$1.9M/Yr Drain Cleaning Franchise

No plumbing experience required

A few weeks ago I wrote about the Benjamin Franklin Plumbing franchise. They primarily focus on services above the drain: such as toilets, sinks, tubs, garbage disposal, water heaters, etc.

Now let's talk about Zoom Drain, which focuses on everything below the drain.

Business Model

They have a niche focused on three services:

  • Level 1: Drain Inspection & Cleaning

  • Level 2: Septic Tank Services

  • Level 3: Sewer Pipe Replacement

Every franchisee starts at Level 1, cleaning & inspecting drains. They've got the specialized equipment in that truck to handle ANY drain issue: cameras to identify, long snakes to dislodge, & high-pressure water to blast away.

It doesn't make sense for the average plumber to invest $180k into one of these trucks. Most of them refer all their drain cleaning to a company like Zoom Drain.

Plumbing is the most essential service in your house or business. You can deal without hot water for a few days, but you won't deal without a toilet for more than a few hours.

How Much Can You Make?

Every franchisor chooses how much or little financial information they disclose to prospective franchisees. Some disclose zero financials which is frustrating, and some only give you high-level sales.

Zoom Drain provides the most financial data I’ve ever seen in an FDD.

Full P&L of their corporate locations: $2.6M net on $14.2M sales. 🤑

Table showing open date, gross sales, total jobs, & average job by franchisee

The average franchisee did $1.96M in sales:

My favorite table in the entire FDD (which I've never seen any franchise provide)

Monthly gross sales for all franchisees that opened in 2022. Trying to estimate how quickly sales ramp up is a big unknown when you start a franchise.

This is huge for budgeting your first year.

Complete this form to get an introduction to Zoom Drain

I provide you with tools, checklists, & resources to give you confidence

No Plumbing Experience?

Many of their new franchisees have zero plumbing experience. They come from technology, management, sales & more.

Your role as a franchisee is not to clean drains. Your first priority is building relationships with local plumbers & drain cleaning companies. They will send you all the drain cleaning they can't do, and in return, you'll pay them a referral fee or trade referrals for plumbing requests you can't do.

These relationships also become a pipeline for acquisition. After a few years, you could acquire another local drain cleaning company or vertically integrate by buying a plumbing company.

What's It Cost?

Most franchisees are buying 3 territories, giving them ~900k population

The investment for 3 territories starts at $311k, assuming you lease the truck/equipment package. See Item 7 of the 2023 FDD for itemized breakdown.

They are SBA approved, which means you can finance ~70%, requiring about $100k to $150k cash investment.

Zoom requires a minimum net worth of $300,000.

Company Background

  • Founded in 1995 in Philly, started franchising in 2015

  • Private equity-backed (MPK Equity Partners)

  • Grew from 17 to 51 franchises in 2022

  • As of today, they have ~70 units sold

I'm just scratching the surface of what they offer franchisees, which includes:

  • 24/7 Call Center

  • Tech Recruiting & Training Center

  • Strong Franchisee Community

  • Minimal Licensing Requirements

Next Steps

My team helps people get into franchises. We provide you with tools, checklists, & resources to give you confidence.

We work like a buy-side real estate agent. It costs you nothing to work with us.

Fill out this short form to get introduced to Zoom Drain.

Connect

On my podcast, Business with Beers, I interview franchisors, franchisees, & do deep dives into specific topics.

Find me on Twitter & LinkedIn.

Cheers!

Brian Beers