Elite Franchise July 2018 by Elite Business Magazine

elitefranchisemagazine.co.uk

It’s all good

Having a social impact isn’t just a publicity stunt for franchises

Ovenu

The founder’s global growth secrets revealed

of the house

772054

974002

MagiKats

When you round it all up, this tutor franchise’s success was meant to be

ISSN 2054-9741

Master

JULY 2018 £4.50

How Jeff Meyers went from abandoning a cushy job at IBM to spearheading the European expansion of the franchising powerhouse Dwyer Group Cover - July.indd 1

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Come and talk to us at one of our Insight Days in 2018: 7th September, Bristol 21st September, Milton Keynes 19th October, Leicester 9th November, York

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Be your own boss and benefit from the support of a proven brand with more than 25 years experience. Share in our growth as the acclaimed technology and entertainment exchange store with worldwide operations. We’re so confident that you’ll be delighted with your CeX franchise that we offer a Buy Back Guarantee if you’re not. Act now to secure your location.

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COVER STAR

Dwyer needs Having risen through the ranks of Mr. Electric, Jeff Meyers is now helping Dwyer Groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 3,200 franchisees across the world succeed

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contents 07.18

REGULARS 9 Welcome & contributors 11 News & events 104 Franchise diaries

COLUMNS 13 Pip Wilkins 15 Sussanne Chambers 29 Frank Milner 33 Nigel Toplis 37 Tony Bowman 57 Chris Roberts

FEATURES 40 A-B-C? Easy as 1,2,3

Sarah Marsh and her familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tutor franchise MagiKats is helping kids around the UK

46 Feel-good franchising

Why social impact matters for franchises and why it should for your business too

Franchise Failures

50 Greasy does it

Ovenuâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s franchisees are cleaning dirty ovens around the world

Avoid the most common franchisee mistakes

68 Analyse this

Understanding Google Analytics can boost your franchise recruitment

76 Going mental

How to help employees with poor mental health in your business

80 Made to fit

His love for fashion made Mike Lane open his own Suit the City franchise

84 Like a virgin

Should you buy an established or a new territory?

JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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OWN YOUR PART OF ONE OF THE LARGEST ESTATE AGENCY ORGANISATIONS IN THE WORLD. The Century 21 UK franchise package includes: • Dedicated business development manager • Continued professional support & training • Comprehensive online & offline marketing • Being part of a global brand • Market leading technology • Recruitment, strategy & compliance advice • Many additional earning opportunities

If you’re determined to succeed, have exceptional service skills and entrepreneurial flair, then owning a CENTURY 21 UK franchise could be perfect for you.

UNITED KINGDOM

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0115 902 1002 opportunities@century21uk.com www.century21franchise.co.uk

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welcome Volume 06 Issue 07 / 2018 EDITORIAL Zen Terrelonge – Acting Editor Eric Johansson - Feature Writer Varsha Saraogi - Junior Feature Writer Angus Shaw – Editorial Intern editorial@cemedia.co.uk

Winning formula

DESIGN/PRODUCTION Darren Marriott - Head Designer darren.marriott@cemedia.co.uk Dan Humphris - Designer dan.humphris@cemedia.co.uk Lizzie Thurgood - Design Intern lizzie.thurgood@cemedia.co.uk Dan Lecount – Web Development Manager dan@cemedia.co.uk

epending when you read this, you’ll be cheering or jeering the outcome of England’s World Cup campaign – but let’s hope for the former. Regardless of how the Three Lions perform though, the football tournament oozes teamwork and leadership. While franchisees seek the franchisor’s wisdom, they shouldn’t forget the value their franchise network can provide. Peers helping each other can give the network a boost overall, which is a win for each individual franchise. Of course, many founders look to their family for help. And it’s a formation that worked well for the team of parents and daughters behind MagiKats, the tutoring franchise, which is spreading a passion for learning globally. But in the same way football managers set the standard, franchisors must set the pace for how franchisees and staff conduct themselves. This is especially true when it comes to two very important topics: mental health and corporate social responsibility . For our cover star, Jeff Meyers, working his way through the managerial ranks of the Dwyer Group, the services franchise, gave him the opportunity to cross the pond from the US to the UK. And it’s in Britain where he offered franchisees his knowledge while also learning from theirs.

SALES & MARKETING Gemma Campion – Head of Sales & Marketing gemma.campion@cemedia.co.uk Richard Smith Senior account manager richard.smith@cemedia.co.uk Jemma Tonge – Senior Account Manager jemma.tonge@cemedia.co.uk Taylor Blayney – Account Executive taylor.blayney@cemedia.co.uk Jack Delaney – Account executive jack.delaney@cemedia.co.uk Ore Akinniranye - Marketing Assistant ore@cemedia.co.uk CIRCULATION Amy Coleman Data Compliance Assistant amy.coleman@cemedia.co.uk ACCOUNTS Sally Stoker – Finance Manager sally.stoker@cemedia.co.uk DIRECTOR Scott English – Director scott.english@cemedia.co.uk Circulation enquiries: Channel Edge Media Call: 0124 567 3700 Elite Franchise is published by Channel Edge Media, 1st Floor, Regency House, 16 Victoria Road, Chelmsford, CM1 1NZ Copyright 2018. All rights reserved. No part of Elite Franchise may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written consent of the editor. Elite Franchise will make every effort to return picture material, but this is at the owner’s risk. Due to the nature of the printing process, images can be subject to a variation of up to 15%, therefore Channel Edge Media Limited cannot be held responsible for such variation. cemedia.co.uk

■ ZEN TERRELONGE - ACTING Editor

Contributors

Chris Roberts

Sussanne Chambers

Paul Stafford

Pip Wilkins

In his inaugural monthly column Franchise Finance’s director explains why you may want to wait to get a bank loan unitl the stars align in your favour.

Getting close to your fellow franchisees can work wonders for your business, advises HomeXperts’ founder in her monthly column on page 15.

You can learn a lot from your website traffic. Luckily, Chantry’s head of communications gets explains how you can do so with Google Analytics on page 68.

This month the CEO of the bfa reveals how her own experience encouraged her to support women in franchising. Check it out on page 13.

elitefranchisemagazine.co.uk July 2018 | elitefranchise

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Each Home Instead Senior CareÂŽ franchise office is independently owned and operated. Copyright ÂŠ Home Instead 2017.

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news

The winner takes it all Success in every business entails endless hard work, challenges to learn from and efforts of a whole team to make it happen. That’s why getting recognition for the rocky journey is so important. We’re happy that this year at the the bfa HSBC Franchise Awards on Thursday, June 28 saw the most promising franchises get awarded for their labour. Fast food chain McDonald's

took home the gold by being named bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year. Agency Express, an estate agency board service, and Driver Hire, the logistics recruiter, bagged the silver and bronze awards respectively. Both of them have been winners in the past as well. Given the abundance of talent in the franchising scene, there is no doubt that picking the winner was tough for the judges.

BY VARSHA SARAOGI AND ANGUS SHAW

Sex for burgers

Events Entrepreneurial Franchise July 3

Beaufort House, 354 Kings Road, London, SW3 5UZ

The Franchise Future July 4

Platinum Property Partners, 23 Hinton Road, Bournemouth, BH2 5AY

Food Business MK - Franchise July 12 NatWest Entrepreneurial Accelerator, 300 Silbury Boulevard, Milton Keynes, MK9 2AZ

Restaurant Franchising and Innovation summit July 16-18

Grange City Hotel, 8-14, Cooper's Row, London, EC3N 2BQ

Franchisor Academy October 5-8

NEC, North Ave, Marston Green, Birmingham, B40 1NT

Hitachi swoops finance specialist UK-based finance provider for businesses, Hitachi Capital has bought Franchise Finance, the finance consultancy, to improve the support it can offer to SMEs and franchisees. The acquisition of the specialist financial services provider to the franchising industry will boost Hitachi’s lending base in the sector. Commenting on the transaction, Robert Gordon, chief executive of Hitachi Capital UK, said: “This acquisition enables us to grow and diversify our business further, reaching new customers within a franchise market that is consistently providing growth opportunities." The marriage of two franchise solution companies shows that whether you’re a franchisee in need of some advice or are in the process of becoming your own boss, there definitely are more opportunities to scale.

The World Cup provides golden opportunity for promotion that shouldn’t be missed. However, after offering rewards to women getting impregnated by World Cup players, Burger King Russia appears to have given ethical marketing the red card. In a short-lived promotion launched on VK, the Russian social media site, the franchise gave customers the chance to win $47,000 should they conceive a World Cup footballer’s child. But it also seasoned the offer with a lifetime supply of Whopper burgers. It’s said any publicity is good publicity. But when you’re known for trying to socially engineer future generations of football stars in the name of burgers, don’t be surprised if people look elsewhere for their beef fix.

JuLY 2018 | elitefranchise

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make their

FUTURE your

BUSINESS

Are you looking for a career with all the rewards of helping children achieve and the independence of running your own business?

Kumon is the UK and Ireland’s largest supplementary education provider. As an independent business owner and the Instructor of your own Kumon Maths and English Study Centre, you will reap the rewards of developing children as you grow your business. We offer: • Thorough and transparent recruitment process • Low cost start-up fee • Support of a dedicated Area Manager • Comprehensive training programmes If you can demonstrate the educational skills and business acumen to succeed, this full-time opportunity could be for you. Apply now to attend an orientation meeting near you:

0800 854 714 www.kumon.co.uk

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Pip Wilkins chief executive bfa

Celebrating women in franchising From her own humble beginnings to running the bfa, Pip Wilkins has acquired an intimate understanding of the importance of celebrating women in franchising

was 19-years-old when I entered the world of franchising as an admin assistant, supporting the British Franchise Association (bfa) in its work representing the UK franchise industry. At that time I could never have dreamed of being where I am today, chief executive of the organisation. It’s pretty unusual in this day and age to stay in one place for 20 plus years and with only 8% of females holding CEO positions in FTSE 100 companies. I hate to say it but it’s rare to have a woman at the helm. It’s fair to say franchising has been the main focus in my life and being with the bfa put me at the heart of the action. I’ve had the pleasure to spend time with a wonderfully supportive network of people from all walks of life throughout my journey and their learnings have been invaluable. The Rockefeller Foundation in the US conducted research with 57 female CEOs in an attempt to identify a blueprint for success in female leaders. The findings of all participants evidenced that twothirds didn’t realise they could be a CEO until someone else told them, describing themselves as intensely focused on driving results rather than on their advancement and success. This was also true in my case. It took 17 years of focus and commitment to the industry, coupled with a deep knowledge and breadth of experience before I contemplated moving to my current role. Even then I never really thought I’d attain the position.

It is well-known that women in business are under-represented, as such, it is a personal goal of mine to set about changing this in the franchise industry at least. Five years ago I designed Women in Franchising, later rebranded Empowering Women in Business, an event showcasing female successes in franchising and providing a platform to facilitate valuable networking and learning opportunities for women in the industry. The event has seen many women take to the stage and even some who wouldn’t naturally gravitate towards the spotlight. It became apparent there were many examples of modest leaders delivering amazing results that needed to be uncovered and talked about. In 2018 the event will take place on Thursday November 15 in Nottingham. We will extend reach to any woman that wants to start, build or further grow her businesses or personal development experience. Whether you have a business in need of a proven growth strategy, a personal ambition to achieve the perfect work-life balance without forfeiting success in the process or just want to enter a business where you can become a brand ambassador working with a likeminded network, franchising could be the answer. Franchising is about people, motivating teams, collective ambition – making a difference to people’s lives. It’s hugely rewarding and emotional intelligence is key. I believe many of the traits and skills that result in success in this industry naturally reside in females. Motivated by a sense of purpose, a belief that business can have a positive impact on its community, its employees or the world around them. These drivers are a powerful mix for building a pipeline of future female leaders and are critical skills required to successfully navigate ambiguity and complexity in a rapidly changing world. july 2018 | elitefranchise

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The mark of excellent care

“…it’s an opportunity to run a successful operation whilst to a high standard.”

You can become the next Caremark homecare franchise success story. for more information speak to our recruitment team on 01903 266392

www.caremarkfranchises.com caremarkfranchises.com Untitled-1 1

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Sussanne Chambers founder and managing director HomeXperts

Getconnected

As a franchisor we’re always available to answer questions but sometimes franchisees just want to talk to someone doing the same role as themselves

uring the franchisee recruitment process I rarely get asked any questions about our franchise network. Often I’m asked how many franchisees we have and where they are but seldom any other questions. I find this surprising as a good, strong, active franchise network can really help both new and existing franchisees. If I’m buying a franchise I’d want to know what interaction the franchisor facilitates between franchise branches. Do the franchisees have regular meetings? How often are the franchisees getting together? Is it just once a year at an annual conference or are there other meeting opportunities? I would want to know if the franchisor makes it easy for franchisees to talk to each other. You may be wondering why this matters. After all it’s your business and why would you need other franchisees once you get started?

You can stand on your own two feet, right? But I believe the strength of the franchise network can have a major impact on your firm. Some franchisors don’t want their franchisees talking to each other but I feel the more we can get our network chatting the better. As a result, we hold franchise meetings three times per year, have a Christmas social, arrange additional networking and training opportunities and ensure franchisees have time to chat with each other. For many, it’s one of the most important parts of attending. Fellow franchisees are great to talk to in good times and tough times – this is because they get it. They may be at a different stage of the franchise life cycle but they understand the business better than almost anyone else you could talk to. While I love healthy competition, I feel it’s unhealthy to pitch franchisee against franchisee as it doesn’t foster

camaraderie and goodwill. When making your franchise decision, look for a franchisor that fosters good relationships between franchisees. Many franchisors have forums or Facebook groups so franchisees can communicate freely with each other. Other franchisors run buddy systems so that when you join the network, you have a more experienced franchisee to speak to and they can act as an additional source of support. Networking with fellow franchisees also allows you to expand your personal network. The franchisee may have customers that do business in your area. They may be able to introduce you to key accounts or other people within their network that can help your business. The most important thing to remember as a franchise is that, while you’re in business for yourself, as part of a franchise network, you’re never by yourself.

July 2018 | elitefranchise

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Dwyer needs BY ERIC JOHANSSON / photography by emilie sandy

Having spent time spearheading his own franchise and leading Mr. Electricâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s growth as its president, Jeff Meyers has now embarked on the mission to spearhead Dwyer Groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s expansions in the UK and the rest of Europe.

