BUSINESS

2 brothers opening new UPS Store at Pipkin and County Line shopping center

Paul Nutcher
The Ledger
Manish Patel and his brother, Utkarsh Patel, will open a UPS Store in the Publix shopping center at Pipkin and County Line roads in July.

Hoping for higher foot traffic in a Publix-anchored shopping plaza, the Patel brothers will own and operate the latest UPS Store in Lakeland.

“The people that we have spoken to have told us Publix is a good traffic generator,” said Manish Patel, 28, of Tampa.

He and his brother, Utkarsh Patel, 37, will open the 23rd location in Polk County of The UPS Store and the sixth in Lakeland.

“When you have a big anchor store like Publix, you don’t have to do a lot of marketing,” Manish said. 

This is their first location as business partners, located at 5155 County Line Road in the new shopping plaza at the intersection with Pipkin Road. 

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Utkarsh Patel is a former information technology worker for Deloite who had always dreamed of starting a business.  

“We've seen the growth in the area, like I was there in middle school and from middle school to now, I have seen tremendous growth in Lakeland and Polk County. So I feel like this is the right time, the right opportunity to get into business,” said Manish, who attended Crystal Lake Middle School. 

The business was incorporated under their grandfather’s surname as Bhakticas LLC. The brothers researched and talked with other family members who own UPS stores in the Orlando, Jacksonville and Tampa areas, and they gained good feedback from them about the business opportunity with UPS.

UPDS Store is expected to open in July

The retail franchise will be 11,040 square feet and is expected to open in July. Publix Super Markets will be the landlord.  

The UPS Store offers freight shipping and printing, including business cards and flyers. The store will also offer notary services, copies and office supplies, such as paper and tapes. It will have mailboxes for rent.  

“People think of UPS Store as a mailing and shipping business, but it is a lot more than that,” Manish said. “We can do just about anything that has to do with logistics,” adding that shipping automobiles could become a specialty.

According to Mia Gonzales, a UPS spokeswoman, "When you’re evaluating a franchise opportunity, you’ll want to understand the estimated initial investment, fixed costs, variable costs and whether they are a one-time or ongoing cost for the length of your franchise agreement.

"Total investment in a franchise business would include the franchise fee, equipment, lease costs, training, advertising, inventory, royalties, working capital and potentially several more costs depending on the type of business you are opening," she said. 

UPS Store Inc. ranks high in Entrepreneur Magazine's annual Franchise 500 list of top franchise brands

The UPS Store Inc. is the world's largest franchisor of retail shipping, postal, print and business service centers. The franchise recently gained the No. 2 ranking in Entrepreneur Magazine's annual Franchise 500 list of top franchise brands in the U.S. and Canada, a UPS press release said.

The network has ranked No. 1 in the postal and business centers category for the 32nd consecutive year, the release said. 

The 11,040-square-foot store at Pipkin and County Line roads will be the 23rd UPS Store in Polk County and the sixth in Lakeland.

The pandemic and remote working have been a challenge and a boom for shipping and business services retailers as consumers shifted to ecommerce purchasing, the release said. 

“There is already a The UPS Store center located within 10 miles of more than 85% of the U.S. population, and we are excited to expand our footprint into new communities as demand continues to increase for the services provided by The UPS Store,” said Steve Chambers, vice president of retail and business development.

UPS retailer growth accelerated during 2021 as the company reached its 5,000th location in North America.

"It also expanded its Diversity Ownership Program to include members of the LGBTQ+ community, offering qualifying candidates discounts of up to 50% on initial franchise fees," the release said.

This as well as the “Great Resignation” has resulted in new and diverse entrepreneurs who are expected to try opening a franchise such as The UPS Store.