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Franchising

Franchising is a flourishing industry boasting nearly 1,000 brands in a multitude of different sectors. The business community now takes franchising very seriously and the industry consistently shows 90% of franchisees reporting profitability. The advantages of owning your own business are obvious but so too are the risks. The franchisee is taking less of a risk than starting his or her own business and less than 4% of franchises fail for commercial reasons. This is because they are operating under an established and proven business model and supplying or producing a tested brand name.

Franchising is essentially the permission given by one person, the franchisor, to another person, the franchisee, to use the franchisor’s name, trademarks and business system in return for an initial payment and further regular payments.

Each business outlet is owned and managed by the franchisee. However, the franchisor retains control over the way in which products and services are marketed and sold, and controls the quality and standards of the business.

The Advantages and Disadvantages

The costs

The franchisor receives an initial fee from the franchisee together with on-going management service fees. These will be based on a percentage of annual turnover or mark-ups on supplies and can vary enormously from business to business. In return, the franchisor has an obligation to support the franchise network with training, product development, advertising, promotional activities and a specialist range of management services.

Financing costs

Raising money to finance the purchase of a franchise is just like raising money to start any business. All of the major banks have specialist franchise departments. You may need to watch out for hidden costs of financing. These could arise if the franchisor obtains a commission on introducing you to a business providing finance or a leasing company for example. Of course these only represent true costs if you could have obtained the finance cheaper elsewhere.

Choosing a franchise

Finding a franchise

The British Franchise Association (BFA) is likely to be a sensible starting point.

The official online partner of the BFA is whichfranchise.com which lists the latest BFA approved franchises.

theukfranchisedirectory.net provides a directory of all franchises available in the UK.

Having narrowed down your choice, you will then need to think about contacting a shortlist of probably five or six franchise companies asking them for further details. This should include projections of the likely level of business as well as a draft contract.

If the franchise is a good one there are likely to be a number of applicants. You will need to sell yourself as the ideal applicant to the franchisor which will include providing references as well as putting forward a strong case as to your suitability as a franchisee.

The contract

The contract will form the basis of all franchise agreements. It should ensure that you run your business along the lines set out by the franchisor. The following areas should be covered:

• the name and nature of the business
• the geographical territory where the franchisee can use the name
• how long the franchise will run
• the fees (both initial and on-going) that will be charged
• what happens if the franchisee wants to sell or either the franchisee or franchisor want to end the agreement
• the terms of the relationship, specifically that the franchisor will provide training, advertising etc and that the franchisee will abide by the rules laid down by the franchisor.