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Jeff Meyers

eff Meyers doesn’t like to take it easy. While far from following the Facebook creed of moving fast and breaking stuff, he’s clearly not one to rest on his laurels. Not only was he one of the first 25 franchisees to join Mr. Electric but Meyers even seems reluctant to waste time catching his nightly Zs. “I usually wake up at five, 5.30am,” he says. “I tend to take about 30 or 40 minutes in the morning reading the news. It’s quite light-hearted though. I’m not a political junkie by any stretch but I do like to know what’s going on.” His “pretty chilled” morning routine highlights how Meyers wants to get things moving. This attitude makes him the perfect fit to serve as the vice president of international operations at Dwyer Group, which means he’s responsible for the multi-brand franchisor’s continuous growth in the UK and the rest of Europe. This role demands a clear understanding of franchisees’ needs – the same requirement any successful franchisor faces. Luckily, Meyers learned to appreciate the trials and tribulations of small-business owners from a young age. “My dad was an electrician for many years and he started his own business in either 1962, 1963 or 1964,” he remembers. This enabled Meyers to observe as his father successfully scaled from having a man in the van operation to running a solid business with several employees – invaluable lessons for a future franchisor. “It was extremely helpful because I was there and I lived through it with him,” he says. However, despite his father’s loving tutoring, Meyers initially didn’t follow in his footsteps. “I was pretty sure I didn’t want to be a tradesman,” he says. “Not because I thought it was hard but because I didn’t think it was my thing.” Instead, he enrolled at University of Arizona to do a bachelor degree in electrical and computer engineering in 1982. At the

time the nascent technology was just starting to become mainstream – tickling the imagination of cinemagoers with movies like WarGames and Tron. “It was something of a novelty and all that interested me,” Meyers recalls. Following his university studies, it didn’t take long before he found himself with a job at IBM. Having envisioned himself working for a corporate, it seemed as if Meyers had everything he could ever have hoped for. There was just one slight snag. “I didn’t enjoy it,” he says. “Back in those days, IBM was definitely a white shirt, blue coat and tie company and that was just a bit too stuffy for me.” So despite the possibilities envisioned on the big screen, being stuck in front of a small computer screen left him feeling unfulfilled. “I’d grown up with a blue collar family where you were always out doing stuff,” he says. “You’re getting your hands dirty fixing stuff and I sat in front of a computer terminal for four years between eight to ten hours a day doing design work and I just didn’t enjoy it.” Needless to say, something had to change. Fortunately, he’d soon be able to escape the tedium by buying his dad’s business. “My father wanted to retire,” says Meyers. “He’d built his empire and made some good money throughout the years.” Now it was essentially running itself. Meyers’ dad wasn’t an absentee leader by any stretch but left most of the day-to-day running of the company in the hands of capable key managers. They, together with the solid customer base and trained employees, were all reasons to why Meyers was excited about the opportunity. “I felt as if I stepped into a pretty stable situation,” he says. What could possibly go wrong? Quite a lot as it turned out, the realisation of which made for a rather harsh awakening about the realities of business ownership. “The day my father announced to his team that he was selling the business to me, his key person quit,” Meyers laughs. “So I got doused in reality literally from the moment I walked through the door.” He also found out that even though he’d seen his father work, there were still many things he’d missed. “Everything has a flip side and even though you kind of know it, I’m not sure you fully appreciate it until you’re actually doing it,” he says. “It’s like having kids: it’s the greatest thing ever but there are times when it’s extremely hard work.”

I never felt that I could sit down with them and just talk about all of my struggles because at the end of the day we were competitors

JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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Jeff Meyers

If I had miscalculated just a little bit I could’ve failed and had to file for insolvency Still, Meyers enjoyed the challenge. “I thrive in environments where there’s a lot going on,” he says. He certainly had his fill of excitement. Whether it was fixing flat tyres on company vans, dealing with angry customers or building his network around Tucson, Meyers loved the tests of his skill each day would bring. Even more so as the hard work paid off over the five years he ran the firm. “We tripled the size of the business over that period,” he says. However, leading a small independent business did mean a lot of stress. “If I had miscalculated just a little bit I could’ve failed and had to file for insolvency,” Meyers says. He needed someone to get advice from. But while he was very active in the business community, Meyers only trusted other business owners to a certain degree. “I never felt that I could sit down with them and just talk about all of my struggles because at the end of the day we were competitors,” he says. Fortunately, that was when he first heard about Mr. Electric. The electric contractor first set up shop in 1994 and began to franchise soon after that. By the time Meyers started hearing about it, the franchisor already had about 20 franchisees across the US, was part of Dwyer Group and rapidly expanding. Having been introduced to the business by a franchisee he knew, Meyers was blown away by the operation – especially dealing with the less glamorous sides of franchising. “Nothing I heard was rocket science but they had been there and done that,”

he says. He was equally excited about being able to tap into the accumulated experience of the franchisee network without fear of being played the fool. “Being around like-minded people was huge for me,” he says. No wonder he signed the dotted line and became a Mr. Electric franchisee in 2001. Supercharged with excitement, Meyers quickly scaled his business to new levels. “During the five years that I had my own Mr. Electric, it saw amazing growth,” he says. Not only did he take the business over $1m in turnover but also opened two additional sites – one in Las Vegas and one in San Francisco. The key lesson he learned from the experience – one that would help him in his later career – was to believe in his staff. “You have to empower and teach people to be leaders,” he says. “I can’t do it all. I don’t want to do it all.” In 2003 it became clear his management skills hadn’t gone unnoticed. “I actually got an unexpected call from the new president of Mr. Electric who I had never met,” Meyers remembers. “He said, ‘things have gone crazy at the corporate office and I’ve been told that I need to have you on my team. What is it going to take to get you here?’” But flattering as it was, Meyers initially turned the president down because he didn’t want to leave his life in Tucson to move to the company’s headquarters in Waco,

Texas. Luckily, his wife changed his mind when he called her. “She said, ‘what, are you crazy?’” he laughs. “So, long story short, she was in Texas about an hour’s drive from Waco and two hours after we talked she phoned me and said, ‘I’m in Waco and I think I could live here.’” With his wife having given him her thumbs up, Meyers quickly called back and accepted the job offer. Looking back, Meyers is happy for the change. “My wife described it like we were in a very comfortable rut,” he says. His franchises were doing well, his kids were growing up and life seemed to go its merry old way. But, lovely as this was, the peace had cost him his strength. Now, he had the opportunity to regain his edge. “I had something to prove again,” Meyers says. “I was around a bunch of people who didn’t know me and I wanted to be an active participant in the success of Dwyer Group. So I worked my butt off to prove to everybody that I was worthy of being a part of their company and of being one of their colleagues. However, Meyers’ life wasn’t the only thing that changed in 2003 when he became vice president of operations at Mr. Electric. In the same year, Dwyer Group was acquired by The Riverside Company, a private equity firm. The deal made the company

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Jeff Meyers

private again after being traded on the Nasdaq and Meyers could feel the difference. “When you’re a public traded company you’re always trying to feed the short-term stock price god,” he says. “You definitely make different decisions when you’re a publicly traded company to when you’re a private one.” At the time, Dwyer group had six brands – Mr. Rooter, Rainbow International, Glass Doctor, Mr. Electric, Mr. Appliance and Aire Serv – and roughly 1,050 franchisees in 16 countries around the world. Today, Dwyer Group has 17 franchised brands and about 3,200 franchisees globally. And Meyers believes the company going private played a huge role in the success. “I think it really was the catalyst to Dwyer Group going from where it was to where it is today,” he says. As Dwyer Group evolved, so did Meyers’ career. By 2007, the president of Mr. Electric announced his own resignation. Sitting at a meeting with Dina DwyerOwens, the founder’s daughter and chair of Dwyer Group, and Mike Bidwell, who became the company’s CEO when Dwyer-Owens stepped down from that post, Meyers was informed that they were searching for a replacement. “I asked, ‘would you mind if I apply for the job?’” he remembers. “And it probably wasn’t meant that way but they were like, ‘you can throw your hat into the ring if you want to.’” So he did and a few weeks later he got a phone call. “They got back to me and said, ‘this is silly’,” Meyers laughs. “‘You’re

qualified and you’re the right guy, so congratulations,’ Stepping into his old boss’ shoes, Meyers’ doubled down on his efforts to make a success of the business. And by 2014 it was clear these efforts had paid off. “We had consistent good growth during those years,” he says. However, by then Meyers had once again found himself in a comfortable rut resulting in slightly reduced levels of productivity. “Thank goodness that my boss, Mike Bidwell, noticed that because he probably saved me from being fired,” he says. The solution to this conundrum was to ship him off across the pond. “One of our long-term plans was to plant some seeds in Europe and do some more direct franchising,” he says. In 2012, Dwyer Group had an opportunity to speed up its expansion plans when the master licensee for Mr. Electric UK unexpectedly went into insolvency. And Meyers jumped on the chance to spearhead these efforts. “It was an opportunity for my wife and I to try something different,” he says.

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Jeff Meyers

While he quickly realised the language barrier wasn’t a problem, there were other differences to adjust to. “It was a little bit like going back to school,” he remembers. “The culture was very different.” While he was confident that the support systems built up in the US were extraordinary, Meyers made a point of asking the European franchisees for their thoughts. “I didn’t want to come across as the American that knows it all and is forcing people to run their business the way Americans do,” he says. By taking his time, he soon saw which parts of the system would work in the old world and which ones would need to be tweaked. Similarly, he realised the importance of hiring local executives in each country that could understand the nation’s unique culture. “Originally, we sent over a US executive to run Mr. Electric here in the UK when we bought that master licence back in 2012,” Meyers says. Unfortunately, this executive couldn’t adjust to the cultural differences. Once this person’s tenure was over, Meyers discovered that another American wasn’t the answer. “I realised early on that I needed to hire strong brand leaders that would stand up and say, ‘wait a minute Jeff. Great idea but let’s think that through and I’ll tell how things really happen here,’” he says. “Some of it I was able to push back when they were wrong and some of it were like, ‘man, thank you for that. You just saved us a lot of heartache.’” Making these slight adjustments has certainly served him and the franchisor in good stead since 2014 when he stepped into the new role. In the UK alone, Dwyer Group has added the franchises Bright & Beautiful, Countrywide Grounds Maintenance and Drain Doctor to the portfolio that already included Aire Serv and Mr. Electric. Of course, acquiring these new brands necessitated some careful considerations. “They had their own culture and their own way of doing business,” he says. “They had different leadership styles.” For instance, while some founders may have been reasonably authoritarian, others were quite easy-going in comparison. “It takes a little bit of time to figure out which pieces of their culture are really important to keep and which pieces of our culture are important and need to be implemented,” he says. “One

thing that’s non-negotiable is our code of values. You have to take that to your core or you don’t work for Dwyer Group.” While some people couldn’t deal with that, most did. Embracing the code isn’t the only thing franchisees have to do. “You have to have certain skills and the right personality,” he says. Added to that, budding franchisees must also have money to invest and pass a background test. But apart from that, Meyers claims no franchisees are the same and it’s therefore very hard to say which qualities a successful candidate should have to join a Dwyer Group franchise. “I wish I could tell you that we knew the secret formula,” he says. Nevertheless, finding new franchisees to join the roughly 150 ones in Britain is pivotal as Dwyer Group plans to add new brands to its portfolio. “We are always looking,” Meyers says. While he’s reluctant to reveal what franchises may end up joining the club, Meyers says any franchise aimed at improving or maintaining properties has potential to join the network. “Anything that fits into that box is really where we want to be,” he says. So watch this space as great things are a-coming. When asked about his own plans, Meyers quickly quips: “I want to retire some day. Don’t print that. My boss may be surprised.” All joking aside, it’s clear that he still has the energy to keep growing Dwyer Group’s franchise offering in Europe. “Every day is just exciting so I can see myself continue to do what I’m doing for many years,” he concludes.

Every day is just exciting so I can continue to see myself continue to do what I’m doing for many years 22 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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BE PART OF THE WORKPLACE REVOLUTION We are recruiting franchise partners to join the revolution in the UK Regus provides a network of 3,000 locations, in 120 countries and 900 cities globally, with over 300 centres across the UK. We are looking to grow rapidly, in response to massive changes in the way in which people are working and the growth in demand for flexible workspace. We are now looking for partners across the UK to help us increase the pace of our growth, to keep up with demand. Our partners will find, set-up and operate Regus centres under franchise. You will benefit from our proven business model, established back-office systems and infrastructure, along with our world-class marketing and sales tools. You will have the opportunity to open multiple centres in a defined geographical area, which can deliver an excellent return on investment. Gain access to a world of opportunity and become part of a recognised global brand.

If you have the drive, resources and commitment to be part of a global growth story, call our franchise team on +44 (0)7823 445061 Visit regus.co.uk/franchise or email franchising@regus.com

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Hitting milestones and achieving dreams This client loved the service so much, she bought the franchise

anya Hill turned around her upholstery business with the help of an ActionCOACH franchisee. When she stopped working 14 hours a day in her business, she realised she could join the franchise too. But what is this mother of two’s secret to success now that she specialises in business growth coaching for the trades? After returning from two years of backpacking around Australasia, Hill and her husband Scott, decided to start their own upholstery business, Hill Upholstery & Design. Hill’s background was fashion design where she trained and worked as a Tanya enjoying a dream family holiday children’s wear designer for Tammy Girl. Scott had worked for one business for 20 years that had ceased trading “We went on such a journey, from knowing literally nothing about running a during their travels. business, to being systemised to within an inch of our lives.” They decided to start their upholstery company, based near their home in East Anglia, Making the trade because they thought owning a business would The day-to-day operations began working without any major input bring in more money, more holidays and more from Hill, giving her the freedom to think about her future. Within three control. But they soon began to realise how months, she had hired her replacement and in October 2015, she became wrong they were. a franchiseee with ActionCOACH. “I was working 14-hour shifts handling all areas “My job as a business growth specialist is to make sure my clients stay of the business from sewing, bookkeeping and on the right path so they can have the life they deserve. I want clients to VAT returns, invoices, quotes, the list goes on,” achieve their dreams in the most time-efficient route possible as time says Hill. “The worst thing about all of this was is our most precious gift. I believe personal life and business are very that my children were brought up in the corner entwined and both should be fun. I understand how important it is to show of a cold workshop. business owners there’s another way and with the right discipline, guidance “After attending an ActionCOACH 6-step and accountability, you can achieve great things. I’m not in this for the glory seminar, I made some simple changes which or awards, I’m in it so I can give other people the chance we got.” made a difference to the business and six months later I’d graduated through group Mastering the trades coaching to one-to-one coaching. Scott and She continues: “I must admit, I didn’t have the best start when I launched I invested our 12 years of savings, which was my ActionCOACH business. It took me a while to find my natural flow. I was intended for a family holiday to Thailand in trying to be a business coach called Hill which didn’t work for me and by business growth coaching with ActionCOACH’s January 2017, I only had three clients bringing in £2,800 a month. I spoke Kent Rhodes. to other coaches in the team and they helped me realise that people buy

24 elitefranchise | JUNE 2018

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

lose that just because I’d started a new business,” she explains. “After just a year with ActionCOACH, in Christmas 2016 we were able to afford a two-week family holiday to Thailand. But by Christmas 2017, we were in the fantastic position to be able to take a month’s break in Thailand and Indonesia – both Scott’s upholstery business and my coaching company could work without us while we enjoyed the time with our two daughters.”

