{"id":38904,"date":"2018-06-20T08:00:12","date_gmt":"2018-06-20T13:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/?post_type=newsroom&p=38904"},"modified":"2023-03-02T12:52:00","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T18:52:00","slug":"entrepreneurial-road-for-franchisee","status":"publish","type":"newsroom","link":"https:\/\/www.hrblock.com\/tax-center\/newsroom\/around-block\/about-us\/entrepreneurial-road-for-franchisee\/","title":{"rendered":"One woman\u2019s journey from employee to small business owner to H&R Block franchisee"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

When Nury Saenz was a tot, she bounced between Mexico and the United States as effortlessly as a tennis ball across a grass court.<\/p>\n

Born in Mexico, Saenz went to kindergarten in California. Then, bounce. Back in Mexico, she completed high school and started college. Then, bounce. Back in the U.S., she finished college, earning a bachelor\u2019s degree in accounting.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, it was easy to go back and forth,\u201d says Saenz, an enrolled agent, a former independent tax preparer, and now an H&R Block franchisee based in Chula Vista, California.<\/p>\n

Today, Saenz is a U.S. citizen who owns six tax offices near San Diego \u2013 all within 60 miles of the border with Mexico.<\/p>\n

\u201cI owe my career to the U.S.; it is my country,\u201d says Saenz, one of H&R Block\u2019s Featured Franchisees of the Year for 2016<\/a> \u2013 an award that celebrates community involvement along with business success.<\/p>\n

A learning curve<\/strong><\/h2>\n

While the U.S. provided the accommodating backdrop for her 20-year career, it was Saenz\u2019s determination and drive that built the H&R Block business she owns today, which offers tax prep and year-round small business services.<\/p>\n

Like many small business owners, Saenz started out working for other people \u2013 in her case, a local accounting firm in San Diego. It wasn\u2019t long before Saenz discovered that her job juggling numbers was really about empowering people.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to do something that would help someone else,\u201d says Saenz. \u201cI liked getting involved in clients\u2019 financial situations and helping them accomplish their financial goals, and since I was good at numbers, the job was a perfect fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Until Saenz decided to go out on her own.<\/p>\n

Drumming up business<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cIt was a challenge to be more successful,\u201d says Saenz. \u201cI worked hard to get people to listen to me and learn what my business could do for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

That task did a number on her feet and her knuckles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a high heel girl and I like to dress professionally,\u201d says Saenz. \u201cSo, I put on my high heels and literally knocked on people\u2019s doors. And I called them. And I went out in the neighborhoods. I did everything possible to gain one client at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n

And \u2013 like the clich\u00e9 \u2013 Saenz got involved. <\/em>\u201cInstead of waiting for clients to find me, I found them,\u201d says Saenz, who is active in the California Society of Tax Consultants, Fender Center for the Arts and Las Damas de San Diego \u2013 and spends at least four hours a week promoting her tax offices.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom Day One, I got involved in my community on all different levels: PTA meetings at my son\u2019s school, community fairs, business presentations. Because wherever my offices are, that\u2019s my <\/em>town and my<\/em> community,\u201d says Saenz. \u201cIt paid off.\u201d \"\"<\/p>\n

Then she met Tony Tavantzis, \u201cthe love of her life\u201d and her business partner. Together, they set up a second shop \u2013 where they prepared taxes and provided services for local small businesses.<\/p>\n

Bigger and better<\/strong><\/h2>\n

But Saenz and Tavantzis longed for something more.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur own business was going at a good pace, but we wanted to open more offices and hire more people,\u201d says Saenz. \u201cSo, we looked into franchising with H&R Block. We really liked their business model, the way we could take advantage of their national marketing efforts, and we appreciated all the tools and training the company provides.\u201d<\/p>\n

But perhaps most important, \u201cWe wanted to be part of a company that believes in serving the community. That was a big part of how we operated on our own, and we wanted to maintain that connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, in 2013, Saenz became an H&R Block franchisee and Tavantzis became her franchise associate. \u201cI didn\u2019t feel like we were giving our clients to a company, I felt like we were bringing more to our clients,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was a perfect fit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still theirs<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Today, Saenz relishes the business she and Tavantzis have built.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe continue to run our tax offices in a personal way,\u201d says Saenz, noting such touches as free candy and high-end coffee for clients and co-workers, an abundance of family photos and mementos and more.<\/p>\n

\u201cServing clients is not about crunching numbers, it\u2019s looking at the big picture. We look for things clients might miss.\u201d<\/p>\n

For example, says Saenz, \u201cA client who just had a baby came in to file taxes, then realized they hadn\u2019t received the baby\u2019s Social Security number yet. So, we prepared the return, put it on hold, and filled in the number when it came.\u201d<\/p>\n

Later, the client came back with flowers and said, \u201cI felt so dumb.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Not at all,\u2019 I told them. \u2018You have your hands full. You take care of your baby and we\u2019ll take care of your taxes.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Learn how Nury Saenz of California turned her nice little tax business into a six-office H&R Block franchise. Best of all, it\u2019s still hers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":418,"featured_media":38905,"menu_order":0,"template":"","tags":[],"news-categories":[23376,23377],"class_list":["post-38904","newsroom","type-newsroom","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-categories-around-block","news-categories-about-us"],"acf":{"post_rest_thumbnail_alt_id":null},"yoast_head":"H&R Block franchisee entrepreneurial road | H&R Block Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn how Nury Saenz of California turned her nice little tax business into a six-office H&R Block franchise. 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