In this episode of Business LO, hosted by Michelle O'Dell, Heather Graves Ramsey of Coach to Brilliance, and Chamber CEO Liz Hartman, we hear from local business owners and franchisees, Melissa Boatwright of ACE Handyman Services Lake Oswego, Portland and Vancouver, and Rosy Rojas of Woofie’s Southwest Portland, as they discuss their journeys into franchise ownership, their backgrounds, reasons for choosing the Lake Oswego area, and the unique challenges and benefits of operating a franchise. Plus, Liz Hartman provides updates on local initiatives, upcoming events, and new groups supporting the Lake Oswego business community with What You Need to Know in LO!
For more information on TechLO, Young Professionals LO, and Women's Lakeside Leaders, go to LakeOswegoChamber.com
TechLO - meets monthly, third Tuesday, location changes monthly (4:30-6 pm)
Young Professionals LO meets monthly on the second Tuesday. Kick off Tuesday, February 10, at the AC Hotel, 3:30-5 pm
Women's Lakeside Leaders meets quarterly. Kick off Wednesday, February 25, noon to 1 pm - Reservations only, no drop-ins.
Ace Handyman Services Lake Oswego
Woofie's - Southwest Portland Pet Care Service
Other Franchises in the Area:
Baja Fresh Mexican Grill
Bee Organized
Best Western
Body 20
Budget Blinds
CarePatrol
Certapro Painters
Crumbl Cookies
Expedia Cruises
Forge Education
Fyzical Therapy & Balance Centers
Goosehead Insurance
Grocery Outlet Bargain Market
Kumon Math & Reading
McDonalds
Minuteman Press
Modern Chiropractic
Mr. Handyman
New Mom School
OrangeTheory Fitness
Pet Evolution
Pickelball Kingdom
Prime IV & Wellness
Pristine Pros NW
Radiance Natural Medicine
Residence Inn
Stretchlab
Superior Fence
The Bar Method
The UPS Store
TheKey Home Care
Visiting Angels
Welcome Wagon LO
West Hills Montessori School ff
Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming
LIZ HARTMAN:: [00:00:00] This is Business LO, a podcast by the Lake Oswego Chamber of Commerce, which connects, educates, advocates, and champions, our business community. We have nearly 500 members from international corporations to home-based businesses, and we serve them all. Each episode of Business LO gives insider information to the local business community and the neighbors who support them.
LIZ HARTMAN:: And now let's talk Business LO
MICHELLE ODELL:: Today is January 23rd, 2026, and this episode will publish on February 1st. We are so excited to have two chamber members and local business owners joining us. For a candid discussion about owning a franchise here in the Lake Oswego area, we have Rosie Rojas. She's the Chief Executive Poer for Wolfe's Southwest Portland, and Melissa Boatwright from ACE Handyman Services, Portland and Vancouver.
MICHELLE ODELL:: They'll tell us a little bit about themselves in [00:01:00] just a moment, but first, let's talk about who is leading the conversation. It's our veritable. Pillar of the community. Heather Graves Ramsey. She is owner of Coach to Brilliance. She specializes in executive coaching and leadership development, and it wouldn't be a business lo episode without our very own chamber.
MICHELLE ODELL:: CEO, Liz Hartman. She has all the important insider information with what you need to know in lo. And I'm Michelle Odell, and let's get going. Heather,
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: so excited to have both of you here. So excited to learn a little bit more about not just franchises overall, but we're excited to kind of know why you chose LO for your franchises.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Melissa, I'm gonna have you kick us off and just. Tell us a little bit about you.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: I grew up in Wyoming, so when I was 19, I joined the Air Force. I was on active duty in the Air Force for 10 years. I did 16 years as a reservist. When I left active duty, I'd finished my degree right before I got out of the military.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Did a master's degree. [00:02:00] And then moved into the corporate world. So while I was in the Reserves, I was beginning my corporate career kind of in my late twenties, initially in corporate communications, in marketing, in executive communications, and then got a really cool opportunity to be the chief of staff or a chief technology officer in the Bay Area.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: But what I really loved was operational excellence and efficiency and like seeing the results of your work. And worked for that person for a couple of years, ran some data analytics teams at LinkedIn, did a stint in Ireland as part of that during COVID. All the while my husband, who's my business partner, he went back and got his master's after he got outta the military and took a course called Turnarounds.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: And he was like, oh, did you know you could just buy a business? And so we started our entrepreneur journey. Never really intending to purchase a franchise, just looking for a business that we thought we could add value to. Construction was one of those things where we were like, we're kind of adjacent to this industry our whole lives, and, and it just coincided with purchasing our [00:03:00] business and have been doing that since 2020.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Awesome. Well welcome to the program Melissa. So glad you're here. And we also have Rosie Rojas here. Rosie, will you tell us just a little bit about you too?
