Franchi$it for fun and profit

ook out Milton Bradley! Here comes Franchi$it! Loren Fossie ’88, former Miss Glassboro State 1988 and a marketing graduate, created the modern-day board game that’s a cross between Monopoly and Trivial Pursuit. Players compete to become the wealthiest as they sell and trade real franchises such as 7-Eleven, The Athlete’s Foot and Holiday Inn.

Franchi$it evolved during a business simulation class in Fossie’s senior year. Researching and developing board games was her team’s task. Fossie, envisioning a game involving real-life sponsors and scenarios, never discovered one on store shelves. “That is when I realized I had to move forward with my idea,” says Fossie. “It is every marketer’s dream to get their product on the market.”

In 1992, Fossie created LAF Enterprises, Inc., in Mt. Laurel to develop and market Franchi$it. Using her own funds, she created 300 videotapes and sent them to companies around the country. She even sold her 1991 white Corvette convertible to ¤nance promotional costs and overcome other ¤nancial hurdles. After eight years, 15 companies gave Fossie permission to display their logos on the playing board free of charge.

Fossie is no stranger to challenges. At 13, three broken vertebrae kept the young gymnast from the Olympic trials. After learning to walk again, she moved on to beauty pageants and modeling. Her competitive nature kept Fossie rolling toward the success of Franchi$it, never wanting to quit.

In August 2000, LAF Enterprises received a trademark for Franchi$it. It became available to buyers in most major toy stores in February 2001. Fossie’s company is now working on a silver and junior edition. “I credit a lot of my success to the time I spent at Rowan,” says Fossie. “Combining those four years with my life experiences put me on the right path.”

from fall ’01