How does a Hello Garage franchise operate after opening?
A Hello Garage Franchised Business sells and installs approved garage-renovation products, principally concrete floor coatings and storage systems. Leads enter through approved local marketing, brand channels, the National Appointment Center, and events; a sales employee conducts the consultation, production employees install the job, and the full-time Operating Manager directs day-to-day execution through required systems, suppliers, reporting, and brand standards.
Data basis. Legal franchisor: Hello Garage Franchising, LLC. The 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document was issued April 6, 2026. Evidence comes from Items 1, 6, 8, 11, 12, 15, 16, 19 and 20 and the attached operating agreements. Item 20 covers 2023-2025. Checked August 9, 2026.
Applicable model. One individual Franchised Business may cover one or more contiguous Protected Territories. The office may be in a residence or leased space, but temperature-controlled storage and an installation vehicle are required. See the official U.S. franchise page.
One operating model; one or more Protected Territories.
Maximum approximate size of each Protected Territory.
Required trade shows or similar events each calendar year.
Approved manager is responsible for day-to-day operation.
Item 20 territories at December 31, 2025.
FDD basis: 2026 FDD, Items 1, 8, 11, 12, 15 and 20, pp. 1-2, 11-14, 16-22, 23-25, 28 and 36-40.
What does the franchisee sell, and who buys it?
The authorized offer is commercial and residential garage renovation: approved concrete floor coatings, storage cabinets, slatwall, lighting, accessories, and other products or services the franchisor adds. The FDD describes any individual or business with a garage as a potential customer, while the consumer site shows both homeowner and commercial use cases.
Residential renovation
The public offer centers on professionally installed polyaspartic concrete coatings plus customized cabinets, shelving, slatwall, overhead storage, workbenches and accessories. See the official storage page and concrete-coatings page.
Commercial work and Designated Accounts
Commercial floor-coating work is also authorized; the official commercial page shows business applications. A Designated Account—central billing or at least 20 locations across more than one market—runs through the franchisor's Designated Accounts Program.
The franchisee must offer all and only approved products and services. The franchisor can add a new required offering, require it within 30 days after launch, or require the unit to stop selling an offering that is no longer approved. Concrete leveling, foundation repair and below-grade waterproofing are excluded and must be referred to the Supportworks distribution network.
FDD basis: 2026 FDD, Items 1 and 16, pp. 1-2 and 28; Franchise Agreement §1(J). Public operating context: official Hello Garage product pages linked above.
How does a customer job move through the unit?
The disclosed operating path runs from lead generation and appointment-setting to an on-site sales consultation, job preparation, professional installation, completion, and financial reporting. The franchisor controls several handoffs—especially the National Appointment Center, Inside Sales Program, approved marketing, required sales software and data access—while the franchisee controls local execution and the jobsite team.
Demand and lead capture
- Actor
- Franchisee; franchisor brand marketing; National Appointment Center.
- Action
- Generate inquiries through approved local media, digital marketing, the brand website, referrals and at least five in-person events per year.
- System/asset
- Hello Garage Brand Fund, designated digital agency, approved trade-show booth and marketing materials.
- Output
- Prospective customer inquiry or appointment request.
Appointment and intake
- Actor
- National Appointment Center or local unit.
- Action
- Communicate with current and prospective customers, confirm the appointment and route the lead to the unit.
- System/asset
- Hello Garage CRM, required email addresses and customer-contact procedures.
- Output
- Scheduled free on-site consultation.
Consultation and proposal
- Actor
- Unit sales employee, described publicly as a Design Consultant.
- Action
- Assess the garage, define the approved scope, prepare the proposal and set the work date. An unsold quote is transferred to an Inside Sales Representative.
- System/asset
- GarageView sales software, Hello Garage CRM and approved product specifications.
- Output
- Sold job and scheduled installation, or an Inside Sales Program follow-up.
Job staging and scheduling
- Actor
- Operating Manager and production team.