Coaching clients to success

into people they like and trust. Now I’m Tanya who coaches, a subtle difference. That’s when I began to get more clients. I now specialise in working with business owners in the trades, those that get my black and white approach and need a coach who is grounded and authentic. “I meet my clients through sharing insights and client successes on LinkedIn. I’ve partnered with Marc Eccles, another local ActionCOACH franchisee, to deliver regular group seminars and 90-day planning sessions. Once you’re earning enough to support your family, your focus really moves to making a difference to your clients’ lives. By June 2018, I had grown my income to £23,000 a month. “The ActionCOACH community is amazing, there’s always someone at the end of the phone and we get together regularly. They offer a lot of training and there’s a huge library of resources to support my work with clients. If a client needs something I don’t know straight away, I can ask the global community of coaches and get recommendations.” Work-life balance Hill manages her business, with the help of a full-time PA, inside school hours. “I achieved a work-life balance through the coaching support we had with our upholstery business and I didn’t want to

Hitting Milestones “This all began in 2013 when, as part of my coaching for Hill Upholstery & Design, I went to a GrowthCLUB planning day with Rhodes. In 2018, I found the planning book where I had written my five-year goals - I wanted to have paid off my mortgage and moved to our dream home location, Westley Heights. When I wrote those goals, Scott and I had no significant income to speak of and there were no systems in our business. Now we have just paid off our mortgage and moved in to a home in Westley Heights. It was a significant moment of realisation to read back those plans I had made and I enjoyed the sense of achievement in hitting those milestones. “When you enter the ActionCOACH community, you learn so much more than how to be a business growth coach. Helping business owners to grow their business so it can work without them gives them the option to spend time on creating other long-term income and achieve those dream lifestyles. My husband and I always wanted to buy a holiday home in Devon. Because of ActionCOACH, we’ve been able to begin building a property portfolio to secure our financial future and we’re now searching for our holiday home.”

If you would like to step into a new career that will secure your future and you: A) get a buzz from helping others succeed B) love learning and developing yourself C) have enjoyed success in your career or sport… Then find out more by watching the 6-minute overview video at actioncoach.co.uk/overview Hill with her clients and family at The Business Excellence Forum & Awards (sponsored by Natwest and ActionCOACH)

JUNE 2018 | elitefranchise

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Low overheads and high margins; achieve financial success through an online business Why an ecommerce business could be the perfect opportunity for you You can start with a low level of start-up capital Work where you want, when you want No need to store or handle products yourself

create a brand

sell online

work from anywhere

source suppliers

no product handling

join a growing market

learn from experts

advertising

Interested? Find out how you can start a business that gives you unlimited income potential by attending one of our Discovery Events. Limited places available. Call us to book yours now.

01202 652 103

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CASE STUDY: Nigel & Glenn

Pet Supplies

April ‘16

£3,500

CATEGORY

DATE JOINED

MONTHLY NET PROFIT

“

Brothers, Nigel and Glenn Chilcott, are no strangers to working together. For the past two years, they’ve been building a property business together after leaving their corporate IT careers in London. But they needed another income stream, and joining an online retail franchise seemed the perfect way to do it and keep them away from the typical nine-to-five existence.

Despite not having any direct experience of the ecommerce world, other than from a consumer perspective, Nigel and Glenn believed they had some valuable transferable skills that would benefit their business. In addition, they both had the enthusiasm and determination to make it work. They decided to join Platinum Business Partners in April 2016. Nigel commented: “We realised that you could probably do this on your own, but that it would take a lot longer, not only to get started but to become profitable too. Being taught by mentors who have been there, done it and made the mistakes, as well as being part of a support network, is hugely beneficial. We like the way that Platinum operates with integrity and in the medium to long-term, the franchise fee will become a very cost-effective investment.”

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Our focus now is on increasing our sales to 100+ units per day at a minimum of a 20% net profit margin. We also have plans to sell our current brand by December 2018 and develop another two.

“

Low start-up costs and unlimited potential made this online retail business a ‘no-brainer’

Glenn and Nigel sold their first product on Amazon on18th September 2016. Within nine months of trading, they’ve achieved a six-figure sales revenue and last month’s net profit was more than £3,500.

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29/06/2018 17:04

Frank Milner CEO Tutor Doctor

Your brother’s keeper The wonderful thing about franchising is that you can always rely on your fellow franchisees’ support lot of prospective franchisees will assume that the only support they will receive will come from the franchisor. Much of it will, of course, and any ethical franchisor will ensure their franchisees are fully supported. But the best franchisors will also foster a culture of peer-to-peer support within the network. This can mean support will also come from fellow franchisees. And that support is golden. Unlike standalone small businesses, where the next office, shop or restaurant is a competitor, franchisees don’t compete in most franchise systems. Therefore, as a new franchisee, you have the benefit of knowing other people will have stood where you now stand and are likely

to have faced any challenge you’re facing. They might have approached problems in a different way to you or have a tried and tested solution. They might simply understand, better than anyone, the way in which the systems and processes, which are relatively new to you, can be utilised for maximum impact. The collective knowledge of an existing network is a powerful resource for new recruits to tap into – and they should be encouraged to do so. And if the franchisor has gotten things right and brought in the right kinds of people, they’ll be only too happy to help guide and support the newest members of the franchise. “Why would they do that?” I hear you ask. Well, it’s simple: franchising relies on collective success. It’s in franchisee A’s interest for franchisee B to be successful. Individual franchisee growth and profitability will positively impact the whole network. Successful franchisees have bigger businesses, which helps raise awareness, create demand and improve reputation for the entire brand. The more successful each franchisee is, the more revenue is generated for the franchisor to reinvest in improved systems, more support and product or service innovations. Everybody benefits from everyone’s individual success. A good example of peer-to-peer

support in our business would be if a student needs help in a subject for which a franchisee doesn't yet have a tutor. They can reach out to the network and retain the sale. This is also helpful for new franchisees in their first weeks and months and enhances the inspiringly collaborative nature of our network. It’s a little bit chicken and egg but the reality is most franchisees will also be keen to give something back because someone did it for them when they first joined. If you’re buying into a new or very small franchise it’s likely that ‘founding franchisees’ (the first five to ten) will share a development mentality and have a personal drive to ensure the young business is a success by pitching in from day one - creating the very culture and team ethos later franchisees will benefit from for years to come. As any network develops, the culture of peer support will come naturally to franchisees once their business affords them the time and flexibility to give a bit back to newcomers. Some practical ways this might be seen could be a buddy system, mentoring programme, franchisee council or franchisee marketing committee. All of which require the time, knowledge and experience of established franchisees for the benefit of the entire network and especially for new franchisees. It’s a really good business example of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs; once people get beyond satisfying their own needs and wants, they want to contribute to the greater good. Isn’t franchising wonderful? JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Retrospective Reward Reaping Maintaining marketing momentum is difficult to do when you’ve hit the top, but at Ovenu it’s always full speed ahead.

e have always worked tirelessly and put in hours of extensive research with franchisees and our expert suppliers to ensure maximum visibility of the Ovenu brand to consumers, both on and offline. Years of fine tuning and constantly evolving these marketing methods are paying off, as most of our franchisees find themselves in a rather pleasant predicament. They’ve hit the ceiling. When you’re at the top of the search results in Google, there’s not really much further to go, but we won’t stop there. 15 years ago, Ovenu pioneered the advertising of the oven valeting service on television on the brand new digital channels of the noughties. This raised general awareness among the public that such a service existed, which was a huge boost for our franchisees’ businesses. Despite other digital distractions, the average number of hours that people watch telly for per day has only decreased by around 20 minutes since our first advert launched 15 years ago. According to barb.co.uk, people spent 3.73 hours a day tuned into the box in 2003, and in 2017 that figure was 3.38 hours per day. The point here? TV is not an old-fashioned media and advertising on it still works. If it didn’t, nobody would do it. So, based on this and our past success on TV, we have worked hard to create a brand new 2018 TV advert which will be coming to a screen near you in June this year. There’s no guess work here. We’ve done the analysis and have

We will never rest on our laurels. a plan in place for the new advert to work in conjunction with and complement our existing marketing strategies to deliver the ultimate value for money for our franchisees. This is all a part of our constant effort to carry on raising the Ovenu brand’s already popular profile even higher. We do not get complacent and will never rest on our laurels even during times of dominant success and market supremacy. Business is a constantly changing and evolving mechanism with which we must be flexible and willing to adapt. We will

always manipulate our business model to accommodate changes. This is just one of the premium benefits of working with a franchise like Ovenu. We have built a solid reputation on being one step ahead of the game and constantly building our brand to ensure the highest possible profitability for our franchisees’ businesses, even if we need to take a retrospective view from time to time.

If you’d now like to discover more about us and our opportunities, give us a call on 01189 743 911 or visit ovenufranchise.co.uk

30 elitefranchise | JUNE 2018

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K ! C V A T B N O

We’ve done the groundwork. You get to build a business on a solid

foundation.

Our franchise opportunity was built on a solid footing nearly 25 years ago. We’ve since developed the business into the UK’s favourite oven cleaning service. As an Ovenu franchisee you’ll get to manage your lifestyle whilst enjoying an excellent return on your investment. You’ll be working locally in a bespoke, protected territory offering a premium quality service to clients. Our choice of options has expanded so that we have an opportunity that’s as individual as you! Our Foundation Franchise: For under £10,000 you will receive the best tools and equipment to build your business and generate turnover from day one. We will provide you with; • Initial business & valeting training to ISO standard • Unrivalled help and support • Marketing on launch and beyond • Your own choice of van • Use of our comprehensive Client Experience System • The potential to turnover more than £1200 a week

Our Foundation Plus Franchise: Extend on your foundations with a higher investment and gain access to; • Increased exclusive territory • Greater earnings & expansion potential

Invest with the best for less with our innovative ‘InSite ’ opportunity SM

01189 743 911 OvenU Full Page - July.indd 1

www.ovenufranchise.co.uk

29/06/2018 17:06

JOIN US IN PROVIDING OUTSTANDING CARE. At Heritage Healthcare, we focus on providing the highest level of care and support to our clients. Homecare is one of the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fastest growing sectors with over 6.5 million elderly people requiring daily assistance. With an expanding population and ever increasing life expectancy, growth is set to continue. As a Heritage Healthcare franchisee you can expect;

Award-winning support Over 80 years of experience First class training A bespoke territory CALL MICHELLE FENWICK QFP TODAY ON 01325 370707 OR EMAIL MICHELLE@HERITAGEHEALTHCARE.CO.UK WWW.HERITAGEHEALTHCAREFRANCHISING.CO.UK

SEARCHING FOR A CAREER CHANGE WITH A FUTURE? BoConcept is a successful company in design-oriented furniture and are searching nationwide for: Managing Director Retail store-Franchise Partner - Very high average income potential - A strong brand from a well established company - Transparent processes with open communications - High Level Management Support - Extensive marketing support - Extensive training - Support for the store design and furnishings & Opening

Request more information on this franchise system franchise@boconcept.com www.boconcept.com/franchise

Franchise opportunities only available outside the Greater London area

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29/06/2018 17:16

Nigel Toplis managing director The Bardon Group

When should I sell my franchise? Being in franchising for over 23 years has taught me a lot about the buying and selling of small businesses. Namely that all sellers think their stuff is worth more than it is and that a buyer will pay for potential. They won’t he first thing to say is that 99% of the time the market behaves as it should. And much to the chagrin of sellers the buyer will not pay for potential and, on the 1% of time they do, it is for noncommercial reasons – loyalty to area, business affinity or more money than sense. Furthermore, people often sell their franchises at the wrong time. The market states that the best time to sell is when the key performance indicators (KPIs) of a business are at their most positive. That means a seller’s market is when sales are up, margins are strong, costs are under control and the order pipeline has some longevity. However, if you and

your franchise are not in that position of confidence, if the KPIs aren’t good,then the buyer will naturally be seeking a discounted price and you enter a buyer’s market. So if you’re looking to sell don’t let the company just fizz out. Remarkably, some sellers simply can’t understand why someone won’t pay the asking price based on historical performance or potential rather than recent performance. Crazy hey? Of course it doesn’t work like that. Trading performance is the key to determining the likely value of the franchise but there are also several other factors a buyer might look at that might affect the price offered. If there is a property then the lease, any dilapidations and general condition of the building are important considerations, while any equipment with maintenance agreements in-situ will be worth more to the buyer. The buyer will be wary if the business is to-heavy. So if it’s reliant on a small number of customers they’ll want assurances that clients are secure and that the seller will personally introduce the buyer to the key customers. So, taking all of this into account, just how do you value a franchise? Well, put simply most accountants will value it by using a multiple of adjusted net profit or sustainable operating profit and generally use an average profit figure based on three years' worth of accounts and then apply a multiplier to that figure. Multiples vary but in my experience I would calculate the value based on a multiplier of between 1.75 and 2.25 times the adjusted net profit. So, if your adjusted net profit is £50,000 then you could expect a sale price of between £87,500 and £112,500 – plus stock at valuation. If your profit is £10,000pa do not expect to get more that £22,500, irrespective of the perceived potential. Decide well in advance when you want to sell your business, plan your exit, work hard to maximise your sales and profit and work with your franchisor. July 2018 | elitefranchise

