March 16-17, 2024: Miami Airport Convention Center (West Hall)

Steven Cooper has 25 years of benefits consulting and pension administration experience. He was the first to evangelize the essential exit strategy that popularized the ERSOP(TM) Plan. Beginning in 1999, he successfully marketed the concept to franchisors and business brokers. In 2001 he coined the term "ERSOP (Entrepreneur Rollover Stock Ownership Plan)".

Widely accepted as one of the top franchise consultants in the United States, Britton helps you figure out how to do what most people only dream about. ​Britton has spent more than 25 years as a franchisee, entrepreneur, franchise executive, and franchise consultant working for and owning franchises such as Kiddie Academy® Childcare Learning Centers, Molly Maid®, Sylvan Learning(SM) Centers, and SYNERGY® HomeCare.
​Britton has captured her franchise expertise as author of a top-selling book on entrepreneurship titled, The Franchisee Workbook. Britton will teach you the tools and techniques to help you find your ideal match far beyond your expectations.

Avinash Nichkawde is an Entrepreneur, Chartered Accountant. International Business Consultant. He started his tax practice in Sydney Australia in 1993 and grew to 7000 clients in 4 years, he later went into International Education Business and at peak managed over 200 employees besides consulting to numerous small to medium companies over the years. He brings vast practical global experience to clients. Born & raised in India, Avinash is a Australian citizen having lived there for over 20 years and now residing permanently in USA, with travels to over 30 countries. He is known for providing out of the box practical solutions for his clients which are very cost effective. Avinash is Advisor to Second Street Capital and iMedGo,Inc, California.

Chris Conner has spent the last twenty years working in the franchise development field working primarily with startup and emerging franchise systems. Mr. Conner's work covers a variety of franchise categories including strategic planning, franchise operations, franchise training system development, franchise marketing and franchise sales. In 2009, Mr. Conner founded Franchise Marketing Systems based out of Atlanta, Georgia which today has grown to a team of 34 team members located in markets across the United States and Canada. Franchise Marketing Systems has developed over 700 franchise brands and supported clients in selling over 8,000 franchise units in North and South America, Asia, the Middle East, Canada and Southeast Asia. Franchise Marketing Systems has worked with a variety of well known brands and significant franchise systems including Baxter Healthcare, Anytime Fitness, Costco, Ford Motor Company, Delta Airlines, UPS Stores, European Wax Center, Junk King and others.

Mr. Conner’s vision was to develop a model that allowed for efficient, effective and performance based franchise development work to be completed for new and emerging franchisors. The combination of providing consulting and franchise development support along with the franchise sales and marketing model for new brands created more opportunities to more brands to scale and grow through franchising. Chris Conner holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from Miami of Ohio and an MBA in Finance from DePaul University in Chicago. He is married to an amazing wife, Dr. Alaina Conner and has two great kids, Ashton and Jameson.

With over 30 years’ experience in sales leadership, training, coaching, marketing, business development and senior level sales Chris has had roles that span Fortune 50 and entrepreneurial companies. His experience is in driving go-to-market strategy, business, channel and partner development, sales management and leadership, both domestically and internationally. He has lead sales and marketing teams, developed product launches and go-to market strategies for early-stage companies.

Chris’ strengths are implementing strategy through process improvement, coaching and leadership. As a consultant, Chris is a process-driven strategic thinker who excels at sorting through clutter to see the big picture and then simplify complexity.

Dave Woggon has been in the franchise industry since 1986 in both funding and franchise exploration roles. As the VP of Development for Tenet Financial Group, he oversees the consulting team and identifies strategic growth opportunities for the company.

Marisol Cruz, experienced in securing funding in the start-up and franchise industries, provides financing to businesses across the US.

With a Master of Business Administration degree, coupled with previous experience in the personal consumer loans and automotive financing fields, Marisol leverages her knowledge to customize the right lending solution and streamline the application process.

Marisol’s mission is to help small business owners find opportunities to fulfill their dreams of ownership.