How a Former Denny’s Waitress Amassed an Empire of Over 75 Denny’s Locations:

It has been said that if someone wants something bad enough and they put their nose to the grind stone they can accomplish anything they want.

Dawn Lafreeda is a prime example of exactly that. She began working at a Denny’s in California at 16, making her way from hostess to waitress, all the time keeping her eyes and ear open and sucking up all the information about the business like a sponge.

A few years later she went to college, she took on a second job at a software company, where she learned about accounting and managing personnel.

At 23 years old Dawn was able to combine all of the skills she had acquired and purchased a Denny’s restaurant in the tiny mining town of Globe, Ariz.

At this very young age she managed to have her dream come true and was on her way to become one of the largest owners of Denny’s franchises in the USA. “I knew from a young age I was going to own my own business,” she says. “I always knew I was going to be self-employed.”

Putting this young lady through the test Denny’s execs gave her store that had severe problems and she managed to shape them back into working order. She was on her way to the top.

Over the years Dawn built her her empire to 75 Denny’s locations in six states, becoming the largest single-owner franchisee in the system. What a success story.

The old saying is said the USA is the land of opportunity and that has proven to be the case on many circumstances if someone wants to succeed  bad enough.

It is very gratifying to me to see a lady has advanced so well on a most male dominated world. It proves that women have what it takes if given the opportunity.

If a person chooses to sit on the behind hoping someone is going to come knocking at their door offering them an opportunity at success; they will be sitting there a long time.

The key words to becoming successful for anyone are education, determination, hard work, stick-to-it-iveness and a little luck. Dawn LaFredda is living proof of that dream.

Like the old Virginia commercial used to say “You can a long way Baby.”