Minnesota Company Begins Nationwide Franchising Effort

Stillwater, MN, July 24, 2016 --(PR.com)-- Regulation isn't keeping a new Minnesota company from reaching its goals. After nearly 2-years of preparation, HS Franchising, LLC, was organized last week to franchise the decades old brand of Hammer-Schlagen®. Yesterday, the final regulatory filing was submitted to the Minnesota Department of Commerce. The first Hammer-Schlagen® franchises in the nation are expected to be granted to Minnesotans next month.

Originating in and hailing from Stillwater, MN, Hammer-Schlagen® is the world's most famous nail driving competition. The Hammerschlagen® family of trademarks are currently owned by WRB, Inc., who has operated the brand for 18-years. Jim Martin, its CEO, explains, "We don't sell anything tangible. We provide entertainment from Washington state to Florida and from Wisconsin to Texas." Martin says WRB is unable to service all the venues whose patrons demand Hammer-Schlagen®, especially in Minnesota, and hopes franchising will solve this issue.

"We've tried trademark licenses," says Martin, "but need the assistance aspect of franchising." A franchise is when a brand owner grants the right to profit from its trademarks while also providing assistance to the person using them. To ensure the franchisee gets what the brand owner promises, the federal government and each individual state have laws. This relationship is detailed in a "franchise disclosure document" that describes how the assistance is to be provided. Generally, this document is several hundred pages with franchise fees ranging from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Martin says Hammer-Schlagen® franchises are unconventional. The disclosure document is 110 pages and lacks requirements to advertise, contribute to brand building funds, share legal expenses, join cooperatives, attend conventions, and other customary standards. The focus is on bars, who can have a Hammerschlagen® franchise for less than $475 per year on average. "Try hiring a band for that," gloats Martin.

This release can be found online at https://www.hammerschlagen.com/press_releases/?id=2016-07-22.