Watching fellow college students working for $7.50 an hour after graduation, Tana Walther, a fashion-design major at Kent State University in Ohio, snapped up an alternative offered by her father -- to run a Pita Pit restaurantfranchise he would buy.

'I guess I bought her a job,' says her father, Jan Walther, of North Canton, Ohio. Prospects of a career in fashion seemed remote, and Tana, a college athlete, loved eating at Pita Pit restaurants while traveling with her track team. Her first new restaurant opened last year near campus in Kent, and the 25-year-old hopes to open several more.

Parents often say they would do anything for their child. Setting a child up in business is surely one big test of that bond. A lot is at stake: Small-business failures are common, and parents risk losing their entire investment, their life savings, or more. They also risk straining their relationships with young-adult children intent at this stage on independence.

Still, many parents see business ownership as a better bet for their kids' future than a graduate degree. And in this era of renewed interest in entrepreneurship, some parents I interviewed described it as a way of recapturing for their children a stake in 'the American dream' -- the opportunity to control their destiny and have a chance at gaining wealth.

The setups can be stressful for young adults, too. Jon Kelecy's father, a Tampa, Fla., financialexecutive, set him up recently in a franchise for Fibrenew, a leather- and plastic- restoration business. Jon, 26, of Gainesville, Fla., loves the work and appreciates his dad's support. But he dislikes 'being in his pocket,' he says, amid all the anxiety of a start-up.

Many parents choose franchises for their kids because they seem to offer marketing, branding and management support. While no data on failure rates is available, a study by the Small Business Administration's Inspector General in 2002, the latest available, said there was no evidence that franchises succeed any more often than independent businesses. Start-up costs, including leases for space and equipment, range from roughly $5,000 to $10,000 for such low-cost operations as cleaning franchises, to $1 million or more for popular fast-food restaurants. Information on risks and legal pitfalls for franchisees can be found at BlueMauMau.org, an online trade journal.

Howard Bundy, a Kirkland, Wash., lawyer who represents franchisees and franchisors, says parents considering such a venture need an attorneyexperienced in representing franchisees, and both an accountant and an experienced business mentor familiar with both franchising and the target industry.

Mr. Bundy also warns that parents run a high risk of losing their investment. One mother lost $250,000 when a fast-food franchise she purchased for her son failed, Mr. Bundy says. In another case, parents lost $350,000 on a coffee-shop business they financed for their daughter.

For some parents, the potential rewards seem worth the risk. 'As a parent, the best gift you can ever receive is to see your children happy and successful,' and equipped to make a living, Marvin Himel says.

None of the parents I interviewed expect any short-term return on their investment. A few viewed it as a gift. Some structured it as a loan and deferred repayment. Others took stock in the business, with an agreement that their child would use future earnings to buy it back.

Some parents look farther ahead, hoping their child's business will support them in retirement. After supporting his own father in old age with proceeds from his Canton, Ohio, restaurant, Walther's Cafe, Mr. Walther says he hopes his daughter will do the same for him.

Ms. Walther says she welcomes the prospect, adding, 'this is a partnership.'

Sue Shellenbarger

• working [´wə:kiŋ] a.工人的；劳动的 (初中英语单词)
• restaurant [´restərɔnt] n.饭店，菜馆 (初中英语单词)
• career [kə´riə] n.经历；生涯；职业 (初中英语单词)
• remote [ri´məut] a.遥远的；偏僻的 (初中英语单词)
• campus [´kæmpəs] n.大学校园；学校场地 (初中英语单词)
• investment [in´vestmənt] n.投资；(时间等)投入 (初中英语单词)
• intent [in´tent] a.专心致志的 n.意图 (初中英语单词)
• financial [fi´nænʃəl] a.金融的，财政的 (初中英语单词)
• executive [ig´zekjutiv] a.行政的 n.行政官 (初中英语单词)
• anxiety [æŋ´zaiəti] n.挂念；渴望；焦虑的事 (初中英语单词)
• management [´mænidʒmənt] n.管理；处理；经营 (初中英语单词)
• failure [´feiljə] n.失败；衰竭；破产 (初中英语单词)
• available [ə´veiləbəl] a.可用的；有效的 (初中英语单词)
• equipment [i´kwipmənt] n.装备，设备 (初中英语单词)
• lawyer [´lɔ:jə] n.律师；法学家 (初中英语单词)
• venture [´ventʃə] n.投机 v.冒险；敢于 (初中英语单词)
• attorney [ə´tə:ni] n.代理人；律师 (初中英语单词)
• agreement [ə´gri:mənt] n.同意；一致；协议 (初中英语单词)
• prospect [´prɔspekt, prəs´pekt] n.景色；境界 v.勘察 (初中英语单词)
• destiny [´destini] n.命运 (高中英语单词)
• restoration [,restə´reiʃən] n.恢复；复辟；重建(物) (高中英语单词)
• inspector [in´spektə] n.检查员；监察员 (高中英语单词)
• roughly [´rʌfli] ad.粗糙地；毛糙地 (高中英语单词)
• potential [pə´tenʃəl] n.&a.潜在的；可能的 (高中英语单词)
• alternative [ɔ:l´tə:nətiv] a.二中选一的 n.选择 (英语四级单词)
• canton [´kæntɔn] n.一些国家的行政区 (英语四级单词)
• athlete [´æθlit, ´æθli:t] n.体育家；运动员 (英语四级单词)
• setting [´setiŋ] n.安装；排字；布景 (英语四级单词)
• ownership [´əunəʃip] n.所有权；所有制 (英语四级单词)
• considering [kən´sidəriŋ] prep.就...而论 (英语四级单词)
• experienced [ik´spiəriənst] a.有经验的；熟练的 (英语四级单词)
• retirement [ri´taiəmənt] n.退休；撤退；幽静处 (英语四级单词)
• graduation [,grædʒu´eiʃən] n.毕业(典礼)；刻度 (英语六级单词)
• franchise [´fræntʃaiz] n.选举权；特许权 (英语六级单词)
• earnings [´ə:niŋz] n.收益；报酬；获得 (英语六级单词)