What are the responsibilities and job description for the Director of Franchise Sales position at Rita's Italian Ice?
Director of Franchise Sales: Rita’s Italian Ice
Rita’s Italian Ice is looking for a seasoned Director of Franchise Sales to help support the next phase of responsible franchise growth.
Location: Preference Philadelphia, PA (will consider partial remote)
This role is not about selling to everyone. It’s about earning trust, qualifying hard, and saying “no” more often than “yes” to protect the brand and set future franchisees up for success.
If you thrive in long sales cycles, value integrity over volume, and understand what it takes to build strong franchise partnerships, this role may be for you.
What You’ll Do
- Own the franchise sales process from first conversation through franchise award
- Lead discovery calls to assess financial readiness, mindset, and brand fit
- Build trust with qualified prospects through honest, transparent conversations
- Confidently qualify out candidates who do not meet Rita’s standards
- Manage and nurture a disciplined franchise sales pipeline
- Interact with Development / Real Estate to support market planning, area viability and multi-unit growth
- Maintain accurate activity and forecasting in the CRM
- Report results to senior leadership on a weekly, monthly and quarterly basis
- Interact and provide feedback to Franchise Development marketing agency to improve lead generation quality and quantity
- Partner closely with Marketing, Legal, Real Estate and Operations to support sales process and ensure smooth handoff
- Build a business plan to fulfill sales targets and greater multi-unit franchisee development
- Represent the Rita’s brand with credibility and consistency
- Other duties as requested, directed or assigned.
Who You Are
- Highly resilient and comfortable hearing “no” more than “yes”
- Values integrity over quick wins
- Build trust through clarity, consistency, and follow-through
- Excellent communication (written and oral), organization and problem-solving skills
- Proven ability to develop new accounts through networking, referrals and cold calling
- Self-starter with excellent time-management skills and the ability to multi-task under high pressure and in a time sensitive environment
- Stellar presentation skills combined with a professional and polished image
- Deep understanding of the franchise business model
- Enjoys long sales cycles and thoughtful decision-making
What You Bring (Required Education and Experience)
- Minimum Undergraduate Degree or equivalent experience
- 5 years of franchise sales experience
- 10 years of total professional experience
- Proven success selling franchise or multi-unit concepts
- Strong qualification instincts and negotiation skills
- Knowledge of Franchise Real Estate, Construction and Operations a plus
- CRM experience and disciplined pipeline management
- Solid computer software skills in Microsoft Office: Excel, Word and PowerPoint
- Experience restaurant/franchise operations experience, quick service restaurants, franchise operations, and/or hospitality industry experience a plus
- Working knowledge of a sales process: transactions, legal documents/contracts, sales and growth models
What Success Looks Like
- Meet and exceed quarterly and annual sales goals, with focus on multi-unit deals
- Awarding franchises to qualified, brand-aligned operators
- Strong lead-to-award conversion on qualified prospects
- Clean, accurate CRM data and reliable forecasting
- Franchisees who feel informed, supported, and confident in their decision
- Strong partnership with Rita’s cross functional teams, who support sales process
Why Rita’s
- Iconic, heritage brand (40 years & 600 units) with strong emotional connection
- Culture rooted in community, fun, and integrity
- Leadership committed to disciplined, intentional growth
- Opportunity to shape the future of the franchise system