- Action
- Schedule labor, stage approved inventory and equipment, and move the crew and materials to the customer site.
- System/asset
- Temperature-controlled storage, approved installation vehicle, Supportworks floor-coating Products and other approved supplies.
- Output
- Installation-ready jobsite and crew.
Installation and handoff
- Actor
- Production employees / installation Crew.
- Action
- Install the sold floor-coating or storage scope to system standards, protect the property, clean the jobsite and present the completed work to the customer.
- System/asset
- Approved installation equipment, floor-coating system, storage components and Manuals.
- Output
- Completed installation and customer handoff.
Record, report and follow up
- Actor
- Franchisee / Operating Manager, designated bookkeeper and franchisor.
- Action
- Record the completed sale, maintain financial records, submit required reports and handle later service or additional-work requests.
- System/asset
- QuickBooks Online, Hello Garage CRM, business-analytics access and required records.
- Output
- Reported Gross Revenue, retained records and a customer relationship available for follow-up.
FDD basis: 2026 FDD, Items 6, 8 and 11, pp. 7-8, 11-14 and 17-22; Franchise Agreement §§4(F), 5, 10(L), 11 and 12. Customer-facing sequence cross-check: Hello Garage remodel process and free-estimate booking flow.
Who performs each operating function?
An approved Principal Owner directly supervises the Franchised Business; one Principal Owner is the Designated Owner. An approved Operating Manager works full time on day-to-day operations, and the same person may fill both roles. Sales and production roles are disclosed, but no minimum employee headcount is specified.
Franchisee organization
- Designated Owner: oversees the Franchised Business and represents the franchisee to Hello Garage Franchising, LLC.
- Operating Manager: full-time responsibility for daily operation; must be approved and trained.
- Sales employee / Design Consultant: conducts customer consultation and proposal work using GarageView.
- Production employees / Crew: perform approved installations at customer sites.
Franchisor functions
- Operates the Designated Accounts Program and, while provided, the National Appointment Center.
- Provides Manuals, operating guidance, marketing support, coaching and required system updates.
- Approves the Designated Owner and Operating Manager and can require supplemental training.
- Controls approved offerings, brand standards, advertising rules, data access and inspection rights.
Third-party and affiliate dependencies
- Supportworks, Inc.: affiliate and supplier for defined concrete floor-coating Products.
- Designated digital agency: required for digital marketing placement.
- Designated bookkeeping service: required under the FDD, subject to the disclosed threshold exception or franchisor waiver.
- Approved suppliers: provide storage systems, equipment, tools, consumables and other required inputs.
FDD basis: 2026 FDD, Items 8, 11 and 15, pp. 12-14, 16-22 and 28. The Manuals table of contents allocates separate sections to Employees, Marketing & Sales, Production & Products, and Managing Your Business.
Which suppliers, assets and technology are mandatory?
Procurement is controlled. Hello Garage Franchising, LLC maintains approved supplier and supply lists and can revise specifications. Item 8 calls Supportworks an approved floor-coating supplier; the attached Supply Agreement separately requires the franchisee to buy defined concrete floor-coating Products from Supportworks.
| Operating input | Current requirement | Who controls it | Operational effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Floor-coating Products | Supply Agreement purchase from Supportworks | Supportworks / franchisor standards | Competitive floor-coating products and alternative channels are restricted. |
| Storage and job materials | Approved suppliers for cabinets, slatwall, accessories, tools and consumables | Hello Garage Franchising, LLC | Unapproved items or suppliers require approval before use. |
| Computer System | GarageView, Hello Garage CRM, QuickBooks Online, Microsoft 365, hardware and designated updates | Hello Garage Franchising, LLC | Required stack supports sales, customer records, accounting and reporting. |
| Customer Data | Franchisor may access data without a stated access limit | Hello Garage Franchising, LLC | Franchisee use, transfer and sharing are restricted by agreement and Manuals. |
| Facilities and field assets | Office in territory, temperature-controlled storage, approved installation vehicle | Franchisee secures; franchisor sets standards | Work is staged locally and delivered at customer sites. |
| Digital marketing / bookkeeping | Designated third parties | Hello Garage Franchising, LLC | Core lead-generation and financial-record processes depend on designated vendors. |
The Software as a Service Agreement covers Hello Garage CRM, GarageView sales software and Hello Garage email addresses. The Franchise Agreement also gives the franchisor access to Customer Data and requires the franchisee to provide access credentials, implement required Computer System updates, protect Customer Data from unauthorized access, and notify the franchisor of a suspected data breach.