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Make money from your sofa Whether you’re struggling with your present job or looking for a change of direction, many Time For You’s franchisees have had a similar experience

s a single mum of two children, Julia Wilkins knew that she would need to earn more money than her old job in cycle proficiency could provide, especially when her daughter announced that she wanted to pursue her dream of becoming an actress. “I realised then that I needed to have my own business”, explains Wilkins, who after doing a bit of research discovered that franchising was the safest route. “I was also doing a bit of cleaning for other people and discovered Time For You,” she adds. “When I learned that as one of their franchisees you don’t have to do the cleaning and send someone else to do it instead, I thought ‘this is the franchise for me’.” Ahead of the launch of her first Time For You franchise in Hampshire, Wilkins attended the company’s comprehensive training programme, which covered all aspects of operating the franchise. “The training was superb and I was amazed at the happy atmosphere the franchisors Freddie and Ruth Rayner cultivate among their franchisees from the very start,” enthuses Wilkins. “Freddie is only too pleased to visit and help his franchisees during their launches to ensure they have customers from the outset.” With support not only from the Time For You head office but also her fellow franchisees, Wilkins was delighted that within her first year she had built up a

regular database of 100 clients. “There is no invoicing involved in running a Time For You franchise, as it is a directdebit-based business with clients paying in advance, so there are never any cash flow concerns,” says Wilkins. Time For You changed my life Time For You’s Edinburgh franchisee Catherine Fitch says: “I invested in Time For You just 12 months ago. As a single parent and with little borrowed money, it was important that whatever franchise I picked was the right one. Although my family are fantastic and would help wherever they can, I needed my new business to work around my mum duties at home. Time For You was ideal: a proven formula that you can work around your family, from home. By following the Time For You formula I was soon taking on clients and making a residual income. Time For You has changed my families life. It truly is a great business.” We can finally live the life we want Caroline Kirby, Time For You’s Tunbridge Wells franchisee, advises: “You are probably unsure which franchise to go for. When I was looking there was so many different great-sounding franchises to choose from. However, there was only one that offered me a money-back guarantee. Initially, this – combined with working from home, flexible working hours and great reviews from existing franchisees – convinced

“Finding clients is simple and effective and the growth rate is astounding” me to join Time For You. By following the easy Time For You business model, I quickly built up my very own successful Time For You franchise. My family now enjoys a lifestyle that only a couple years ago seemed so out of reach.” Change for the better Amanda and Ian Thompson, Time For You’s Aylesbury franchisees, say: “Having been made redundant, we decided we should invest in a Time For You franchise. “The training was great fun and very effective. We have found Time For You to be a service people needed as opposed to one that had to be sold. Finding clients is simple and effective and the growth rate is astounding. We now feel very assured about the future which was never the case in our previous employment. It also gives us a lot of free time to spend on the things we like to do.” Contact us at: time4youfranchise.com

34 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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29/06/2018 17:18

Franchise Finance Franchise Finance NEW £50m Lending Fund

YES £50 MILLION! Allocated to the Franchise Market through Franchise Finance Limited *

Including Loans, HP and Leasing deals

* Decisions normally * within 48 hours For amounts between * £5,000 and £500,000 With up to 5 year *Repayment Periods At competitive rates

For you to use for buying or growing your business * Subject to terms and conditions and normal credit checks

Example uses: Raising Loan Finance Franchise Purchase or Expansion Refurbishment Rebranding Working Capital Stock Finance Signage and Security Air conditioning and Lighting EPOS, Telephone or Computer Equipment Fridges, Freezers and Chillers Display Cabinets, Counters & Shelving Vending Equipment Commercial Vehicles Do ask us if you do not see here what you need!

To apply for funding please Email or Telephone us:

01844 355575 Franchise Finance Limited is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Fran Fin 2.indd 2 Untitled-3 1

02/06/2017 17:18 09:17 29/06/2018

Is education your passion? lo ve l l ’ u o Y w it h g n i h c tea ts Mag iKa

Maths & English Tuition Our franchise opportunity is for people who want to be part of a profitable business that makes a positive and lasting impact on the education of local children. We are… …an already successful operation with thousands of satisfied students …in one of the UK’s fastest-growing market sectors …a business with a comprehensive training and support programme …a business with low investment and potentially high returns

Business should be fulfilling

Find out how at: www.educationalfranchise.co.uk Email: enquiries@magikats.co.uk Tel: 0844 870 9896

DREAM OF BEING YOUR OWN BOSS?

The Restore Automotive Turn-Key Franchise Can Turn This Into Your Reality

Our Franchise business provides a convenient and affordable way to have minor cosmetic repairs carried out on customer vehicles, at their location and convenience. We know our business inside and out and we will support you to grow yours every step of the way.

restorefranchise.com

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29/06/2018 17:22

Tony Bowman managing director etyres

Franchising can help business owners ride out turbulent times As more stores close on the high street, budding entrepreneurs should look to tried and tested models like franchising for their next venture

e are currently experiencing a rapidly changing business environment which already has a staggering number of high profile casualties. Once great brands such as Toys R Us and Maplin have recently failed. Others like Mothercare, House of Fraser, Poundworld and New Look are using company voluntary arrangement insolvency laws to reduce their rent. Times are tough. That’s why franchising is the obvious choice for anyone intending to launch their own business. A tried and tested business formula is far safer than a new concept. A common factor with failing businesses is that they don’t adapt quickly enough to changing market conditions, invest in vital areas or focus on ways to remain relevant and competitive. Frequently that happens because the owners and managers were focused on running the business rather than the wider issues of adapting to changing customer expectations and the opportunities that are always presenting themselves. Another cause is the attitude of those responsible for the business. In difficult trading conditions the lot of a sole trader can be very demoralising. Problems mount up, good staff may ask for a pay rise, some leave and profitability declines. But the VAT still has to be paid, annual accounts still have to be filed on time, creditors still expect their accounts to be

settled promptly. Meanwhile, debtors take longer to pay. It takes a huge amount of courage and stamina to maintain the enthusiasm and energy that someone starting a new business has. This attitude is especially critical in difficult trading conditions. This is where the experience of a battlehardened professional will make the difference between success and failure. Which of course is where franchising comes into its own. A well-established franchisor will have developed a successful business model and the systems and processes to replicate it. They will provide an existing network of reliable suppliers and the buying power to negotiate competitive prices. If retail premises are involved, it will have a clearly

defined template for what constitutes the correct location and the ability to command the lowest rent. While no business is immune to economic conditions, the franchise industry as a whole is one of the sectors which has shown resilience and sustainability, even in a tough climate. The level of success depends on many factors including the business model, demand for the service, strength of the brand and even down to whether it’s home-based, which will help to keep running costs low. As always, the first step to increasing your chances of being successful is to do your homework to help you choose the right franchise and make sure you have the skills needed to survive and thrive in turbulent times. JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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29/06/2018 17:02

Heating up your business prospec t s

UK WIDE FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITIES Aire Serv ® is part of The Dwyer Group®, who look after over 3,100 franchisees across the world, including, Bright & Beautiful ®, Mr Electric ®, Drain Doctor ® and Countrywide Grounds Maintenance ® in the UK. Join this exciting business that will be needed all year round by both commercial and residential customers. As part of one of the world’s largest franchisors, you’re in safe hands.

01527 549 593

LeadingTheServiceIndustry.co.uk

Combine your passion for physical activity and making a positive impact on children’s lives!

Could you be our next Premier franchisee? Our core purpose is to Educate and Activate the world, and we do this by delivering exceptional opportunities for young people and adults to make the very most of their lives. Helping children become the best versions of themselves through innovative, life changing programmes and initiatives. We have a streamlined recruitment process and we'll be in touch as soon as you enquire for an initial relaxed conversation!

For more information about joining the UK’s number one sport and physical activity provider, contact us... 01953 499 040 • info@premier-education.com • makesportyourbusiness.com

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Take control of your future with the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading mobile coffee franchise. CALL 0113 232 0118 FOR MORE INFORMATION.

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www.cafe2u.co.uk

29/06/2018 23/05/2018 17:33 12:14

Magikats

By Zen Terrelonge

Adding a lifetime in education to one woman’s infectious passion for learning equated to a family business opening in the form of MagiKats, the tutoring franchise, which is conjuring up growth across the UK of her role as operations director at MagiKats, the tutoring franchise dreamt up by her mother Jan Lomas. Daughter and mother have worked together for years, initially in Lomas’ franchise as they teamed up before Marsh went off to university to study music. Her period of education gave her time to consider options for the future though and it transpired that music would not be the theme to her life after all. “My practical head took over and I realised that it wasn’t the lifestyle I wanted,” Marsh explains. “I didn’t want to live out of my suitcase in London

The Lomas and Marsh family

We felt lucky that Sarah Marsh managed to fit us into her hectic schedule as she detailed a jam-packed agenda ahead, including an upcoming information day for new franchisees, as well as business trips to Scotland and Brighton. “It wasn’t originally planned that way but it’s all been condensed into a very short period of time,” she says. “But that’s the way it works sometimes.” Marsh certainly paints a vivid picture

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moving from one gig to another. I wanted a more stable lifestyle, so I couldn’t be a professional musician.” She certainly needed a key change. With the experience from working with her mother, Marsh became a franchisee on her own after leaving university in the late 1990s and, although she never had any desire to teach, she found herself in the education sector in tutoring and later in educational games. “My whole life is running an education franchise, which wasn’t exactly part of the master plan when I was a teenager,” she laughs.

Adding why she didn’t end up involved in a music franchise, Marsh confesses: “I’m firmly of the belief I would be an absolutely rubbish music teacher. I enjoy doing it so much, I don’t think I could teach it well at all.” While Marsh was doing her own thing as a franchisee, education veteran Lomas, who’s worn many hats including teacher and examiner, started operating a maths study programme called Mathamagic and it began turning heads. “Jan was running that on her own and my father Rick got involved to help her get organised,” Marsh recalls. “She was writing lots of worksheets and materials, so he got helping her organise things by creating the tech, which is now the backbone of our MagiKats programme.” By the time 2005 rolled around, her parents’ efforts were paying off and Mathamagic incorporated English and was rebranded as MagiKats Maths and English. “It became obvious MagiKats was

“As soon as the dust has settled on Brexit, we’ll be rushed off our feet”

starting to take off and my mum and dad needed additional help to do some of the aspects of the business, so I took the decision to join them at that point. And then my sister joined soon after.” With the family on board, the company was able to start scaling and it wasn’t long before the franchising opportunity arrived. Many businesses may take the time to actively decide to franchise but that wasn’t the case for MagiKats. “We really fell into franchising,” says Marsh. “We were approached by people from various parts of the UK and also overseas – one of the first franchisees is in South Australia.” With requests to buy the tutoring materials in their respective areas, franchising was the obvious answer given their background but Marsh quickly found it wasn’t as simple as first thought. “I’ve been on a steep learning curve,” she says. “I don’t think any amount of studying can prepare you for becoming a franchisor because there’s no other business relationship like the one between franchisor and franchisee.” With franchisees to take care of right out of the blocks, refining the materials over the first few years was a priority for the team. That, combined with everything from training, return on July 2018 | elitefranchise

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Magikats

investment, territories and so on to be considered meant formal business processes were put on the back-burner – though that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. “Very quickly it meant we had a big number of students across the country and overseas who could test our materials for us,” says Marsh. Given structures weren’t formalised from day one, choosing franchisees was done on instinct. “We worked very much on gut feel initially,” says Marsh. That meant meeting prospects for a chat and determining if they shared the MagiKats aims and attitudes for children’s education. This freestyle approach to franchisee search didn’t work as well as it did for the materials though. Because while some franchisees were sharp on education, they lacked the business acumen to drive their franchise forward. “We still have one of our original signees from that first year but equally, to be honest, we’ve had failures over the years,” admits Marsh. “Over the last three to four years we’ve really been in a position to understand what we’re looking for.” Now when it comes to finding franchisees, MagiKats seeks people open to upskilling. Unsurprisingly, many teachers want a piece of the pie. “A lot of teachers are open to continually educating themselves and believe in the power of education,” Marsh details. “Business skills can be taught to a certain extent. What you can’t assess when you’re looking at a potential franchisee is whether they’ll have the drive and energy to put everything into practice effectively. Will they go out and run a stall at school fete and will everybody think they’re wonderful because they’re

filled with energy and enthusiasm?” However, Marsh was keen to highlight that franchisees needn’t be seasoned educators to work with MagiKats because it’s the employed mentors who are responsible for teaching. Although skill assumptions were made in the early days, no stone is left unturned now to ensure franchisees are as clued-up as possible. “With some people it will be ‘I already know this aspect and don’t know that aspect’ but other people can be very different,” says Marsh, attributing that to the wide variation of franchisees they attract. “We’re now assuming we have to explain everything and in some cases that’s a useful recap and in other cases that’s new knowledge for them.” And in terms of what is the most crucial element of the franchise running smoothly, that would be consistency, according to Marsh. That means kids and parents should have the same basic experience no matter where the MagiKats centre is and, similarly, franchisees need consistent support

too. “But at the same time, the needs of each franchisee are vastly different,” adds Marsh, emphasising the need to recognise those in the network as individuals and not numbers. After a peak year of growth in 2017 with seven new franchisees brought into the network, Marsh revealed that scale this year has slowed, which she attributes to Brexit. With the team at HQ bolstered and more efficient processes, she’s confident things will change though. “Speaking to colleagues across the industry I think it’s been a quiet year so far for many people in franchising in general,” she says. “As a small franchise network and a family business, people are almost becoming part of the family when they join the network, which is something we wish to maintain as we grow. We would like MagiKats to be seen as one of the top, if not the top, provider of after-school maths and English tutoring for kids from pre-school up to GCSE. The optimist in me says as soon as the dust has settled on Brexit, we’ll be rushed off our feet.”

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RECRUITMENT BY PROFESSIONALS FOR PROFESSIONALS And now YOU can own a part of it! Law Staff Legal Recruitment are award-winning legal recruitment experts with a network of connections spanning local, regional, national and international law firms and in-house legal departments. We act for legal professionals at all levels, whether they are climbing the career ladder or making lateral moves. Our aim is to fill each role with the best available candidate in the marketplace. We’re not just selling a standard ‘recruitment package’ we are sharing our business with you!

Why choose a Law Staff franchise? Low set up cost

Continual support

Fantastic earning potential

Experienced Training given

Start working from home!

