Master Franchise Focus Michael Seiler Living Life And Changing Lives

“We’re not job creators, we’re life changers.” This May, Michael
Seiler expanded the coverage of his New Orleans master franchise territory to
extend to Baton Rouge. He is now the owner of the brand-new Stratus Building
Solutions of Southeast Louisiana. Seiler is an entrepreneurship veteran. He
has been creating new economic pathways not only for himself, but the
hundreds of people under his employment for more than 25 years. That includes
several hard-working unit franchisees in New Orleans, and now, Baton
Rouge.

“My team is changing people’s lives by helping unit franchise
owners build their own business,” says Seiler. “We’re helping them build
their dreams, we’re helping new business owners provide for their families,
and it doesn’t get more rewarding than that. They create jobs. We’re simply
creating lives for the unit franchise owners.”

Seiler was born and raised in southeastern Louisiana. He spent the
first 12 years of his professional career rising up the ranks in television
advertising sales. “I worked up from an account executive, to local sales
manager, general sales manager and even interim general manager,” Seiler
says.

In 1993, Seiler made the bold decision to become an entrepreneur.
“I was 33 and had successfully worked my way up the corporate ladder,” he
recalls. “A lightbulb went off. I determined the only way to overachieve and
control my schedule is if I own it. No one can tell me I don’t deserve the
raise. I don’t want to make a living, I want to make a life.”

His first business venture involved an unaffiliated cleaning unit
franchise. Seiler, who once made a career in office suites, now made a living
cleaning those suites. “I was a few million dollars short of starting my own
TV station,” Seiler says. Like everything else he takes on, he put together a
strategic plan that put him in position for success.

“For 12 years I was in an industry where you started at zero every
month,” Seiler says. “If you had a bad month or if you had a great month —
the next month, you started with a blank slate. In this industry, you’re
trying to grow every month. It’s a recurring revenue and growth model. You
build upon your previous successes. It made for an easy
transition.”

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Seiler. In the cleaning services
industry, there are times when some of your work time will be overnight. As a
single father of one daughter, Seiler leaned on his mother for assistance in
that department. “I named my business Three Generations Enterprises,” he
says. “I was building a future for my daughter, I’m the generation in the
middle building the company, and I couldn’t do it without Grandma babysitting
my daughter overnight.”

In a few short years, working with trash had built Seiler a nice
little treasure. He built his franchise into one of the top 5 percent in the
country in volume. Seiler eventually sold that franchise and was ready to
ride off into the sunset. “I own a horse farm, and fishing and hunting occupy
any discretionary time I may have,” he says. However, the lure of being an
entrepreneur, and changing lives, drew him back in. That, along with Stratus
Building Solutions’ game-changing concept. In 2016, it was game
on!

“I never thought I would be back in the business. I thought it was
behind me. I gave it careful consideration and deliberation and determined I
could draw on my previous experiences and take this better concept to the
next level.”

Seiler launched the master franchise in New Orleans in September
2016, and one year later, his team was awarded with the Master Franchise
Region of the Year after only one year in business.

Seiler gives all the credit to the team under his watch. “Every
department head I have is the perfect person for their department. All have
been with me since 2016, and there isn’t one who hasn’t learned about this
business from the bottom up.”

The team is also teaching Seiler a thing or two — like the
importance of social media. “I’m 58 years old. Twitter is a sound I thought a
bird made. Back in my day, we did telegrams. Now there’s Instagram. I knew I
needed help with social media, and our fantastic Social Media Director is the
main reason why we’re able to recruit fantastic leads.”

Those leads became hard-working unit franchise owners in New
Orleans and Baton Rouge. If things go according to Seiler’s plans — and more
often than not they do, he anticipates adding 36 new unit owners between the
two cities in the next 12 months.

“This is Louisiana, we televise the swamp people, this isn’t
exactly a green area,” says Seiler. “Yet, you have a lot of transient,
younger people who understand the how important it is to be environmentally
conscious. That’s exactly what Stratus Building Solutions is. People in both
New Orleans and Baton Rouge are embracing our industry-changing service
model.”

Stratus Building Solutions is changing the mindset of clients
throughout the state of Louisiana. It’s also changing the lives of the owners
who made the bold step to become unit owners. “Our team’s makeup runs the
gamut; from blue-collar with just a high school diploma to owners with
master’s degrees. I have a retired schoolteacher who tells me she’s making more
with Stratus Building Solutions than she ever did in her 23 years as an
educator.”

The cleaning industry in the U.S. is an extremely lucrative
business. It may not come with the appeal that other industries possess, but
Seiler says he’s okay with that. “Some people will talk to you as if you’re
just a janitor. Some will try to talk down to you. What they don’t know is
that I have a degree with three minors. I’m of the mindset, ‘do you want to
compare GPA’s or W2s?’”

The process has been worth it for Seiler. Especially as he
reflects on the tough times working overnights while his mom watched his
daughter.

“It’s got me where I am today. Without any struggle or challenges,
you’re not going to have any progress. Anything in life worth having, you
have to work for.”

What about those considering joining on? What is his advice to
those who may be a little apprehensive? “Don’t let fear stop you,” Seiler
says. “The Stratus Building Solutions system works. It’s a proven system.
It’s been tested across the country. You simply have to follow the model. We
will support you and be with you every step of the way. If you’re willing to
put in your work, we will help you have it. The world is full of people that
talk about it. Challenge yourself to do something about it. Take that step.
Give me a call for your informational session.”

Are you in search of a similar business ownership experience as
Michael Seiler? Does the Stratus Building Solutions franchise opportunity
sound like it could be for you? If so, call (504) 434-5410 or learn more at
https://www.stratusclean.com/.