ROSY ROJAS:: I am a native Oregonian and spent years in finance and mortgage lending. Before deciding I wanted to. Build something more connected to people and the community today that looks like running a locally owned mobile pet care business offering, mobile grooming, pet sitting, and dog walking.
ROSY ROJAS:: I care a lot about. Raising the standards in pet care and supporting the people doing the work, while still keeping things personal and community driven. I also seem like Melissa, how she started in 2020. I was also questioning my work and during [00:04:00] that time I've, I really took a hard look at what I was doing and owning a business was really something that I wanted to do.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Now you both do and you both have these wonderful franchises. And just curious, I know your husband, Melissa brought it to you, but Rosie, how did you even research? What did you look at? What did you need to learn in order to be like, oh yeah, like this franchise thing might be for me,
ROSY ROJAS:: I worked with a business consultant and he had me take personality and value assessments.
ROSY ROJAS:: And once I really dug into what mattered to me, I. Found Wies and.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: You found Wolf's?
ROSY ROJAS:: Yes. Like
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: and were you looking for a franchise at first?
ROSY ROJAS:: No. I really put my consumer hat on and I analyzed what were the needs that I was looking for in my community. My partner and I. Both interviewed [00:05:00] about 15 different franchises.
ROSY ROJAS:: It took me a while, but puppies and all the pets, I was like, that's where I wanna spend my time.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Yeah. Awesome. So it was knowing that you wanted to start your own business knowing that you didn't wanna stay working for somebody else. Going out there looking 15 different franchises later, so, and having a business consultant help you, I think that was an important part of your journey too.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Mm-hmm. Because it sounds like they opened the door to like what's possible or what you could even have.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Yeah.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Melissa, how about you? How did you find your way to Ace
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: after Cory took that course? We spent probably years looking at biz buy sell. Like just seeing what was out there. We ended up talking to like some manufacturing company, being veteran owned.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: We were like, oh, maybe we go for a company that has a lot of government contract potential. So we looked at some manufacturing companies. We didn't have a business consultant, but we did have access to Cory's MBA. Professors.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Okay.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: So [00:06:00] anytime we would like talk to a, a potential business to own, if we were a little bit intrigued, then he would kind of go huddle with his professors and say like, Hey, here's the p and l.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: What do you think of the margins? What questions should we be asking? And then it just so happened that we came across this opportunity right around the time that Ace Hardware bought the existing franchising system called Handyman Matters. So in late 2019, like September, 2019, ACE Hardware bought Handyman Matters, which had about 30 franchises across the United States at that point.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: It took 'em six months to turn it into Ace handyman. They launched it in March of 2020, which if we all remember, was not a great time to launch a new franchising system.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Maybe, maybe not. A lot of people were stuck at home and needed stuff fixed so
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Well, it was a great time to be in the construction industry, right, because we could still operate.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Yeah, right. We were viewed as essential services and more and more people, they weren't spending their discretionary [00:07:00] income on trips. They were making their home work better for them. We had this massive tailwind that we didn't even know we had right until like really about 20, 22 when things started to normalize again.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: We saw the business, we saw the numbers. We also had the benefit of the the military community. So the veteran is like an incredibly tight knit community.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: But you did look at the numbers too, so you
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: were a hundred percent We did due diligence, right? Did we? Did all the things. But I think one of the things, whether you're buying a franchise or not, I think some folks think that buying, I won't say some folks.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: One of the things that when I have to bump up against my own stereotypes about franchising before we consider it a franchise, I was like, but isn't franchising kind of like the easy way out? PS it's not. It is still hard to run a business, whether it's a franchise or not. You just are operating with different confines like different.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Barriers, different boundaries, and so we just happened to right place, right time.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Yeah.
ROSY ROJAS:: What [00:08:00] I was really looking for when I was looking to invest into a business was a proven system. So we have that information already. We have systems in place, processes to follow, and a brand already built. It comes with.
ROSY ROJAS:: A lot of tools and I can lean on the other owners. They're like my little cohort and they're the founders. The our founders are still on, and if I have questions, they have 20 years of experience and have probably already gone through this. And so I can call them, I can vent, I can ask them, I can ask the other franchisees, and we really are collaborators.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: It's ready, it's made, it will put it here, and then you hopefully get to [00:09:00] make it your own. But there's systems, there's especially the branding in place. You both chose Lo Vancouver, Portland, Portland Metro, but you spend a lot of time in lo. So help us understand why. Why that? How is that helpful for you?