Flexible working

W: www.law-staff.co.uk T: 01954 208062 E: psweeney@law-staff.co.uk Untitled-1 1

29/06/2018 17:44

Could you help ﬁx the ‘Catch up Crisis’? Mathnasium Learning Centres use a unique method of assessment and teaching designed to help children catch up, keep up and get ahead in maths. It’s a huge opportunity in a rapidly growing market, and this could be your chance to get involved. Owning your own Mathnasium Learning Centre Franchise could be the most rewarding move you ever make.

Join the most recognised brand within the home cleaning industry. At MOLLY MAID you’ll always have the support you need from people who are not only experts within the sector, but genuinely care for you and your business. Find out more today 01628 583765 aaron.watson@mollymaid.co.uk www.mollymaid.co.uk/franchise

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Franchising the focus as Cash Generator goes back to its roots Cash Generator has taken the business back to its roots consolidating its position as the UK’s favourite second-hand store

his strategy change means existing Cash Generator franchisees from across the UK could invest further in the business by purchasing companyowned stores. For nearly 25 years, Cash Generator has been a brand trusted by customers with now over 120 franchisee-run stores throughout the UK and more than 500 employees across the country supporting the communities they serve. Cash Generator offers franchisees a unique entrepreneurial opportunity. As a franchise-focused business, Cash Generator offers a flexible business model for buying and selling pre-owned items alongside a range of graded and specialist lines. Throughout 2018, Cash Generator has been showcasing its business opportunity to potential franchisees at exhibitions across the UK. After successfully exhibiting at recent shows in London, Manchester and Glasgow, Cash Generator’s franchise recruitment team will be at the National Franchise Exhibition, NEC, Birmingham on October 5 and 6. Graeme McKinnon, managing director at Cash Generator, said: “This is a really exciting time for Cash Generator. The business has been established since 1994 and we already have 58 Franchisees who operate across the UK. We are really pleased that our existing franchisees are as excited as we are about our new strategy and some took up the opportunity to invest further in the business by purchasing corporate stores.”

The market for buying and selling second hand goods remains strong across many areas of the UK and Cash Generator has plans to expand the business to in excess of 200 stores. Cash Generator remain very optimistic about the growth opportunities that exist in this fast moving, recession proof retail sector. Graeme added: “Cash Generator continues to go from strength to strength and we are really excited to have consolidated our position as the UK’s first choice buying and selling franchise. The business is now fully focused on growing its national network of franchise stores and our business model is built with innovation in mind and customers at the heart. Our growth strategy will allow us to focus solely on the needs of our franchisees and the customers who use our services.” Anyone who is interested in potentially becoming a Cash Generator franchisee can find out more at www.cgfranchising.co.uk

JULY 2018 | ELITEFRANCHISE

social impact

Feel-good franchising

Carol

By Zen Terrelonge

Social impact is well documented in the world of startups and corporate social responsibility is often touted by large firms. But how does it fit in when it comes to the franchising sector?

f there were any doubt about the presence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the UK, you need only look to the mission of Social Enterprise UK, the social enterprise body, which works to create positive change. It connects titans of industry such as Johnson & Johnson and Santander with sociallyconscious small businesses to improve their supply chains. With an ambition to reach a £1bn corporate-social spend, the body revealed £45m had been spent as of April 2018. At the time Peter Holbrook, chief executive of Social Enterprise UK, said: “Our latest report shows that 100% of major corporates have found the services of social enterprises to be either as good or better than their previous

suppliers with prices which are just as competitive. It’s a win-win situation.” Indeed, there’s no denying the opportunity presented by CSR. But while there’s a great deal of mention about corporates and small businesses of the social enterprise variety, where does that leave franchises? It goes without saying but the dynamics of a franchise are vastly different to those of a corporate or small business, so is CSR and social impact beyond their reach? Not at all. Paul Nuth, founder of Driving Miss Daisy UK, the companionship driving franchise, has experience in charitable work which encouraged him to personally make a difference through franchising. Previously chair of trustees for Waste to Wonder,

the furniture recycling charity that converts IT equipment into school materials in deprived countries, he knew full well the benefits of giving and the good he could do. “We have an increasing number of vulnerable people of all ages and especially the elderly who are unable to engage in society due to not being able to drive or transport themselves around,” says Nuth. “The effect on the individual can be devastating in terms of isolation, loneliness and reliance on others and the ripple effect of this reaches out and affects society as a whole.” He discovered Driving Miss Daisy while holidaying in New Zealand when one of the branded vehicles drove by. Some 25 years earlier, he’d seen the film of the same name, starring Jessica

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social impact

Caroline Sparks and Gabrielle Lixton of Turtle Tots

Tandy and Morgan Freeman as the titular Miss Daisy and her dedicated chauffeur respectively and he was sold. “I immediately understood the concept and felt compelled to introduce the service to the UK,” he recalls. So Nuth chose Driving Miss Daisy’s CEO strategically and recruited none other than the founder of Waste to Wonder, Greg Blezard. There’s real opportunity for franchisees to make a genuine difference to the communities where they operate, Nuth believes. Seemingly CSR is at the heart of the business – and heart is crucial for the franchise, he adds. “First and foremost, people should have a significant focus on building a profitable enterprise to ensure it exists in the future and thrives but with Driving Miss Daisy, our franchisees must be heart-led.” As such, the franchise spends plenty of time to prevent “significant risk” with the “wrong people” introduced to the network, so the franchisees brought

on board understand the values fully. And just because Driving Miss Daisy happens to operate in an empathic capacity doesn’t mean more franchises shouldn’t implement CSR and strive for social impact, according to Nuth. “It makes absolute business sense, from improving the brand, customer engagement, attracting top talent and giving a competitive edge," he says. “But it goes beyond the profit margins. A franchise’s social impact should be a measurable way in which we can show the value of what we do for our beneficiaries and society as a whole.”

“The owner of Turtle Tots Plymouth & West Devon skydived 15,000 feet in aid of Plymouth’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit”

july 2018 | elitefranchise

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social impact

“If our owners weren’t interested in making a difference they wouldn’t have been successful in our recruitment process” It would appear that said business sense runs deep within Turtle Tots, the swimming lessons franchise, which implemented CSR from the moment the doors opened, recalls co-founder Caroline Sparks. “From day one we knew we wanted to differentiate ourselves from our competition and at the same time give something back to the local community,” she says. One of the unique aspects of Turtle Tots is that all franchisees get behind a charity local to them. It works on a basis that each franchisee is required to donate a turnover percentage to a charity of their choice. And the culture has had an incredible amount of potency, as the franchisor’s partnership with Global Radio’s Make Some Noise campaign demonstrated in 2017. “Through our 50 franchisees, who teach 12,000 babies every week, we raised over £56,000 for their charity last year,” Sparks says. “The

funds are shared amongst smaller charities across the UK, projects that struggle to be heard but provide life-saving support to families and youngsters in need.” While it stands to reason to ensure CSR doesn’t break down across the network, in the same way as Driving Miss Daisy, Turtle Tots attracts like-minded franchisees passionate about the objectives while there is a selection process to go through as well as frequent quality checks too. “Most of our franchisees were Turtle Tots customers or teachers, before they decided to take the plunge and understand the values that underpin Turtle Tots,” explains Sparks. Offering an example of how dedicated franchisees are, she adds: “Most recently the owner of Turtle Tots Plymouth & West Devon, along with one of the swimming teachers, jumped out of a plane and skydived 15,000 feet in aid of Plymouth’s Neonatal Intensive

Care Unit parental accommodation campaign Keep Me Close.” It may be a giveaway from the name of this next franchise alone that it has a giving focus but that doesn’t make it any less important. At Home Instead Senior Care, it seems there’s a topdown approach to CSR as Ruth Brown, the head of franchise development, admits it’s very close to her own heart. “I volunteered for the Samaritans for a number of years and currently volunteer for Contact the Elderly,” she says. In the franchise itself there’s a dedication to “changing the face of ageing” in a bid to disrupt the care sector in the UK and having CSR fused into that mission is a natural fit to achieve that. To put smiles on the faces of seniors, Home Instead Senior Care created a wish-granting charity called The Bring Joy Foundation, which funds events, activities and hobbies to create memories for the elderly. “Retired warehouseman Harry Horrocks was the inspiration for the first wish granted, he simply wanted to go to the seaside,” Brown details. “The Bring Joy Foundation took Harry and 96 members of his community centre for a VIP day trip to Llandudno. Other donations have included creating a sensory room for seniors in an extra care village through to staging vintage tea dances and funding festive dinners.” Outside organisations interested in participating and helping the elderly can get involved with the foundation too but Home Instead Senior Care is keen to ensure franchisees foster a culture of giving among staff. “We’ve seen offices take part in lengthy cycle rides, treks and chilly Christmas day swims through to family fun days and master bake-offs,” Brown says. “If our owners weren’t interested in making a difference they wouldn’t have been successful in our recruitment process. We believe ethical franchising and making a social impact go hand in hand,” she concludes. So there you have it. Regardless of your franchise’s size or the amount of staff or money you have, if you want to make a difference, the opportunity is in your grasp from day one.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

The break you’re looking for might just be in a windscreen Britain’s multi-million pound glass industry in all its forms, represents outstanding business opportunities at all levels. Even for the would-be and newbie entrepreneur

lass replacement costs are constantly increasing with the involvement of integrated technology to support automated or assisted driving functionality. So it stands to reason that operating an award-winning low-cost glass repair franchise, with the backing of unique and industry leading patented technology is a winning formula. It could be the break that an individual, passionate about delivering outstanding customer service has been looking for. SuperGlass, which boasts over 300 franchises throughout the United States and internationally was brought to the UK by small business consultant Phil Wells just over four years ago. Rapid success from a standing start in the Greater London Region was followed by the franchise launch back in 2016 and the brand now has 25 franchise areas across the country that all have the potential for multi-van operations. Wells explained, “Having the backing of a 26-year old mature operation owned and run by industry leaders in the States has really helped develop

the platform to drive growth in the UK.” SuperGlass is uniquely independent in terms of intellectual property ownership with all procedures, equipment and resins produced by SuperGlass. Backing an industry leading repair quality with unrivalled customer service and lifetime guarantees creates a win-win business proposition for franchisees and customers alike. “Delivering considerable enhancements on windscreen repair ratios for fleet owners and operators allowed our customers to save significant cost and vehicle downtime and at the same time help the environment,” said Wells. “Seeing is believing and resetting the bar on both the service and repair quality has allowed the brand create fast and sustainable growth. “Claiming the best repairs on the market is one thing but delivering them consistently and saving screens that would have been formerly written off is another. We evidence each and every repair with close up digital images that are available to our fleet

customers online 24/7. That confidence and transparency in our day to day operations gives reassurance to new customers and makes engaging our services an easy decision. It also helps retain business over the long term and build our reputation and support our brand values.” SuperGlass UK has a mix of individual investor owner operators and some established corporate businesses that were looking to diversify into an everexpanding market. SuperGlass badge themselves not as windscreen repair but glass and acrylic repair specialists as the franchise operation also caters for architectural repairs, another major market and income opportunity. If you’re interested in joining the SuperGlass team call: 033 33 44 66 06 or visit: superglassukfranchise.com

JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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29/06/2018 19:29

OVENU

Greasy does it By Varsha Saraogi

Rik Hellewell, owner of Ovenu, the oven-cleaning franchise, has successfully managed to expand his UK operation into international waters, despite being clawed by copycats along the way

hether it’s the morning after a house party where frozen pizzas have been on the menu or the evening following the Sunday roast dinner you’ve lovingly prepared, there’s never an enjoyable time to clean a grease-caked oven. And no matter how long you spend scrubbing, it’s never really enough to make it shine – but that was revolutionised in the early 90s. Enter Ovenu, the oven-cleaning franchise launched by Rik Hellewell, who rightly believed that if people are willing to pay to get their barbecues and windows cleaned, why not ovens? Little did Hellewell know that what started as a conversation with his friend in 1993 would turn into an international franchise. Having worked at a carpet and upholstery-cleaning business before, Hellewell envisioned a better system. “I wanted it to be more reputable and reliable from a consumer’s perspective,” he says. By running the pilot scheme in Wokingham himself, Hellewell says he’s now acquainted with “every facet of the oven-cleaning business.” Always considering franchising as a part of his business plan, he took his time to test the waters and cleaned hundreds of ovens before kickstarting the franchise model. The founder believed, to be

Rik Hellewell

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OVENU

able to make a mark in the franchise sector, the business had to be tried and proven to be profitable. “Not just the operational side but the advertising, marketing and the promotion needed was tried for not just five weeks or five months but five years before recruiting franchisees,” Hellewell recalls. However, back then in 1999 he found that successful franchise models to take inspiration from were few and far between. So when he started recruiting franchisees, the challenges faced were different from present day. For instance, he says at the time the business began: “The internet was unheard of.” So given the lack of options then, the franchisee recruitment process was limited to advertising through traditional media and flyers. But the internet wouldn’t necessarily have been leveraged had it been around back then as the oven-cleaning

captain doesn’t seem to be the biggest fan of technology. “What has tech brought?” he says. “A confusing amount of different options. In my opinion the internet has really muddied the waters. In many respects it has made it more complicated. When it comes to advertising, people are spoilt for choice.” It’s true that the woes of information overload are no secret. And he points to the easy access to fake news across the web as he rages: “Trump is right when he says there is so much bullshit on the web.” Aside from the challenge of cutting through the noise to secure franchisees and consumers alike, Hellewell also warns of “parasite franchises”. The socalled parasites are those that jump into a niche forged by an existing franchisor as soon as they see the money-making opportunity it has. “These copycat franchises are dangerous because the

Sometimes half a loaf is better than none

people running them haven’t got a clue,” he says. Speaking about having his fingers burnt, Hellewell refers to someone who wanted to work alongside Ovenu only to snatch the franchisor’s strategies and data as they went at it alone with a rival offering with only 18 months worth experience. “They are getting mugged off,” he adds of the franchisees joining copycats. Even though marketing and copycats presented Ovenu its share of challenges, the franchise still managed to get a global standing. Having spread its wings to the US, Australia and New Zealand, surprisingly it wasn’t originally part of the plan for Hellewell. “It was an organic growth after we grew in the UK,” he says. The franchisor adds that an American businessman saw their advert in a UK magazine and due to the dearth of a similar product in the US, consequentially invested in the franchise in 2005. However, the US franchisee wanted to specialise in barbecues but since Ovenu’s forte lies in cleaning ovens, negotiations led them to withdraw from the franchise agreement although they continue to be associated with the brand by using the same products. Despite the conflict Hellewell still maintains a healthy working relationship with the company. He says: “The lesson I learnt from that was if you sit down, communicate and resolve your differences, you will still end up with something profitable for both parties. Sometimes half a loaf is better than none.” Unlike the US, the brand entered Australian soil when a couple from Down Under was impressed after getting the ovens in their Jersey JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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restaurant cleaned by an Ovenu franchisee and hence took the franchise back home in 2006 after selling their eatery. And distance is no trouble either as Hellewell keeps international franchisees close. “I go to Australia once every 18 months,” he explains. “They have a proper system in place there and a trained person representing in every state. I sometimes turn up at their annual conference and meet their franchisees as well.”

than employing a bunch of employees. “My franchisees now are my eyes and ears on the road,” he says. “I have got some really valuable info from them. Some of the best ideas we’ve implemented over the years have come from our franchisees.” For instance, on more than one occasion they’ve suggested changes in the products being used, which in turn saved a lot of money for the whole business. It stands to reason that every franchisor thinks their model is the best in the game but Hellewell disagrees. “In time it becomes evident that things could always be better,” he says. With that in mind, he claims continued research and development in every company’s specific industry is essential: “Manufacturers keep changing the oven linings and parts and we keep our products suitable for those.” With the US and Australia ticked off, Hellewell is now receiving enquiries from prospective franchisees in Canada and South Africa. “They found our brand due to our online presence which continues to grow,” he says, making it clear technology may not seem that much of a villain as he previously thought. With 93 franchisees in the UK, 37 in Australia and New Zealand and 200 associate businesses in the US, it’s definitely getting hot in the kitchen for Ovenu but Hellewell remains cool as he says: “As long as people continue to be meat eaters and make a mess in their appliances, the company is fine.”

