CHILDREN’S ORCHARD: Customer Buys Newburyport Franchise

CHILDREN’S ORCHARD: Customer Buys Newburyport Franchise

July 24, 2009

Newburyport News reports that Russell & Shiraz Hosein are enthusiastic about their decision to purchase the Newburyport, MA Children’s Orchard franchise.  In the article Mom and pop take over children’s store, Staff Writer Katie Curley writes:

Kate Russell Hosein had grown up in Newburyport and was a frequent customer at the Children’s Orchard downtown, buying clothes for her 20-month-old son, Ethan….

Russell Hosein and her husband, Shiraz Hosein, recently bought the downtown shop, a 30-year-old staple on Merrimac Street and the first store of the franchise opened by Newburyport resident Karen Lynch.

The Hoseins, who now live in Bradford, had been interested in opening a new Children’s Orchard location and had been in talks with the franchise, now based in Michigan, when they heard there was an opportunity to take over the store in Newburyport.

“We jumped at the opportunity,” Russell Hosein said. “It was a no-brainer; my mom had shopped there, I shopped there, and my family is from Newburyport.”

Three weeks into ownership, the Hoseins say the change has been the perfect fit for their lives.

Russell Hosein was formerly a financial asset manager at a Boston firm, and her husband has been unemployed after being laid off in April. The availability of the store came at a perfect time for them as they also yearned to spend more time with their son.

The store’s focus on reuse was also something the Hoseins hoped to instill in the local community…

…Another change at Children’s Orchard will be an increase in sizes. Russell Hosein hopes to bring more customers into her store by now carrying sizes up to size 12 rather than the previous size 8.

Children’s Orchard will also now have “walk-in buying,” where people can come in with up to two full bags of clothing and have it processed within 20 minutes. The store will give people cash for the items as well as a 30 percent off store credit.

“We are trying to cater to busy moms and dads,” Russell Hosein said. “We’ve always had a good customer base, so if things aren’t broke, we won’t fix it. Mark and Jane (previous owners) did a great business here.”

UnhappyFranchisee.Com has been following the contentious relationship between Children’s Orchard franchise owners and their franchisor (See CHILDREN’S ORCHARD: Overview & Links).  Despite the growth of competing resale franchise chains, unhappy franchisees fault Children’s Orchard ownership with the declining number of CO stores.

Please join us in wishing the Hoseins the best of luck and much success with their Children’s Orchard franchise.

Written by ADMIN · Filed Under ALL POSTS, Children’s Orchard, Resale Shops

5 Responses to “CHILDREN’S ORCHARD: Customer Buys Newburyport Franchise”

1. Visitor2 on July 24th, 2009 2:20 pm

   I wish them nothing but the very best.

2. Guest on July 24th, 2009 4:34 pm

   Did they do their “do diligence” and call franchisees from every region to get a global feel?

3. guest on July 24th, 2009 5:31 pm

   I hope they make it…..be careful with that walk in buying! Wishing them nothing but the best.

4. Guest on July 31st, 2009 10:36 am

   Once-upon-a-time, in the Hamilton era, franchises could only be purchased if the household had an on-going income from another source. In other words, corporate told 2 unemployed people that they could not buy a Children’s Orchard franchise and expect it to support the financial needs of their household.

   It seems from reading this article that the folks who bought this re-sale are unemployed. This location must be a hot one, and one of the few to turn a healthy profit for these folks to expect it to do just that.

   Does anyone know how many Children’s Orchards are the sole source of income for their owners?

5. Been There on August 1st, 2009 12:46 pm

   I just cross-posted a similar thought. It seems these guys at Corporate don’t know much do they? If they allowed the resale of this store to be purchased by 2 unemployed people, then that is a major departure from how business was once done.

   It just reinforces every concern and question about Taylor Bond, posted in this forum.

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