ROSY ROJAS:: I did grow up here in Oregon and I grew up in Hillsborough as well, so I really know the area.
ROSY ROJAS:: Lake Oswego is just such a small community. I didn't want my groomers to be driving all around Portland. I knew that a lot of business owners here we're all relationship based, and so we all help each other.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Melissa, how about for you? Why this LO area and why dig in here?
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: The first couple years was just sort of getting our head around the business.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: It just so happened that around that same time. We personally moved to lake Oswego as well because it's a a maturing franchise model. The most valuable thing that we get in our franchising system is that ACE [00:10:00] brand, and these are people that also highly value keeping their homes looking nice. And then I would say lastly, kind of personally why we ended up in Lake Oswego, and I won't speak for my husband, but for me, I grew up in a really small town While I.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Dearly love living in cities and having like the amenities of a city. I've also, as I've grown older, I don't need to live down the street from those amenities that I can call somebody like Heather or Liz and say, Hey, I'm thinking about this. What do you think? And they know. And so there's this element of community while it's.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Obviously really important to our business and our business success. Just something tremendously special about the community of Lake Oswego.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: So franchise, you know, we've got our communities, we're dug in. We're you're a couple years into your franchises now, right? So what support do you get? From, we've talked about the brand and the process and that sort of thing, but like from the actual headquarters of the franchises, 'cause it's in their best interest, I'm sure, to [00:11:00] keep you in a good place.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: What support do you get from them?
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Rosie talked about a proven business model. Right. They've spent thir. So similarly, the founders are still involved in the business. They're the the husband is the CEO. The wife does all the franchise development for ace. They've invested three decades in pressure testing this model.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: So we get a designated franchise consultant. So think of this as like a business consultant
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: consultant.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: They partner with multiple owners in the system so they can tell me. Oh, a another owner that's at about your size in a place that's similar to your market. This is how they're having success hiring craftspeople.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: We're looking to like evolve our marketing. Here's the success that they're having. And then I would say is maybe a little bit of what Rosie talked about as well is the connection to other owners directly.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Both of you have partners that you're working with and own these franchises with. And then when you were talking about the people that own the franchises, they're married.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: So what is it with people that are married and franchises? [00:12:00] What's going on with that and how does that work for you?
ROSY ROJAS:: Definitely was testing our relationship. Finding new ways to communicate with each other on a business level is completely different than working your own nine to five or whatever it is.
ROSY ROJAS:: I am very thankful for my husband, Tulsi Sideman. He shows up to all of my events. He will sometimes even help me in farmer's markets. He does help and. It definitely brings the relationship to a whole other level.
LIZ HARTMAN:: I love it.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: So for us, it is a test. We recently sold our Central Oregon operations to a husband and wife partnership as well.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: When I think about the people that went to the conference a couple weeks ago. 15 of the 20 we're partnered Wow. On relationships that were in business together. [00:13:00] It's a little different for us because Corey doesn't work full-time in the business. So obviously the business is really important, important in our lives and to our livelihood, and so we make a, you know, we're having a strategy session tomorrow.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Let's, let's talk p and l
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: strategy.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: So that is, is different because we have to make space and keep boundaries so that he can focus on his full-time job.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Yeah.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: We also like as the person who works in the business every single day, I don't wanna come home and talk about our schedule at seven o'clock at night,
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: right?
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: And so we actually implemented like a twice a week. We meet for 45 minutes, and we only talk about operations of our family.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Yeah.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: But then we're also looking at, okay, what does demand look like right now? Like, what do we need to think about in terms of like renewing our insurance? So we use that opportunity to try to like concentrate.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Mm-hmm.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: The business stuff so that we don't end up, our relationship doesn't end up just being
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: that's no fun. The
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: business.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Yeah. Is there anything [00:14:00] else that we haven't asked you that you think it would be important for people specifically in Lake Oswego to know about? Thinking of a franchise here?
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: This is like advice I would've given myself.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: We didn't look for a franchise. And once we saw it, we were like, okay, this makes sense in a place, even like Lake Oswego, where you can put in the work to do the networking. You can become known and connected. Having a structure and a brand that allows you to accelerate through the hardships that you're gonna, you're already, everyone's gonna go through them.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: As a business owner is a really, in a market like, like Oswego can be as you're making your decision. Weigh it appropriately, weigh that value appropriately.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: That makes sense.
ROSY ROJAS:: Something that I would say is just find something that aligns with you, because you are going to be spending a lot of time in the business or on the business and.
