Think franchise opportunities are limited to fast-food chains? Think again.

Sure, the traditional fast-food favorites are still going strong, but some interesting

alternatives are popping up as well.

Growth in franchises started to peter out in 2008 after growing by more than 40 percent since 2001. But as more and more people are squeezed out of the work force as the economy struggles to recover from the recession, they are turning to franchises as a way to gain more control.

The International Franchise Association predicts 2 percent growth for 2010, with the largest growth in what some might consider unconventional franchise industries.

Thanks to an aging baby boomer population, opportunities in elder care abound with such franchises as Comfort Keepers, Home Helpers and Homewatch.

"With the senior care market, it is all about numbers, and the numbers don't lie," said Joel Libava, also known as the Franchise King, a blogger, franchising consultant and founder of FranchiseSelectionSpecialists.com. "The number of people who will need medical and nonmedical help continues to grow."

That's an attractive proposition for entrepreneurs looking for market security. But it's not why Lisa and Eric Wiedemann got into the business about six years ago.

Lisa was an occupational therapist and long-distance caregiver for a mother with

Parkinson's disease. Husband Eric was a psychologist. They bought a Home Instead Senior Care franchise in Amherst ... one of 800 worldwide ... which gives senior citizens at-home assistance with personal and household care. The start-up cost for a Home Instead franchise runs from $75,000 to $100,000.

"It's a labor of love for us. My career has been with the elderly since I was in high

school," said Lisa Wiedemann. "It's amazing to me that people think they can pop up and do it just because it's a moneymaker."

Wiedemann said it's a delicate process coordinating care for their many clients, and

finding, training and maintaining their 80 employees; the business is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In the beginning, the Wiedemanns regularly worked 60 to 70 hours per week.

"It's much more difficult, I think, than a product industry, because it's all about

people," she said. "You have to be careful because you're going into people's homes, and people are trusting you with their safety."

On the flip side, Libava said, folks who think that all they need is a big heart to make it with a home care franchise are sorely mistaken.

"They need to realize it's a sales business," he said. "The feel-good part of helping

seniors is wonderful, but you're going to find that you really have to hustle. There's a ton of competition, a lot of cold-calling and relationship-building."

Another unusual franchise opportunity born out of the country's aging population is AmRamp, the core business of which is installing modular wheelchair ramps. AmRamp has since branched out into portable showers and free-standing patient lifters that help transport people who can't move on their own.

AmRamp's model of offering both sales and rental opens its market to people dealing with temporary rather than long-term disabilities. The chain has found success as more people look to rehabilitate at home, and as hospitals look to discharge patients sooner.

Gregg Stone bought into the franchise in 2004 for $60,000.

"I wore all the hats for the first two years, while my son finished high school," he said.

In addition to getting the franchise off the ground, Stone continued to work third shift at his full-time job as a project manager for a cable company. It took eight months of juggling both before he was able to generate enough sales to support his family.

Now that the company is established, wife Renay has been able to remain a stay-at-home mom, his son Andrew is the company's lead installer, and they employ one additional part-time helper.

"It's been controlled growth every year," Stone said. "We've seen growth every year and this year is not any different."

CruiseOne franchisees are finding clients in baby boomers who are enjoying their golden years in good health. Franchisees can buy in for as little as $4,575, running a cruise-booking travel agency from home.

Local owner Charles Leist came to the business after retiring from a full career in law enforcement and the military. He and wife Susan, an English professor at Buffalo State College, began taking cruise vacations in 1998 and were hooked. After booking their 20th cruise in 2003 with a CruiseOne franchisee, they decided to look into it.

"We decided even if we didn't book anybody but us, we would break even," he said. "... The start-up fees aren't nearly as high as with other franchises."

Another cruise franchise, Cruise Planners, added 200 new franchises last year, despite a slow economy and start-up costs of $10,000.

Along with booking cruises for themselves at agent rates, the Leists have had a ball

booking cruises for others. They're in the process of booking a 40-person corporate cruise for a Buffalo beauty school.

"You meet people from all walks of life, literally from rocket scientists to bricklayers, and everyone is just there to have fun," Charles Leist said.

The Leists work from their Elmwood Avenue home and work online, over the phone or travel to clients' homes, making a separate retail space unnecessary.

In fact, home-based businesses have become very popular as entrepreneurs look for cost-effective franchise options.

Randy Bolam owns the Erie and Niagara County territory rights for Pillar to Post, a home-inspection franchise headquartered in Toronto. Because his work happens on site, a home office with a computer and phone are sufficient.

Bolam inspects the houses on location, creates digital reports for clients using Pillar to Post software, and prints them immediately from a portable printer.

Coming from a construction background, Bolam had the inspection side of things down pat but needed help with the other aspects of the business. He paid $19,900 apiece for the two franchise territories, financed with a small-business loan from HSBC Bank, and continues to pay 11 percent of his commission for royalty and marketing fees.

Bolam, who said he has made money since his first month in business 10 years ago, considers it a wise investment.

"All the training, the technical support, the marketing ... I'm not sure I could have done that as an independent and been successful," he said.