Springdale firm P3 Cost Analysts eyes growth by franchising

Springdale-based P3 Cost Analysts recently hired a president of franchising as the consulting company works to grow through opening franchises in the United States and internationally.

Michael Nicholas started in December as president of franchising and will work to open new franchises, said Aaron Stahl, CEO of P3 Cost Analysts. Stahl said he always looks to hire people he believes are better than himself, and as the company has grown, he’s looked for employees who might replace himself.

“As we got into franchising, I knew that I wasn’t the expert in that field, and I needed to bring on some more expertise and talent,” Stahl said. “So I just started looking around, and coming across Michael, he’s been in the industry for a while. And he actually worked for one of our competitors and was going through a career change. It just made sense for me to reach out to him, and we really kind of hit it off. He fits in with our culture, and the rest is history at this point.”

Nicholas has 30 years of experience working in franchising, and along with bringing on new franchisees, he will work to improve training and support and help the franchisees to be successful, Stahl said. Over the next few years, the company is expected to have 75 franchises in the United States and in Canada and reach $20 million in revenue. In five years, the company looks to have franchises in Latin America and Europe.

“We’ll be going global,” Nicholas said. “P3 Cost Analysts is a superior model to most consulting firms. What we have in place, has everything automated so franchisees will never have to worry. Everything about this company is what I believe the future of consulting will look like.”

The company has 20 employees and offices in Springdale and Greensboro, N.C. It recently changed its name from P3 Waste Consulting after a rebranding and the acquisition of a competitor. The acquisition led the company to begin to expand through franchising in 2018. It has nine franchisees, and each franchise is independently owned and operated and follows a similar structure, working to develop new business. The plan is to add 20 franchisees in 2020, Stahl said.

“It is a pretty big fundamental business shift when you go from just being a business to being a franchise business,” Stahl said. “And that’s where having Michael on board to steer the ship in that area is really helping.”

An Australia native, Nicholas earned a bachelor’s degree from Bond University. He started as an entrepreneur as a teenager in Sydney and would fix broken bicycles and sell them for a profit. He also started a DJ business and performed at college parties. Before he joined P3 Cost Analysts, he was president and CEO of Expense Reduction Analysts in Australia and worked in Dallas as CEO of the Americas.

“He’s passionate about cost reduction and has been in this industry for the past 10 years,” Stahl said. “All of this, and he’s just a great guy to be around as well. We’re very excited to have him on board.”

P3 Cost Analysts works with clients to save them money. Stahl said the company not only offers clients savings on their trash bills but also on costs related to telecommunications and utilities. The company saves 90% of its clients’ money, and for the 10% it cannot, no fee is charged. The company doesn’t charge an upfront fee but receives half of the cost savings that clients see. The company has been able to save clients between 35% and 40% on their trash bills, and it has saved up to 90% in costs for some.

Some of the company’s clients include First Security Bank, Jason’s Deli, KFC, Sonic, and various cities and school districts. In a video testimonial, Tony Sherman, chief operating officer for a company with 70 restaurants, said the consultant saved the company about $675,000 over more than six years.

Stahl started P3 part-time in January 2005, and the company it acquired was established in 1991. Since then, it has saved clients more than $200 million. Company revenue reached $2.75 million in 2019. It’s expected to rise to at least $4 million in 2020.