FDD basis: 2026 FDD, Items 8 and 11, pp. 11-14 and 18-19; Franchise Agreement §§5(D)-(F) and 12; Software as a Service Agreement §§2 and 7 and Exhibit A; Supply Agreement §§1-3. Affiliate context: Supportworks official site.
How do Protected Territory and channel rules affect operations?
A Protected Territory is not exclusive. If the franchisee remains compliant, the franchisor generally will not place another full-service Hello Garage business inside it, but it retains internet, dissimilar-channel and Designated Account rights. Ordinary marketing, office and storage are centered inside the Protected Territory.
FDD basis: 2026 FDD, Item 12, pp. 23-25; Franchise Agreement §2. Consumer routing by ZIP code can be seen on the official location finder.
What does Item 20 show about the operating footprint?
Item 20 defines an “Outlet” as an individual territory of about 75,000 qualified households, so the counts are territories rather than separate franchisee businesses. At December 31, 2025, the U.S. system had 87 outlets: 73 franchised and 14 company-owned or affiliate-owned, an 83.9% / 16.1% composition.
Item 20 outlets at December 31, 2025
Interpretation: the 2025 year-end footprint was predominantly franchised, but the franchised outlet count contracted from 103 at the start of 2025 to 73 at year-end; company-owned outlets remained at 14.
Source: 2026 FDD, Item 20, Tables 1, 3 and 4, pp. 36-40. Reconciliation: 73 + 14 = 87; percentages total 100.0% after rounding.
During 2025, Item 20 reports no new franchised outlets, 11 terminations and 19 outlets that ceased operations for other reasons, producing a net reduction of 30 franchised outlets. These are territory-level counts under the FDD definition of “Outlet,” so they should not be read as 30 distinct franchisee companies without checking Attachment C.
What operating questions should a buyer verify before relying on the model?
The FDD defines required roles, systems and controls but does not quantify minimum field headcount, appointment capacity, installation capacity by territory, or the ordinary-customer billing workflow. Those gaps matter because centralized lead handling depends on local selling and installation capacity.
- Request the current Manuals sections for Employees, Marketing & Sales, Production & Products, and Managing Your Business, including role and scheduling standards.
- Confirm the current approved suppliers for cabinets, slatwall, accessories, tools and consumables, plus Supportworks ordering and inventory rules.
- Verify how the National Appointment Center, Hello Garage CRM, GarageView and Inside Sales Program assign, update and return leads and unsold proposals.
- Confirm the designated digital marketing agency and bookkeeping service, including the Item 8 bookkeeping threshold exception and any waiver process.
- Reconcile the proposed Protected Territory with adjacent outlets, Designated Accounts, trade-show lead allocation and cross-territory service rules.
What is the operating-model bottom line?
Hello Garage operates as a field-service renovation business: leads become consultations, approved proposals become installation jobs, and completed work becomes Gross Revenue recorded through the required financial stack. The franchisee's central responsibility is staffing and running selling, staging and installation through an approved full-time Operating Manager.
The strongest dependencies are franchisor control of offerings, software, Customer Data, marketing and territory rules, plus the Supportworks floor-coating supply relationship. A Protected Territory is not exclusive across every channel or Designated Account. The largest undisclosed operating question is the actual staffing and capacity model needed for one or multiple territories.