Franchising’s Power Players: Sean Quinn

Sean Quinn has an affinity for entrepreneurs and small business owners. A U.S. Army veteran and serial entrepreneur who has founded, funded and grown several technology-based companies, Quinn enjoys leveling the playing field to help small business and franchise owners compete with the big guys. 

As CEO of All Point Retail, Quinn’s goal is to make the same cutting-edge technology that’s typically accessible only by large retailers attainable and affordable for small to mid-sized retail business owners. “When combined with the genuine care most have for their customers, this gives them the edge they need to succeed,” he says.

“For me, it’s always been about supporting the small- to mid-sized retail business owner. They are so often underserved, and we wanted to change this,” Quinn says. “They’re used to dealing with multiple technology providers supporting their stores. That’s great when things go right, but when something breaks, finger-pointing begins and nothing gets resolved in a timely manner. This frustrates the retailer and costs them money and brand image.

“We understand their challenges and that when something goes wrong with their IT, their business is shut down. Our ability to respond to their needs quickly, with both timing and enthusiasm, is what sets us apart.”

All Point Retail, founded in 2010, evolved beyond partnering with independent retailers to include franchising, as well. “Many of their issues were similar, but with franchising, we needed to serve two masters: the franchisor and the franchisee, each with their own unique situations. To support this, we developed our own [intellectual property] software products that meet the needs of each while also connecting to mainstream retail IT platforms. It’s been a real game changer for us and our franchise clients, and it continues to evolve.”

Here, Sean Quinn shares his insights on leadership, culture and franchising as the “embodiment of entrepreneurship.”

How Did you Discover Franchising?

We have some executives and employees that come from it, but our first franchise client got us under the hood to learn the challenges in franchises by living it. We built solutions for the community, and it went from there!

How Would you Describe the Culture at All Point Retail?

Like our clients, we are extremely entrepreneurial at all levels. Retail is gritty. Retail is scrappy. And so are we! We hire with this in mind. All of our new hires – if they haven’t previously – work a couple of days on the front lines in one of our client’s stores so they understand what it’s like. Our people will pick up and answer client calls, and they will put their best effort forth to ‘get it done.’ We look for three critical components in a new team member: competence, people skills and critical thinking. Our culture is rooted in what I call a ‘heart of service,’ meaning we really like working with people, are great listeners and always strive to support others in the best way possible.

What Other Qualities Do you Seek in your Team?

I seek out the gems who have drive and personal pride, but also a genuine belief in our mission. They should have a strong desire to help others, an attitude of servitude, and the ability to wear multiple hats. I also look for people who are confident and super proactive, able to take initiative without constant oversight. Critical thinking is essential, as well, though it’s challenging to find. I need problem solvers who can navigate issues independently without needing their hands held. I fully subscribe to hiring people more talented than me in their areas, and letting them infuse their experience and ideas into our culture to help the entire organization raise our level of expertise.

What Does Leadership Mean to you? 

To me, leadership means influence. Leaders must constantly guide, train and lead their teams, but this only works if the message is received. People may not always understand what you’re trying to get across right away, so it’s crucial to say things in different ways until it’s received. Also, leadership is about being innovative. We are never done, and must always look ahead and ask what’s next. Being an innovator is a continuous journey – always and in all ways, especially in technology.

Please Share your Favorite Mantra or Motto in Business.

Excellence is a standard, but grace is the word.

People, me included, should always try to get it right the first time, to strive for excellence in all they do. But it’s impossible to hit this 100% of the time. We fail most times we strive for perfection, and you can’t hammer folks for that. Instead, have grace with them, ask what they can learn from the experience and how to do better next time so that they can get closer to excellence. You’ve got to have the drive, the ability to learn and the gumption to keep driving yourself forward.

What is your Greatest Career Accomplishment?

I think it’s the impact on people from the work that I’ve been part of. I’ve had the privilege of building a few businesses from just an idea into an actual livelihood for 10, 20, even 100-plus people. These ventures serve both customers and employees, but they create a positive impact on multiple fronts – communities, local commerce, families, etc. They impact so many lives in positive ways.

Also, filling a gap in how small- and medium-sized business (SMB) retail was being served by technology and the leading providers. By addressing their needs uniquely, we could bring the top technologies usually reserved and adopted by the top 50 into the SMB space and implement them right away in an integrated and affordable package. That has been a game changer for our clients and has truly impacted their ability to thrive. They embraced our vision, which really validated our approach, and we’ve seen how much it’s empowered them.

What Do you Love about Franchising?

It’s the embodiment of entrepreneurship. The ability to help people own their own businesses. We get to empower them to do that. Franchising is high growth, scalable, and has the ability to take advantage of a tried-and-true brand with a localized, unique spin. We can help them scale with the right technology backbone, which is super important to us because, as in an industry, this is a community that is often ignored or undersupported.