ROSY ROJAS:: There's [00:15:00] phases, just like any other businesses. So philosophically I will say structure is so important for your own sanity. It it's so important.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Yes. When you look at the Franchise Disclosure Agreement, you can see the names of all the other owners and you have their contact information. So if you are looking into buying a franchise, you should call at least 10 other owners.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Makes sense. The ones that are still in business and ones that have closed their franchise. And use those as data points.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: That is absolutely fair.
ROSY ROJAS:: Yeah, we called those validation calls and definitely important.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: All the research is really key. Well, thank you both for bringing your awesomeness, your business, your franchise to.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: Here in Lake Oswego, but also to this wonderful podcast. But I just am so grateful to have had time with you and we're excited to put this out there and to help other people who might be thinking of starting a franchise or being a part of one. How might people be able to get in touch with each [00:16:00] of you?
ROSY ROJAS:: wolfies.com/sw. Portland and socials of course. So we're Wolfies sw Portland.
HEATHER GRAVES RAMSEY:: How about you, Melissa? How can we
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: back similarly, ace handyman services.com. If you put in your zip code, it'll direct you straight to us. We are on social media, so usually it's a HS Portland. But again, search Ace Handyman Portland, ACE Handyman.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Lake Oswego, ACE Handyman, Vancouver, all Roads point back to me.
MICHELLE ODELL:: All right. Well thank you so much for joining us.
MESLISSA BOATMAN:: Thank you for having us. Thank you.
MICHELLE ODELL:: Okay, Liz, what is going on? What do we need to know in lo?
LIZ HARTMAN:: The chamber has been busy in putting together affiliate groups, and the first one that has started is the LO Tech, which are people who work in Lake Oswego and Tech, or live in Lake Oswego.
LIZ HARTMAN:: And or in tech. This group will meet the third Tuesday from four 30 to six, and it will be at a different place every [00:17:00] month. You can find the location at the Lake Oswego Chamber website or read it in the newsletter. We will be starting a young professionals group and young professionals. People always say, well, what, what would that age be?
LIZ HARTMAN:: Yeah, we are thinking under 30. But if you're. 35, and you're kind of new into the professional type groups. Again, this is an organization that is looking at young professionals who live in Lake Oswego or work in Lake Oswego, and that will be the second Tuesday beginning on February 10th from three 30 to five.
LIZ HARTMAN:: This first one on February 10th will be at the AC hotels.
MICHELLE ODELL:: Oh, okay.
LIZ HARTMAN:: After that, there will be a different place every month. The third group that's forming is Women in Business, and that one has not started yet. What they're looking at is a quarterly meeting. But again, please watch the newsletter and watch the website.
LIZ HARTMAN:: This will probably be a. Group that you'll need to register to attend, and it will be in different [00:18:00] locations. These others, you can just drop in. We are not at a registration point, so. Watch what each group is doing. It looks like we're finally gonna get a ribbon cutting for Lake Oswego's newest coffee house, the Lake Oswego Coffee House, which is right next door to the Chamber of Commerce.
LIZ HARTMAN:: So we are thrilled to welcome this new neighbor and you'll again have to watch the newsletter to see when it is, but watch for them on their website. Lake Oswego Coffee House. And we would like you to think about if your employees use Trim to get to work. Trim is having some open houses and some surveys because there is a proposal to cut some of the trim service to Lake Oswego.
LIZ HARTMAN:: Trim is looking at big cuts coming up. They need to hear from you. It's going to be important because transportation is important to employees who come to Lake Oswego. So again, watch the newsletter for things that are coming up for that and. Do [00:19:00] register how trim cut surfaces would impact your business and networking for February will be at Tavern On Cruise, the AC Hotel, the Portland Face Doctor, and Roya Kitchen and Bath
MICHELLE ODELL:: Fun.
MICHELLE ODELL:: Well, thank you so much, Liz. It's always a lot going on. Again, the newsletter every Tuesday. It is so valuable. It's free, it's easy, and you'll always know what's happening with the chamber. We really appreciate all of our listeners and we want everyone to remember that every day is a Chamber of Commerce Day here in Lake Oswego.
LIZ HARTMAN:: The Lake Oswego Chamber of Commerce. Thanks you for listening to Business Lo. We would love to have you as a member so you can help Lake Oswego continue to be one of the best places to live, work, and play. If you wanna share an idea for a future episode or become a member, visit us@lakeoswegochamber.com and please like and follow us on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your [00:20:00] podcasts.
LIZ HARTMAN:: And for help with your business podcast, go to modcast productions.com.