Should my spouse and I start a franchise business in order to fund our retirement?

我迎来60岁生日,已经在法律业务for over 30 years. I am interested in starting a business part time that may turn into full time income. What I'm looking into is aCruise One franchise. It's about $10,000 up front money and of course they give you training, help set you up with direct mail and teach you the business because it's their reputation as well. But I'm concerned about how much money truly needs to be spent each month. Is this something realistic at my age to start? My spouse and I have a comfortable living right now and we both know once we retire from our current jobs we still need to work to earn extra income. Is this a good way to go or is it too risky?

Great question! The answer is it depends - on your tolerance for risk, your income needs from the business, and most importantly your life plans for your retirement years. You mentioned a cruise opportunity and, if nothing else, it may save a lot of money for you and your wife if you want to go on cruises yourself. As far as income is concerned, since travel businesses are usually a form of personal service selling, my guess is that you're not going to get a full time income from part time work unless there is a great degree of leverage in the operations (employees carrying the water for you while you do something else). I'd make sure to talk to a number of existing franchisees to find out whether your idea would work - you might ask the franchisor to give you a list of other retired or semi-retired folks who are franchisees that you can call to find out the answers. Good luck!