienced franchise attorney having specialized in the areas of franchise, business opportunity and distribution law for over 40 years. Mr. Kanouse received his Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Management from Bradley University, magna cum laude and his Juris Doctor Degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School, magna cum laude. Mr. Kanouse is Of Counsel in the Franchise Practice Group with the law firm Malloy & Malloy P.L. and a past member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Franchisees and Dealers, as well as founding Chair of the AAFD’s Fair Franchising Standards Committee. He is also a founding member and a Past Chair of the Franchise Law Committee of The Florida Bar. Taking his experience as one of the leading franchise attorneys in the U.S. and his many years of providing franchise legal services, Mr. Kanouse has authored three books: Understanding a Franchise Offering Circular & Negotiating a Franchise Agreement; Negotiating a Business Lease; and Selecting the Best Entity to Own and Operate Your Business; and co-authored two others: Franchise Law and Practice; and Franchising 101.

Mike Drumm

Franchise Attorney

Mike Drumm is an experienced franchise attorney who currently represents more than 100 franchise companies. Mike is the founder of Drumm Law, an award winning franchise law firm. Before founding Drumm Law, Mike wore a suit and tie every day and worked at a large national law firm (he is grateful that he no longer has to wear the “attorney costume” every day). He is most proud of being a father of three and of hearing “you don’t remind me of an attorney” when he meets people. Mike is continually recognized as a Franchise Times magazine Legal Eagle, an 1851 Franchise Legal Player and is a designated Certified Franchise Executive by the International Franchise Association. He has also received commendations from Super Lawyers.

Scott Sandrock

Franchise Attorney

Mr. Sandrock is an experienced franchise attorney and has provided franchise legal services to franchisors and franchisees since 1978. A partner in the firm of Brennan, Manna & Diamond, LLC, Mr. Sandrock has acted as general counsel for retail and commercial nationwide franchise systems. He received his Juris Doctorate Degree with honors in law from The Ohio State University College of Law, and his undergraduate degree, magna cum laude, from The University of Notre Dame. Based on his extensive franchise and license experience, Mr. Sandrock has been selected as an arbitrator by the American Arbitration Association in franchise-related disputes. He is also admitted to practice in the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Sandrock is a frequent lecturer and author on franchise and business opportunity issues.

Sharon L. Toerek

Intellectual Property Attorney

Ms. Toerek, principal of Toerek Law, focuses her legal practice on intellectual property law and advises our clients regarding trademark and copyright registrations, protection of trade secrets, and other intellectual property issues. Ms. Toerek’s experience in the areas of brand protection and trademarks extends to our clients in the retail, e-commerce, advertising, marketing, creative services, manufacturing and service industries throughout the United States and abroad. Ms. Toerek has chaired the Intellectual Property Section of the Cleveland Bar Association and has conducted numerous presentations on intellectual property law topics before the Cleveland Bar Association, American Advertising Federation (AAF) Cleveland, the Independent Practitioner’s Group, the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) Akron, the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) Cleveland, and the Greater Cleveland Partnership’s Council of Small Enterprises (COSE).

Client Testimonials

“With FranSource overseeing the entire development of our franchise operation, we were confident that our franchise would be successful. However, seeing is believing. We just awarded another multi-unit franchise and we want to thank you and your team for the incredible commitment you demonstrated, and continue to demonstrate, to helping make our franchise a success. Our franchisees are extremely impressed with the documents, manuals and other materials you developed, which of course makes a great impression on our company. FranSource has definitely gone above and beyond our expectations.”

– Gus’s Fried Chicken

Gus’s Fried Chicken

“We chose to work with FranSource because of their deep understanding of franchising and the personal interaction we were confident we would receive. FranSource helped us to quickly build a successful franchise model and were involved in every aspect of our franchise development process, including areas outside of the original development project to ensure we operated according to best practices. Every document and material FranSource developed for us was incredibly detailed and professional. To cite just one example, the 800+ page Operations & Policies Manual FranSource developed for our franchisees captured EVERY aspect of developing and operating a Smokin’ Oak Wood-Fired Pizza franchise. Suffice to say that our franchises are extremely impressed. We greatly appreciate the expert assistance FranSource provided and continues to provide to help ensure our success. We strongly recommend FranSource to business owners that are considering franchising their business.”

– Smokin’ Oak

Smokin’ Oak

“When we made the decision to expand our business through franchising, we knew that we needed to work with a franchise consulting firm who fit our brand. We interviewed several franchise development companies to get started. It only took a single call with Steve and his team to know that FranSource was the best fit for us. It was clear they fully understand what it takes to successfully franchise a business and they were 100% committed to advising and supporting us every step of the way. When we began the franchise development process, it was hard to imagine selling our first franchise. However, less than a month after launching our franchise opportunity we granted our first franchise! Steve and his team were completely hands on throughout the entire development process and will continue to be a key asset to our company as we grow.”

– Global Brew

Global Brew

“We granted our 150th ALOHA franchise last week and we wanted to say thank you for your team’s tremendous assistance and ongoing support. When we began the franchise project, it quickly became apparent that the FranSource team truly cares about our company and the success of our franchise. As we reflect on the growth of our brand, we believe we owe a large part of our success to the assistance and guidance FranSource has provided.”

– ALOHA USA

ALOHA USA

“In addition to fully developing our franchise operation, FranSource assisted with other aspects of our expansion program. We are very pleased with the franchise development services we received and the ongoing support FranSource continues to provide. With Interior Magic franchises now located coast-to-coast, we feel very qualified to recommend FranSource to anyone considering franchising their business.”

– Interior Magic

Interior Magic

“FranSource has impacted our business in ways we never imagined, beyond simply franchising. Rather than taking a cookie-cutter approach during the franchise development process, they examined every aspect of our business and provided valuable input concerning operational procedures that helped us further refine our system. FranSource continues to assist us with many aspects of our growth and their team has always proved extremely competent. We highly recommend FranSource.”

– CompuChild

CompuChild

“We evaluated a number of franchise development firms prior to engaging FranSource. If we had to do it all over again, we would definitely re-hire FranSource. I really can’t imagine going through the franchise development process without the FranSource team and truly feel they have our best interest at heart. They interact with us like a business partner and are authentically invested in our success. As we’ve grown, they continue to provide valuable assistance and advice.”

– Endurance House

Endurance House

“FranSource provided the expert guidance we required to successfully franchise our company. Your team’s attention to detail throughout the development process was impressive. We believe the quality of the work and the information presented in the various documents and materials you developed reflect well on both our companies.”

– Trusted Homecare Services

Trusted Homecare Services

“I want to thank you for everything you have done for Chef Shuttle. You made us ask the hard questions and find the hard answers, and we are a better company for it. We are where we are today because of your team’s guidance and I will forever be appreciative for everything that FranSource has done for us. I look forward to continuing to work together to grow our franchise network and further enhance our business model.”

– Chef Shuttle

Chef Shuttle