Franchisees share their stories immigrating to Canada and building a business through franchising
By Alyssa Thulmann
In 2025, Statistics Canada reported that immigrants make up 32 per cent of all business owners with paid staff. For many newcomers to Canada, business ownership is a great way to build a career while creating local jobs and fostering stronger connections with their community. Franchising offers the added backing of a proven system and existing support network. Franchise Canada spoke to franchisees from varying industries, who shared their own experiences starting businesses in the country they now call home.
Drama Kids
Anam Memon always dreamt about teaching. As a child she would dress up in her mom’s clothes, what she called her “teacher attire,” and present her own lessons as a personal learning technique. In school she also participated in plays and groups, noting that this helped her build confidence.
Originally from India, in 2018 Memon moved to Toronto, Ontario, and studied Business Administration at Humber College. In 2023, she moved to Fredericton, New Brunswick, where she began looking into business opportunities through franchising.
“I was drawn to franchising because it offers a proven system of support, and [this is] especially important when starting a new business in a new country,” says Memon. “For newcomers who may not have local networks, franchising bridges the gaps and builds the credibility faster.”
Drama Kids stood out to her because “it aligns deeply with my values, helping children grow into confidence, communication, and creativity.”
Centred around drama-based learning, Drama Kids is an educational program designed to help children build confidence, creativity, skills, and social and emotional development. “It’s not about the acting for stage or on the stage,” Memon clarifies. “It’s about learning a life skill through drama. Every class is structured, curriculum-based, and age appropriate while still being fun and engaging and inclusive for all the children.”
Memon joined the Drama Kids system in 2025 when she purchased her own franchise locations in Fredericton and Saint John. She’s currently the only instructor for her classes, although she’s hired assistants to help out in the sessions and foresees hiring additional staff as her business grows. Plans for her next location, in Oromocto, are already in the works.
At the beginning, balancing operations, staffing, and community awareness was a challenge, but with a strong system behind her, Memon says it’s been manageable. She received structured training spanning curriculum delivery, operations, marketing, and business management, and adds that “the continuous support has been crucial.”
In her time with Drama Kids, Memon has already seen the effects it has in her community and on her students, noting that even the shyest of kids will start to open up after a few classes. She advises new franchisees to “take time to understand the local community, build relationships, and stay consistent.”
“Nationally, I’ve seen franchising become more inclusive and with greater representation of women, immigrants, and minority business owners,” says Memon. “This diversity strengthens the brand because it brings new perspectives and better understanding for local communities.”
JDI Cleaning Services
In 2001, Juan Arboleda and Paola Montoya moved their family from Colombia to Canada in search of better opportunities. In Colombia, Juan had experience in the finance industry and the family managed a company dealing with sound for events.
“When we moved to Canada, it was a big difference because we didn’t speak English. So that was the first step for us,” Juan shares. They enrolled in English as a Second Language programs and, with two children to support, began working in a factory. When they had the opportunity to buy a home in Milton, Ontario, they decided to get part-time cleaning jobs with JDI Cleaning Services through a commercial cleaning franchise.
Juan started looking at JDI’s numbers, and seeing the possibilities before them, said to his wife, “If we can bring this to a different level, this is going to be a big opportunity for us.”
The couple bought their first JDI local franchise in Mississauga/Oakville in 2006, calling it one of the best decisions they’ve ever made. In 2008 they decided to invest in a second territory covering Milton and Brampton and also welcomed their third child. By 2008 Juan and Paola had both quit the factory to focus fully on their business.
Seven years passed and the couple had learned a lot; in 2015 the JDI head office called them asking if they’d like to invest in a Master Franchise for the Milton/Brampton region, selling franchises and growing the JDI system as regional directors. They weren’t sure at first, says Juan. “Sales is not for everybody, and especially when English is not your first language, it’s going to be a little bit more difficult.” But with the full support of JDI behind them, they dove into the new opportunity.
Seeing great success with their Master Franchise, they invested in a second one for the Mississauga/Oakville region in 2020. Juan took on an administrative role while Paola focused on operations as Quality Control Manager, and in 2022 their son, Simon, joined the team.
“We have more opportunity to explain, to share our experience and knowledge with everybody here in the company.”
– Paola Montoya
Both Juan and Paola are certified trainers in ISSA (International Sanitary Supply Association) Basic and Advanced, and are now the trainers for new local franchisees joining the company. “We have more opportunity to explain, to share our experience and knowledge with everybody here in the company,” shares Paola.
Not only have they grown their areas with 12 local franchises in Milton/Brampton and 14 in Mississauga/Oakville, but they have a chance to give back to the JDI system as regional directors and to their local community as business owners.
“We bring in franchisees from all over the world and we see them build their business and we see them grow and we see them do what we did 20 years ago,” Simon adds. “Being able to replicate it and … have success stories and change families’ lives is really amazing to see firsthand here at the office.”
Booster Juice
Yogi Patel has lived in Canada since he was 13 years old, having moved here from India with his family in 1994. He went to high school in Scarborough, Ontario and graduated from Centennial College as a project manager working for the Bank of Montreal.
As a student, Patel worked for a franchised coffee chain, starting as a front-end cashier and moving his way up to supervisor, then manager. By working in the industry, he grew stronger skills in customer service, management, multitasking, and operating in a fast-paced environment, and fostered an interest in becoming a business owner.
In 2010 he started looking at business opportunities through franchising because he appreciated that the backing of an established brand would allow him to focus more on day-to-day operations and growth.
Patel was primarily interested in food service franchises while researching, but his introduction to Booster Juice was actually in a Toronto food court. While waiting for a friend, he noticed how busy a nearby location was, and decided to see what the buzz was all about. “I still remember my first smoothie I bought,” Patel says. “It was a Bananas-A-Whey.”
He liked the product and identified with the smoothie and juice bar’s values and branding around healthy lifestyles. After more research, Patel opened his first location at 25 York Street in 2012 with the franchisor’s training and support.
At first, the sales weren’t as high as his team had anticipated, but the Booster Juice head office had their back, including Dale Wishewan, the founder, president, and CEO. “Every day, every day, the operation team, the leasing team, Dale himself—they would get involved and they were there with us … shoulder-to-shoulder.” Within a few years that first location would go on to win an internal competition for its year over year growth.
Since 2012, Patel has opened 25 Booster Juice locations around the Greater Toronto Area, Durham Region, and in Nova Scotia, with the assistance of working partners. “Every day there is an owner in the store working and making sure we provide that great service, great product,” says Patel.
“We have franchise owners from all around the world who have migrated to Canada,” Patel says of the Booster Juice system, and franchise owners are encouraged to hire local community members in their stores. “When you go to Booster Juice locations, you’re going to see those diverse people welcoming everyone there.”
