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TheStreet.com featured businesses in military bases including the UPS Store.  Chris Adkins, vice president of franchise development for The UPS Store, says the company averages opening 5 to 6 stores a year and by the end of the year, it will add 3 more to its existing 34 stores in military bases.  The UPS Store is found in many non-traditional locations.  It believes in being where their services are needed.

Military installations are a small yet growing avenue for businesses to expand. And, some say, a perfect avenue for a budding business to garner customers in a controlled environment.

There is an increasing push by the government to “provide more convenient and higher-quality service on military bases for their service members,” says Chris Adkins, vice president of franchise development for The UPS Store, a subsidiary of UPS.  “The military is very open to outsourcing as a way to provide these services.”

The sentiment fits well with UPS’ store expansion plans in nontraditional locations, including hotels, convention centers and college campuses. The company has more than 4,700 retail locations in the U.S. and Canada — 34 on military bases. Three more UPS locations are set to open on base by the end of the year. Adkins says that on average, the company opens five to six stores per year on military bases.

UPS is one of several franchisors looking to incentivize veterans to open stores.

“Our goal is to be where our customers need us, and U.S. service members and their families require our services,” Adkins says. “We have a proven concept that has worked on many bases, so we are a known entity within the military retail supply organizations.”

The UPS Store also plans to approach individual Marine and Navy installations to provide similar services, he says.

“We intend to create mini-America for the soldiers wherever they are positioned in the U.S. or overseas,” says Denise Gumbert, director of services and vending at The Army and Air Force Exchange Service, the primary retail distributor for Army and Air Force bases.

Opening an establishment on base is easier and costs less because owners do not have to build a location.

“If someone has a business, we’re keen to hear about it. If we can’t operate it, we’ll advise them to alternative methods because we like to see small businesses grow,” Gumbert says.

Photo by Mr. T in DC