Some of the best ideas we’ve implemented have come from our franchisees Considering the franchises are spread out you may think business expansion would be challenging but Hellewell says: “It’s a lot easier than it seems. Let them know that you have your eyes on them. Make sure your master franchisee in other countries has the same systems in place as we have in the UK.” The key is communication, he believes, as the right training can save everyone involved thousands of pounds. And with communication in mind, to avoid barriers such as language during global growth, Hellewell adds: “It’s better to start where English is more prevalent.” Although franchising can act as a catalyst for a business when going global, he admits: “It might not be right for every business.” But he adds that having franchisees are better 52 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Fifo Capital drives small business success Franchisees with Fifo Capital don’t just build their own successful business, they do it by realising the dreams of other entrepreneurs just like them

n a rapidly growing and global alternative business finance market, Fifo Capital has established itself as an indispensable partner for small businesses across the globe. Their innovative financing products and comprehensive business development and support have made it possible for them to expand rapidly to serve clients in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, through their network of more than 60 franchisees.

Serving a rapidly growing market Businesses need innovative and relevant financing products to meet their needs in an increasingly complex and international economic environment. Often, that means fast and simple access to financing to manage cash flow interruptions and to pursue short-term growth opportunities that traditional lenders simply can’t accommodate. While the financing needs of SMEs have changed, traditional lenders have largely remained the same. Their financing products are primarily designed to serve significantly larger businesses operating at a much slower and more bureaucratic pace,

The UK alternative finance sector is predicted to be worth £12.3bn by 2020 54 ELITEFRANCHISE | JULY 2018

leaving entrepreneurs with relatively few options. The UK alternative finance market grew dramatically from £3.2bn in 2015 to £4.6bn in 2016. 33,000 businesses used alternative finance in 2016 compared to 20,000 in 2015. The UK alternative finance sector is predicted to be worth £12.3bn by 2020. This makes it an exciting time to be a part of the alternative finance industry. Building success with franchisees and clients The secret to Fifo Capital’s success is, in many ways, its franchisee program. The company works closely with franchisees to provide them with the tools they need to succeed and to guide them through each phase of their business development. This practice of intentionally nurturing success also carries over to the way that Fifo Capital does business. Startups and small businesses need financing to establish themselves, to compete and to grow. For those businesses, though, the end goal isn’t just to acquire financing. Rather, they’re trying to apply that financing to drive their own success. Fifo Capital works very closely with its customers not just to manage risk, but to better understand them, to provide guidance, and to help them reach their real, primary goals. This doesn’t just help clients, it helps to ensure the success and sustainability of both the franchisee and the company as a whole. Learn more about the franchise opportunities with Fifo Capital at https://fifocapital.co.uk/join-fifo-capital/

IMPROVE LIVES, INSPIRE CHANGE, NURTURE SUCCESS The Kare Plus Franchising story continues to develop as we move closer to total coverage of the UK. As one of the longest established healthcare franchises in the country, we have developed a reputation for quality care, outstanding support and sustained growth. Nowhere is this more evident than in our expansion from a single branch to having sold more than two - thirds of our UK territories.

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This unique franchise model grants business owners a level of freedom and creativity that is unmatched by other healthcare franchises.

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SHEFFIELD SHEFFIELD

20%

With establishment-based care, homecare and the soon to launch, live-in care service to choose from, our franchisees are able to tailor their service offering based on territorial demand.

After almost 30 years of providing compliant and passionate healthcare staff to establishments across the United Kingdom, the Kare Plus network is expanding faster than ever before.

YORK

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Other key territories include: Harrogate Peterborough Plymouth Newcastle Upon Tyne North Wales

Get in touch with us today: 01952 783338 www.franchising.kareplus.co.uk franchising@kareplus.co.uk

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THE SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY - A GROWTH & INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY The Sport4Kids mission is to transform the sports services industry and to deliver an unrivalled experience to parents, children, nurseries and schools around the world. S4K aims to address modern parentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; demand for confidence building, fun and highly technical sports tuition whether at weekends, holidays or school days. By establishing and reinforcing S4Kâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s core values we aim to become the leading service business of its kind. Our striking brand, which we aim to turn into a household name, will represent the four cornerstones of sports service: innovation, research and development, engagement and entertainment. T: 0300 303 3866 W: www.s4kfranchising.com

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29/06/2018 17:59

Chris Roberts director Franchise Finance

To borrow or not to borrow?

That is the question

There is a bad and a good way when it comes to getting a bank loan for your franchise. And you better learn the difference

t isn't uncommon for a new prospective franchisee, with just enough cash, to decide to use their own money and not borrow to buy their new franchise. This may be because they don’t want to pay fees and interest because they don’t think the banks are lending – which, believe me, they are, when there is a good, viable proposition backed up by a good, professional business plan – or because they simply don’t want the hassle and fuss. This is, in our view, likely to be a bad decision because, whilst things may carry on in a straightforward and unspectacular way, there are two other possible alternatives. One good and one bad. First the bad one. In these somewhat uncertain times it is possible that

trading may not be as good as was originally expected and therefore you could start making losses and running out of money. An approach to a bank at that stage, where losses are being made and the business performance is well off its planned projections, will almost certainly be unsuccessful. The business could easily fail due to a lack of cash. In reality it would be much better to request a loan from the outset, say for 50% of the total amount required, when everything looks rosy and the business plan demonstrates viability because the problem hasn’t yet occurred. Therefore, when and if the problem does occur you have your own safety net to get you through your sticky patch. Now the good alternative – things may be going really well for you.

Perhaps there are no problems and your accounts may show breakeven or some profit and you decide you want to expand – perhaps buy a second territory or another outlet. Because you don’t have any spare cash you decide to approach your bank. Our experience, particularly in the current economic environment is the bank will require you to put in some further new money at that time, being often not willing to solely rely upon what you put in as your contribution at the outset. So once again, it would have been better to have borrowed at the beginning and kept some of your own money back to assist your expansion plans when you, and not the bank, felt the time is right. JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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29/06/2018 17:09

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Clean up with a Techclean franchise If you’re looking for a business opportunity that is affordable, offers flexibility and isn’t dependent on any one market sector then Techclean could be your ideal choice

echclean developed its knowledge and expertise in the 1980s through providing specialist cleaning services for the computer and communication rooms of large corporates, establishing itself as the market leader in this field. But as technology advanced and computing and communication devices moved out of these sterile ‘white coat only’ environments onto desktops, cleaning of this equipment is now no longer in the domain of specialists. Instead general office cleaners or employees themselves have the task of cleaning computers, telephones and other office equipment. According to the 2016 CIPD Absence Management Report, absenteeism costs British businesses an average of £522 per employee per year. That’s around 140 million days lost to sickness absence across the UK in 2015 with colds, flu and gastric illnesses topping the table of causes. If you combine this with the statistic that says 33% of people with contagious symptoms struggle into work rather than stay at home, it’s easy to see why providing a hygienic workplace is so important to productivity.

That’s where Techclean comes in. We know what’s required and our track record serving organisations throughout the UK from famous names including Porsche and Disney to schools, hospitals and charities speaks for itself. We work within an ISO environment and are Safecontractor accredited giving customer’s immediate confidence of our credibility. The Techclean specialist service has never been in greater demand to properly clean and sanitise office equipment that come into regular contact with human hands . A Techclean franchise can slot in at any stage of your working life or provide a second income stream to run alongside an existing business or job and territories are generous with each catchment area having at least 10,000 businesses. No premises are needed, making the franchise a perfect business to run from a home office with minimal outlay and low operating costs. Former teacher and mother of four Susan Davies set up Techclean South Wales three years ago after her youngest child went to university. She said: “I just love the diversity of it and meeting different people. It’s very satisfying work.

We go into an office and in a just few hours we make such a big difference to the working environment. I have a small team of people working with me I call the ‘dream team’ – and customers are always delighted with the end results.” If you’re looking for a business opportunity that is affordable, offers flexibility and isn’t dependent on any one market sector then Techclean could be the ideal choice. We are looking for individuals with a strong work ethic and who are willing to follow a proven business model. The ideal Techclean franchisee will be good with people and have an aptitude for sales and marketing. No previous experience is required as full training is given. You need to be good with people and have an aptitude for sales and marketing. Costing just £19,500 plus VAT, a Techclean franchise stands head and shoulders above other low-cost franchise opportunities. Techclean is part of The Bardon Group one of the UK’s leading franchisors who also run three other well established high-quality brands - namely Kall Kwik, ComputerXplorers and Recognition Express. You will benefit from on-going head office support in all the key areas of sales, training, business planning and finance and most especially marketing with access to the Techclean marketing systems, tools and collateral. Contact: Emma Downes e: edownes@techclean.co.uk t: 01530 513300 w: www.techclean.co.uk

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29/06/2018 19:23

ARE YOU READY TO FRANCHISE? DRIVE THRU

SHOPS

TO GO

KIOSKS

29/06/2018 17:24

Business breakdowns

Franchisee failures

BY Dave Galvin, head of franchising and senior business advisor, D&T chartered accountants

There are no guarantees in business but franchising is undoubtedly one of the safest options. That’s not to say that franchisees are invulnerable to failure.

aking a franchise a success is by no means a given, despite resources from the franchisor and franchisee network. It takes a lot of hard work and commitment to succeed. It also takes a certain kind of person – and that isn’t everyone. Carrying out thorough research before taking on a franchise can help mitigate some risks. However,

even the most diligent of franchisees can fail for a huge range of reasons. While a tiny minority of fails have been crash and burn style epic disasters, the vast majority are just caused by relatively simple breakdowns or malfunctions from both franchisee and franchisor. Here are the top eight reasons I’ve come across in my career.

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Business breakdowns

(1) Poor planning Most franchisees are required to produce a business plan to share their planned road map of what they’re going to do. It should outline key targets, goals and profits – and when and how they’ll be achieved. This plan shouldn’t just live in a drawer once the business gets started. It should constantly adapt to analyse their environment and performance to stop the business falling behind their competition. And speaking of the competition, the plan should show that the franchisee has an in-depth understanding of their area and rivals. (2) Living in dreamland The aforementioned business plan can help here. Looking at this, a franchisor can get a crucial insight into what the franchisee is really after. Perhaps their timeframes are too focused on pulling out profit for themselves or they’re making too many assumptions about the support and training received. Maybe the franchisee has expectations that are justified but aren’t communicated well enough to the franchisor or the franchisor doesn’t want to meet them. Inevitably these expectations aren’t met, causing disappointment and frustrations on both sides and failure on the whole. (3) No money A business can be profitable but still fail. For example, too many late payments from customers can upset the balance and mean costs can’t be met. To survive, franchisees must understand the difference between cashflow and profit, managing both very carefully. It’s also important for a franchisee to understand that, like any business, a franchise will need continuing investment to succeed. A franchisee

might not be willing, comfortable or in a position to invest beyond their initial outlay and this can cause a business to stagnate and fail. (4) Lack of training and support While spoon-feeding isn’t necessary, a good franchisor should provide training and ongoing support to ensure standards are upheld and franchisees have the knowledge and understanding of the business and processes to run the business as per the model. While there are some poor franchisors out there, it’s also the franchisee’s responsibility to research what they need before starting. They should look at the training and support provided by the franchisor. If it isn’t enough, or if they have any concerns, these should be flagged before taking on the franchise or look for something that suits their needs better. Sometimes, franchisees are too busy working in the business to spend time working on the business. We used to say: “Drive the business, not just the van.” So keep it moving forwards by looking at the bigger picture. (5) Breaking the rules Sometimes, people invest in a franchise with no intention of following the franchise operations manual. Or they set out following it, then decide that they can do it better and start doing their own thing. Perhaps they have thought of a better way to do something. In which case, most franchisors are interested in improving their systems and may take their idea on board. However, franchisees shouldn’t just take the initiative to change something that will impact the service delivery hugely without checking with the franchisor, as this can be a deal-breaker. The business model has been carefully structured and if the new ideas don’t fit with this at all, then by doing

something different the franchisee can cause harm not only to their own business but to the entire network. (6) Wrong fit Linking to the last point, sometimes a franchisee might just not suit a business or franchising. A franchisee is a tricky mix of both being a leader and a follower – and that isn’t easy. It takes a certain type of person. They might be passionate about the product and love the idea and freedom of running a business but in practice the reality of running a franchise just isn’t for them. Maybe they aren’t great at retaining and managing staff. Maybe they just don’t want the stress of management and have realised that not everyone is suitable to be a leader. Maybe they thought franchising was an easy route to success but then got overwhelmed by the amount of dedication required. (7) It’s not a hobby There is a big difference between liking a service and running a business. Often customers of a franchise enjoy the service so much that they decide to take on a franchise themselves. While their enthusiasm for the product may start off high, this can often change when it’s what you do all day to bring home the bacon. I remember a friend who was obsessed with Land Rovers. After many years, he quit his job and set up a business based around them. Now, he hates the things. (8) Complacency or distractions Sometimes it isn’t down to a failure of the systems or franchisor. Like all businesses, a franchise should never be static. It’s up to the franchisor and franchisee to adapt and adjust to suit changes in the market to ensure the business stays fresh, relevant and successful. JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Design your perfect lifestyle joining BoConcept – a strong, proven and award-winning retail franchise BoConcept is a global brand with 275 stores in 65 countries spreading across Europe, North America, the Asia Pacific region, the Middle East and Northern Africa

oConcept is more than a designer furniture franchise with a passion for producing impeccably crafted pieces for the home: it’s an organisation with style and expertise, ready to help their customers create modern and sophisticated homes and living spaces – with Scandinavian design principals at its heart. As BoConcept continues expanding within the UK, we decided to explore some of the many reasons that BoConcept is ahead of the competition – for both their franchisees and their customers. Unlike many furniture franchises, BoConcept offers a personalised interior design service, set up to help their customers navigate the world of home improvement. This service is not only fantastic for BoConcept customers, it’s also an amazing upselling tool for BoConcept franchisees. Another unique selling tool offered by BoConcept is its furniture customisation. Every BoConcept design is full of possibilities, just waiting to be conceptualised. This creates further design input from the customer, resulting in a positive, inclusive experience. BoConcept as a brand is globally renowned for its style, quality and fair price. Becoming a BoConcept franchisee means joining the ranks of this success, stylish and profitable organisation. With 15 million website visitors, and four million in-store visitors per year, you know you are partnering with a brand you can take pride in and find success with. By collaborating with world-renowned designers, BoConcept continuously

cultivates brand credibility and integrity, a huge benefit for their many successful franchisees. By focusing on functional and customisable furniture BoConcept has created an approachable, fashionable, trusted and customer focused brand. On top of this customer focus, BoConcept is passionate about facilitating the best possible experience for its franchisees. BoConcept is an award-winning company, with a proven, profitable business model. Becoming a BoConcept franchisee means joining a team of equals, with the support of a solid franchisor. Franchisees are provided with world class support, training and programs to ensure continued success for every BoConcept franchisee.

