100th Franchisee Signs With Dental Fix Rx Dental Equipment Repair Company

A South Florida company specializing in repairing dental equipment turns four years old this month, but that's not its only reason to celebrate.

Davie-based Dental Fix Rx this month signed its 100th franchise, expanding its coverage in South Florida and increasing its service territories to more than 70 in the U.S. and Canada combined.

"This is a need-based business," said David Lopez, chief executive of Dental Fix. "Dental equipment will always break and will always need to be fixed." Dental Fix franchisees are mobile operators, heading out to dentists' office to fix broken handpieces, compressors and other medical equipment used at their practice. They drive a van equipped with tools and do repairs on-site, eliminating the need for doctors to ship the parts to repair centers.

While their core customers are dentists, Dental Fix also fields calls from tattoo shops, pharmaceutical companies and veterinarians, Lopez said.

On average, franchisees charge about $175 per hour and respond to about five service calls a day, he said. Lopez projects companywide sales this year will reach $16 million, "significantly" surpassing 2012.

He hopes to add at least 50 more territories in 2014 through aggressive marketing, but expects a third of that will "come organically" as a result of current owners' referrals. It takes about $70,000 to start a franchise, Lopez said, which includes ownership fees, six weeks of training and repair tools.

Franchisees pay a $350 a week fee to the Davie company and $550 a week by the third year in business. In return, they get continuous technical and scheduling support.

Plantation resident Matthias Williams signed the deal with Dental Fix this month, becoming their 100th franchisee.

For nearly 10 years, Williams has owned a construction maintenance business, getting calls from retailers and malls needing him to repair cabinets, tiles and other fixtures. He figured he'd also give dental equipment repair a shot.

"I didn't want to go too far away from my strength (customer service)," said Williams, 37, who also considered buying a Subway franchise. "I think this is a good recession-proof business. When the economy is bad, dentists stop buying new equipment, they repair their equipment instead. And we'll always need dentists, whether the economy is good or bad." Williams said he and his business partner, Federico Flores, plan to begin serving their territory � west and south Miami � in mid-January.

Lopez, Dental Fix' chief executive, has experience in franchising. In the early 2000s he founded and franchised a quick service restaurant chain, Froots, serving smoothies, salads and wraps. He sold that company in 2008.

He attributes the Davie company's rapid growth to the low start-up costs and the company's focus on supporting franchisees.

"Our customer is the franchisee," the 32-year-old Southwest Ranches resident said. "Most franchise companies forget that. They start to look at franchisees as just a number and revenue source. The culture in our company is that a franchisee is our customer. If they succeed, our success will follow."

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