When Catherine Monson joined the world of franchising in 1980, it was by accident. Hired as a sales coordinator for Sir Speedy Printing Centers, a small franchisor with fewer than 200 locations, she had no intention of building tenure with the company, but she quickly climbed the ladder and became part of a team that forged the brand’s rapid success. As she worked to double the company’s footprint in less than five years, and quadruple it in 15 years, she fell in love with her work. By Jessica Petrucelli
Catherine Monson’s Franchise Story
When Catherine Monson joined the world of franchising in 1980, it was by accident. Hired as a sales coordinator for Sir Speedy Printing Centers, a small franchisor with fewer than 200 locations, she had no intention of building tenure with the company, but she quickly climbed the ladder and became part of a team that forged the brand’s rapid success. As she worked to double the company’s footprint in less than five years, and quadruple it in 15 years, she fell in love with her work.
“After I joined Sir Speedy, I came to realize I love franchising,” said Monson. “I love that I get to help people achieve their goals and dreams of business ownership. We help our franchisees create economic output, create jobs and offer a means for generational wealth creation for franchisees and their families.”
For Monson, the formula was simple.
“Find a good franchisor and follow the system,” she said. “It’s an outstanding way for people to achieve their dreams.”
Forty-five years later, she still practices that same mantra, just on a larger scale.
As CEO of Propelled Brands – the parent company of FASTSIGNS International Inc., the largest sign and visual communications franchisor in North America, along with the recent acquisitions of My Salon Suite and Camp BowWow – Monson oversees more than 1,400 independently owned and operated franchised businesses in eight countries.
Considered one of the top leaders in the signage and visual graphics industry and one of the most powerful women in franchising, she has over four decades of management and leadership experience. She has successfully led the FASTSIGNS brand since 2009, and each of her accolades is hard-earned.
Continually recognized as one of Franchise Dictionary Magazine’s 50 Women of Wonder, Monson is at the top of her game for good reason. Sharp, witty and personable, the Californian easily adopted some Southern charm when she moved to Texas, where FASTSIGNS International, and now Propelled Brands, is headquartered.
“Because I grew up in what started as a single-brand franchise and became a multibrand franchise, once I was offered the position to be CEO of FASTSIGNS, it was my vision to develop and create a multibrand organization, and that’s what Propelled Brands is all about,” said Monson.
Propelled Brands currently operates three franchises: FASTSIGNS, My Salon Suite and Camp Bow Wow. Monson described them as “all scaled, healthy brands with great returns for our franchisees,” with her main focus being on the success of her franchisees.
“What we bring to our brands is a real focus on franchising best practices,” Monson said. “To say that we obsess about franchisee profitability is an understatement. We are also strongly motivated by franchisee satisfaction, caring about them as people, focusing on their happiness and making sure that our support teams are doing outstanding work.”
All in all, Monson is proud to be considered a leader in this industry.
“I think that there are great opportunities for women in this industry in leadership and management, far better than there were 40 years ago,” she explained. “And I’m proud that I was a trailblazer for women over the decades. Hopefully I made it better for the young women of today and of the future.”
Jessica Petrucelli