These benefits, combined with the superior customer experience offered by BoConcept, mean you can design your perfect lifestyle with a BoConcept franchise. All BoConcept brand stores are usually situated in high traffic areas or in easy-to-reach central locations, near to similar premium lifestyle brands and international retailers, and have an average area of 5,000 square feet.

To find out more about becoming a franchisee, visit: www.boconcept.com/franchise or email: franchise@boconcept.com

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29/06/2018 17:50

Looking for your perfect opportunity? The Elite Franchise 100 is a new league table that celebrates the UK’s finest franchises. Duking it out on everything from year on year growth to the support they offer their franchisees, the Elite Franchise 100 recognises the sector’s most superlative businesses to aid your investment decision.

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email: info@cemedia.co.uk | Call: 01245 673700 elitefranchisemagazine.co.uk/100

sponsored by FINANCE SPONSOR

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29/06/2018 18:26

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Run your own highly profitable windowcleaning business T

he Deluxe Window Cleaning is based in Derby, which was established in 2005. The business focus heavily on domestic window cleaning and associated services such as conservatory cleaning and gutters. This strategy enable us to maximise our income potential and cashflow and is the exact same model that all franchisees will follow to build a high profit business. Deluxe Window Cleaning has been trading for over ten years and specialise in very high standard domestic and commercial window cleaning at competitive prices. We have established ourselves as one of the leading window cleaning companies in Derby and the

surrounding areas. We have achieved this by always providing a highly professional and competitively priced service to our customers. We pride ourselves on using modern equipment whilst also incorporating traditional methods. As Deluxe Window Cleaning is a franchise, our services will eventually cover the whole of the UK as the franchise network expands. All of our franchisees will offer every service and will be trained to a very high standard with ongoing training at all the times. The opportunity Our main focus has mainly been on domestic window cleaning and associated services such as conservatory cleaning, jet washing and

gutters. This domestic focus enables us to maximise our income potential and ensure that we have a strong cashflow. Using both modern and traditional methods we offer window cleaning services to residential customers and commercial businesses including offices, shops, studios and supermarkets. Deluxe Window Cleaning has a solid proven business systems in place. We have developed a successful structure over a number of years and as our franchisee you will be able to take advantage of these systems and our proven lucrative business formula. As a Deluxe Window Cleaning franchisee we will teach you everything you need to run your business successfully, this includes; how to identify your target markets,

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

generate leads using our proven techniques, convert them into paying clients and maximise your profits all from day one. We will train you to spearhead your franchise exactly the same way as the core business, this will ensure that you are running your business efficiently and will help to eliminate any common mistakes a new business owner usually faces, thus ensuring your success. Each franchisee will receive an exclusive territory to operate in, the size of your territory will enable you to realise your full earning potential. Your Deluxe Window Cleaning franchise package includes everything you need to begin trading immediately within your chosen territory. Training and support At Deluxe Window Cleaning we feel the training and support we offer to all our franchisees is second to none. Our hands-on approach to training ensures that you will gain all the skills necessary to run your own successful business. Your initial training will take place over five days where you will meet and learn from the Deluxe Window Cleaning team. You will be given a thorough working knowledge and understanding of not only the industry but also the Deluxe Window Cleaning

Your Deluxe Window Cleaning Franchise Package includes everything you need to begin trading immediately within your chosen territory proven systems and lead generation tools and techniques. Our training comprehensively establishes you and your franchise as a highly effective business in your chosen territory. Our training program has been designed to ensure that you run your business efficiently from day one. It’s vital that we as your franchisor provide complete on-going support, not only for your day-today needs but also for your growth plans. We recognise that the most successful franchisees receive continued development and coaching as their businesses rapidly develop. What do I do next? At Deluxe Window Cleaning we’re looking for motivated individuals who are searching for the opportunity to build a successful business. You must be service minded, enjoy dealing with a broad range of people and have good communication skills. You don’t need to have any previous

experience to be a success with window cleaning, the most important qualification is a commitment to quality and a desire to own your own business. If having read through the prospectus you believe you have the necessary skills and desire to become a franchisee with Deluxe Window Cleaning, then you are ready to take your application further. The next steps are to answer any questions you may have regarding the franchise and then arrange for you to come and meet the team. deluxewindowcleaningfranchise.co.uk 07531612992

JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Are you ready to charge ahead with

Mr. Electric?

With over 17 years of experience and over 200 locations around the world, Mr. Electric is the UK’s leading electrical franchise with expertise in electrical installation, maintenance and repair

recognised electrical brand in electrical services, Mr. Electric is a forward-thinking, innovative franchise at the forefront of its sector aiming to change the face of the electrical service industry. The UK market for mechanical and electrical contracting has increased by almost 25% since 2012 and is estimated that the market will be around £18bn through 2018*. Mr. Electric franchisees are perfectly positioned to take full advantage of this continued market growth and with the added benefit of offering home automation and smart products they can help to secure new business and long-term contract opportunities. Get connected The electric vehicle (EV) market has opened up a lucrative new business opportunity for Mr. Electric’s franchisees. As demand for environmentally friendly options increases and tech develops, EVs’ popularity has jumped with consumers and businesses looking for ways to reduce rising fuel bills – over 500 new electric vehicle charging units are installed across Britain every month with 47,000 plug in-cars registered in 2017, taking the total on the road to 137,000 – a 94% increase since 2013. As a result, the need for EV charging points is also growing and Mr. Electric believes that the ongoing growth of EV ownership in the UK will be reliant on the wider availability of charging infrastructure. Mr. Electric is a government-approved installer of EV charging points and is

playing a key part in shaping the EV revolution by being able to install and manage EV charging points for homes, workplaces and public areas throughout the UK. Mr Electric have also signed partnerships with major suppliers of EV equipment, which means it is now ready to support those wanting to realise the opportunities of EV charging. Joining an established brand With a rapidly growing electrical services market, and the unrivalled resources offered by Dwyer Group, there are vast opportunities for the right franchisees. When you join Mr. Electric, you’re not only joining an established brand, but also an ever-growing network of service professionals with access to an extensive range of tools and resources. The franchise network is based on a system developed by Dwyer Group, one of the world’s largest parent companies for 20 service brands with a franchise network including more than 3,200 franchisees operating in the UK and eight other countries.

To find out more information about becoming a Mr. Electric franchisee, visit leadingtheserviceindustry.co.uk/mr-electric email ukfranchise@dwyergroup.com or call 01295 675881.

*The ‘Mechanical and Electrical Contractors Market Report UK 2017-2021 Analysis’ report is published by AMA Research

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29/06/2018 18:06

I’m fed up with other people taking credit for work I’ve done

I’m not appreciated at all

I want to be my own boss

I put in the hard work but it’s not reflected in what I earn

Running your own business doesn’t have to be a pipe dream With a Techclean franchise you can be up and running in weeks. Techclean are the UK’s leading expert in specialist IT cleaning services. With franchises available in your area, we’re looking for good communicators with an aptitude for sales and marketing to run their own locally based business.

• WORK FROM HOME • TERRITORIES AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT THE UK • NET MARGINS OF OVER 55% • HUGE AND GROWING MARKET • REPEAT BUSINESS • EXTENSIVE ON-GOING BUSINESS SUPPORT

Request a free information pack at techclean.co.uk/contact or email edownes@techclean.co.uk techclean, Unit 2 Cartwright Court, Forest Business Park, Bardon, Leicestershire, LE67 1UE 01530 513300 • edownes@techclean.co.uk

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09/01/2018 16:01

Analyse

By Paul Stafford, head of communications, Chantry

Are you making the most of your website data? If you aren’t sure, then you need to read this

our franchise website is more important than ever because it’s where most people will begin their research after first hearing about your opportunity – and where they’ll start to form an impression of whether it’s the brand for them. So how can you monitor the performance of your franchise site and maximise its ability to convert eyeballs into enquiries? The answers lie in Google Analytics, which can be overwhelming when first confronted but with a little practice it can become a powerful weapon in your marketing arsenal. 68 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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Getting started Your analytics homepage by default displays a series of graphical charts on what’s been happening on your website over the last seven days. You can tailor these charts to your liking once you’re familiar with the data. In the audience – overview menu, you can see visitor numbers and other data from any custom length of time you choose by clicking on the date on the top-right of the graph. More importantly, you can compare two periods to each other – for example, visitor numbers from the last four weeks versus the four before that to gauge if you’re getting more or less traffic. You can also compare different periods of a year to account for any seasonality and whether you’ve seen a rise in year-on-year numbers. As well as the overall traffic, you’ll see a series of graphs underneath which outline what your visitors are doing. Understanding this data helps you tweak your website to encourage more of the behaviour you want, delivering a more effective website with measurable success. Here are some of the key metrics and how to use them to your advantage. Users and sessions Users can be defined as the number of unique visitors to your site and sessions are the number of different visits made by them. The caveats: strictly speaking, a user is not always a unique viewer of your site, because if the same person views it in Chrome and then Firefox they’ll be classified as two users and sessions are defined as a user’s interactions within a 30-minute timeframe. So if someone leaves your website open on

a tab and returns to click something on it more than 30 minutes later, a new session will be registered. But for the purposes of monitoring your data, stick to the definitions above and you won’t go far wrong. Clearly over time you’ll want to see users and sessions increase but as with franchise marketing generally, it’s not just about quantity – quality is far more important. Fewer visitors that enquire is much better than many casual browsers that don’t. Monitoring the quality of your traffic is where the rest of the data comes to the fore. Bounce rate Bounce rate is the proportion of visitors that leave your website without viewing any page other than the one they landed on. It’s important because it can guide you on whether your content is engaging visitors to explore or making it difficult for them to find what they want. Bounce rate is used throughout Analytics so you can also monitor it by individual page or by how people arrived at your site. There are no hard and fast rules about what constitutes a good bounce rate, it differs widely by industry and by website. For example, blogs typically have a high bounce rate because someone searches for something, finds the answer on the blog and then leaves. Similarly, if your site places huge emphasis on a single call to action rather than encouraging browsing, then bounce rate will be high but probably not a concern. That said, for most sites outside those examples it’s widely accepted that anything over 70% would give

cause to review and under 60% can be considered decent. Franchise sites should be aiming for as low a bounce rate as possible because a business is a significant investment and the site should guide its users on a factfinding journey. If your franchise’s online presence still consists of a single page tacked onto your customer website consisting of little more than ‘We’re a franchise, get in touch’, then A, it will have a high bounce rate and B, you should change this ASAP. Average session duration and pages per session These numbers are fairly selfexplanatory, measuring how long visitors are staying on your site and how many pages they’re viewing while there. The higher the numbers, the better for an in-depth process like deciding on a franchise. Time onsite is considered one of the most important barometers of your content and in the digital age we have less time than ever to make a strong impression. If people are quickly turned off or bored by what they’re seeing or your site navigation is poor, it will show here. Acquisition – where your visitors are finding you The acquisition menu tells you everything about where your visitors are coming from. The overview link gives a clear indication of how people are finding out about your franchise and clicking into each section will provide further insight on what audiences from different sources do once they reach you. JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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This menu can also provide you with information on the searches people are using to arrive at your site, helping you with content optimisation. The Google search console controls the information people see about you on the front page of a search. By connecting it to the queries menu you can reveal the terms that led your traffic to you. The acquisitions area generally is something you should spend a little time getting to know. Understanding where your traffic is coming from – and, just as importantly, where it isn’t if you’ve used paid online advertising – can help inform better spending of your digital budget. For example, if social media traffic is highly engaged on your site then you might want to allocate more time and resources into your social media activities. Improving individual page performance While the areas discussed above are important to monitor on a site-wide basis, looking at the performance of individual pages using the same metrics can let you find any glaring poor-performers and improve them. Under the behaviour menu in analytics, click site content – all pages to see the views, time spent, bounce rate and more of each individual page. Doing this gives you incredibly useful data. Look at the bounce rates to see which pages are encouraging people to find out more and which are making them leave quickly. Focus first on

The numbers don’t lie, so follow yours and you’ll make your website work harder for your recruitment

improving the pages with high views and high bounce rates, which will have the biggest impact on encouraging traffic to flow throughout the rest of your site. Consider adding more internal links to other pages on your site, or buttons that aid navigation and guide a user’s journey more effectively. Alternatively, you could redesign the page altogether – try putting a video at the top for example – or try something as simple as just changing the headings and some of the copy. Evolving your website to be more effective is an ongoing project, not a one-and-done effort. Once you start measuring what’s going on you have benchmarks to come back to after you’ve made changes to your content or structure. If the data gets worse, you’ll know the changes should be reversed and you can keep trying new things until you’ve found the right formula to engage your target audience. It doesn’t matter how stylish your website looks if it’s not providing visitors with the information they need and a journey that guides them along the way. The numbers don’t lie, so follow yours and you’ll make your website work harder for your recruitment.

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I started my own business with TaxAssist Accountants to fulfil a dream and build something to be proud of â&#x20AC;&#x153;It had always been my dream to start my own business. Becoming a TaxAssist Franchisee has changed my life: I am not only financially well off, with a better lifestyle, but I also now have a purpose. I have a real sense of achievement.â&#x20AC;?

0800 0188 297 Contact us today in confidence

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www.taxassistfranchise.co.uk recruitment@taxassist.co.uk

31/05/2018 16:23

ADVERTISING FEATURE

If you have a passion for fashion, make Suit The City your next step Reach your full earning potential running a successful management franchise the same time, they are thoroughly bored with throwaway fashion. Suit the City are perfectly positioned to benefit from this evolving environment, to change the face of retail. Bespoke formal and casual wear is the way forwards and without the rocketing costs of stock or high street premises you can reap the financial rewards, whilst offering a premium service to your clients. Expert tailors based in Europe Your clients’ garments will be made in Europe to the highest standards by our tailoring team, using luxury Savile Row cloth. Due to our efficient measuring and production processes, our garments cost a fraction of the prices charged by designers and the Savile Row tailors. No previous experience of tailoring is required You and your team will receive comprehensive training to ensure that you understand how to service your clients. This includes our easy-to-learn processes, including measuring, styling and fabrics, plus all our in-house systems are there to help you get up and running quickly. On-going coaching and support helps you achieve your objectives.

uit the City has just entered its 12th year in business and the company is bucking the trend with a completely new approach to retail. With growing demand, low overheads and healthy margins, the opportunity bypasses the crisis on the High Street with a business model that is designed to benefit both you and your clients. The Business Suit the City offers a bespoke tailoring service to professional men and women. In fact women provide 50% of our business. Moreover, our reputation has enabled us to grow a following of loyal clients across the UK. We are now searching for forward-thinking, professional people to join us and build their business with our support. New franchisees can start their business with either men’s or women’s made-to-measure and expand in due course.

Your role Your communication skills will be employed to grow your client base and develop your team, which together with specialised knowledge that you will learn during training and throughout your time with Suit the City will ensure that you can offer five-star service. After all we have built our strong reputation through service excellence. If this has provoked some thoughts, please feel free to contact us to discuss your next career move with Suit the City. You can find us on the web or phone directly. w. www.suitfranchise.com t. 01494 880790

Growing Market The market for bespoke tailoring is increasing every year, with clients excited by personalisation and individuality, at 72 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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29/06/2018 17:55

Do you have a passion for customer service? Do you have personal drive and energy? Join award winning and highly successful brand and the elite in glass and acrylic repairs. National account customers Franchise 500 ‘Best of the Best’ 25 UK franchise areas operating (320 globally) Exclusive single & multi van territories available Multiple revenue streams New Consistently ranked Franchise 500 listing to business? No worries we’ll Full training included give you all the No industry experience required coaching and support you need.

superglassukfranchise.com

phil@superglassuk.com

We are looking for Training mentors/Trainers for our SW Hair Extensions Training Academy (you do not even need to have a salon!). Licence fee for this is £1200. The price covers the following:P Accredited Trainer Certificate oooenabling you to carry out training in oooall 6 Hair Extensions methods

P Ongoing business support to oooestablish your training business and ooomaximise your income

P 2 x Hair Extensions Training Kits ooo(contents are in the Training oooBrochure)

P Full accredited 2 day hair extensions oooSW Hair Trainer course including all 6 ooohair extension methods

Consultation Pads x 20

P Sub Section on our Training website ooolisting P Marketing on all social media oooplatforms. You’ll also be promoted oooin all our main advertising including oooHair Extensions Training Magazines

P All Marketing Material for your ooouse with your OWN logo incorporated oooincluding on the Hair Extensions oooTraining Packaging. P

Exclusivity for your territory

We offer a full training and support programme to assist with the development of these skills. You do however, need to be prepared to work hard, follow our systems and be fully committed to getting the business off the ground in your local area.

t: 07729 667402

e: info@swhairextensions.com

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Why are Premier franchises a step ahead of the rest? Franchising is a great way to make the transition into becoming a business owner and there’s some key benefits to joining Premier

remier is a market leader in the delivery of sport and physical activity within UK primary schools. We’ve been engaging young people in sport for over 18 years and deliver sport and physical activity in 15% of English schools. Premier delivered over 510,000 hours of activity last year and collectively employ over 1,200 qualified professional instructors with 126 franchises operating in the UK and 197 franchisees in total around the world. Premier are offering a new 14 month training programme for all franchisees and ongoing operational support This includes a 14-month support programme, two months prior to start of trading and 12 months following. You will be supported by our best-in-class franchisees, which includes following the day in the life of one of our franchisees. Also included is business planning and KPI structure support. This training includes product, sales, operations, recruitment, quality assurance, finance, marketing and much more. This is a new incentive to add value to new franchisees who come on board. Premier is always committed to continual improvement. remaining above the line at all times to be outstanding and passionate in everything we do. Premier runs national marketing campaigns to help you drive business within your area Part of this includes our award winning national campaigns alonside localised templated campaigns and national PR generating over £1m in value 2017. As well as literature, branding, access to HubSpot marketing system, new balance kit, online shop and events and exhibitions Premier also provides guidance and advice for general tactics and digital marketing within social media channels.

Work for yourself not by yourself In the last academic year, Premier’s franchise network has displayed incredible growth. Territory revenue was up by over 25%. A Premier franchise offers budding franchisees a platform to achieve their personal and professional goals by combining their passion for physical activity and making a positive impact on the lives of children. You can take control of your career by working for yourself but not by yourself and doing something you love every day. We make a difference Our core purpose is to educate and activate the world. We do this by delivering exceptional opportunities for young people and adults to make the very most of their lives. Helping children become the best versions of themselves through innovative, life changing programmes and initiatives. Why not start your journey today? makesportyourbusiness.com 01953 499 040

74 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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Love fashion, live your passion with Suit the City Join a leading business in a growing market, beating the current trends in retail Supply professional clients with made-to-measure, luxury garments: you will have a high rate of repeat business and referrals Low overheads - no stock, no waste and you can work from a small city centre studio Build your business with the aid of a team of Consultant Tailors all trained by Suit the City Full training and support is given during the first three months and then on an on-going basis For more information please call us or visit our website

www.suitfranchise.com

01494 880790

Franchise Opportunity with Exceptional Returns Fifo Capital is a fast growing, global, business-finance franchise. We provide short term, high return cashflow finance solutions for secure small and medium sized businesses. Our USP is to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;build strong local relationships with network professionals who can refer good quality growing local businesses in need of cashflow supportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. The business is enjoying rapid growth and we are in need of new territory franchisees right across the country. The processes are simple to follow so would suit a wide range of business people with varying backgrounds. Talk to us today.

Training and Development

Brand and Marketing

Streamline CRM

Credit, Legal and Process

T: 01344 388 084 E: england@fifocapital.co.uk W: fifocapital.co.uk/join-fifo-capital

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29/06/2018 18:32

Mental health

Going mental Everyone can suffer poor mental health from time to time. And whether youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a franchisor or a franchisee, you must ensure your employees are given the best care By Eric Johansson

76 elitefranchise | JULY 2018

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Mental health

“Not only is this inherently the right thing to do – it is also something that both customers and prospective employees will increasingly expect from organisations” Emily Cryan, Cascade HR

rom the moment you start reading up on mental health issues you’re struck by one inescapable truth – no one is immune. Whether you’e a franchisor, a franchisee, an employee or neither, struggling with psychological illnesses can happen to anyone. Just looking at the figures and stats make for some sombre reading. For instance, more than one in seven people have at some point experienced mental health issues in the workplace, according to a Royal College of Psychiatrists report. “It’s clear mental health issues have no boundaries in the workplace,” says Brendan Street, professional head of emotional wellbeing at Nuffield Health, the non-for-profit healthcare provider. Given the likelihood of someone in your business suffering from these problems, it’s clear franchise leaders have their roles to play when it comes to the people within their organisations. “It doesn’t matter how big or small your business is [or] what stage an employee is at in their career,” he says. “If stress and personal issues become too much, the consequences can be severe for any individual.” Few franchisors and franchisees would be unaware of the potential human cost for people struggling with their emotional wellbeing. That’s why they can’t dodge their responsibility against the individuals in their organisations. “[It’s] ethically important for employers to uphold their duty of care to support both the physical and mental health of their staff,” says Emily Cryan, HR business partner at Cascade HR, the HR and payroll software company. From a legal standpoint, employees who can show that their conditions count as disabilities protected by the Equality Act 2010 against poor treatment from employers. But there’s far from a singular reason to take these matters seriously. “Not only is this inherently the right thing to do – it is also something that both customers and prospective employees will increasingly expect from organisations,” says Cryan. “A conscience matters.” However, caring for employees’ emotional wellbeing isn’t just the proper thing to do as a person but it’s also the right thing to do for the company. “The risks are significant and very serious,” says Shan Hussain, health and wellness advisor, GP and author of The Big Prescription. “Aside from the obvious health issues that can arise, the financial impact can also be costly.” For instance, 84% of managers believe stress affects absences within their workplace and 22% believe it has a significant effect on why people don’t go to work, according to research from Cascade HR. On a national level, the charity Centre for Mental Health estimates that emotional wellbeing issues cost businesses £34.9bn in 2016. But the financial price from absentee

staff isn’t the only risk franchisors and franchisees face by not tackling these issues “Employee unhappiness and unrest can lead to a toxic work environment that customers can become wary of, potentially reducing repeat business,” says Hussain. Clearly, there’s a need for business leaders to take mental health issues seriously. However, they should start by treading lightly. “The first thing an employer should do is be conscious of how common, yet poorly understood mental health issues can be,” continues Street. He points out that words like depression and anxiety can have different connotations for people and can even be frightening or confusing. Indeed, almost nine out of ten people with mental health problems have seen stigma and discrimination negatively affect their lives, according to the Mental Health Foundation, the charity. “An employer should not be trying to diagnose but support and open up conversations about mental health,” he says. “Education, resources and training on the topic, including how to spot at-risk employees, can help advance awareness and understanding.” Secondly, franchisees and franchisors should be open with employees and talk to them about their feelings and why they may be feeling bad. “The cause may not be something the employer can directly influence, of course, and the causes may be multifaceted,” says Cryan. “However, talking is important.” Looking at another Cascade HR study, 77% of people believe the support of an effective manager plays a significant part in their management of stress levels and mental wellbeing. “Conversations about mental wellness therefore need to happen,” she says. Thirdly, business leaders should double down on efforts to create a nice working environment where everyone feels welcome. “Actively try to make sure the workplace is free of bullying and harassment,” says Street. Moreover, these initial efforts should also include a stress risk assessment. “Make sure workloads are monitored and offer flexible working opportunities whenever possible,” he says. Finally, once these systems are in place, it’s crucial employers keep measuring the wellbeing levels of their staff. “Not only will this ensure everyone remains focused on what really matters – psychological wellness levels – it will also provide a solid business case for the need to invest in wellbeing, which will help silence any members of the senior management team who may have previously doubted its importance,” says Cryan. While these these steps are by no means exhaustive, they should provide franchisors and franchisees with a good starting point to tackle mental health issues in their workplaces. July 2018 | elitefranchise

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An exciting business opportunity with one of the lowest management service fees in the industry. Enjoy the returns from building your own business in a £6bn marketplace which includes retailers, supermarkets, offices, GP surgeries, schools and much, much more.

WE HELP YOU SUCCEED Average net profit margin 20% - Huge potential - Exclusive Territory - Investment from just £19,600 + VAT

With BCS your route to achieving your financial goal is tailored around your personal objectives, experience and available resources. Although franchise owners share a common goal, the route each takes is entirely personal to them. We work with you to define your plan and then support you in enjoying the journey through our 5 STAR Support package. Business Growth Support - for the duration of your business Training and Development - the knowledge to run and build your business Flying Squad - in territory assistance from out elite support team Head Office Assistance with day to day tasks - HR, Recruitment, Telemarketing etc Exit Model / Buy Back Scheme - planning for the future With a Betterclean Services franchise you get an exclusive territory, a large support network to help you run and build your business and one of the lowest MSFs in franchising.

If you’re enthusiastic, self-motivated and would like to apply to join our network call today on 0800 772 0810. Bettercleana adv.indd 2

30/05/2018 14:22

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Businesses are buzzing with the strength of coffee Tom Acland, managing director of Cafe2U UK, returns with the second part of his series of how budding franchisees can benefit from the UK coffee market having been estimated to be worth £9.6bn

obile coffee franchisees have an amazing opportunity ahead of them. With more people being eager to enjoy a hot jug of Java without the inconvenience of having to walk to the nearest coffee shop to get their caffeine fix, Cafe2U UK franchisees are perfectly placed to capitalise on their cravings. Whilst most workplaces have instant coffee available and some offer a canteen service, workers up and down the UK still opt to spend money on high-quality coffee from a mobile van. Bringing a workforce out to the back of a van also brings other benefits. A recent survey we conducted outlined that for a number of customers, the social experience of coming out to grab a coffee and standing in a queue with colleagues is a highlight of their day. It provides a chance to get away from the desks for five minutes and to venture outside into the fresh air, socialise, relax, text a friend or answer the daily quiz posed by their friendly barista. Many HR departments are encouraging a break for their workers in this way.

However, as consumers become more discerning, it’s important franchisors continually invest in developing their product range. With our 19 years in the market, you can ensure Cafe2U UK is ensuring that you’ll be offering the latest on-trend coffees and twists. This has seen us add drinks such as turmeric and matcha lattes, plus alternative milks like of coconut milk. But it’s not just the latest flavour of Arabica beans that needs to be kept in mind. Similarly, consumers are becoming increasingly driven by environmental issues. As a Rainforest Alliance Certificated business, we’re confident of the provenance of our coffee and passing on that our coffee is grown responsibly is a key message to customers. Recently the so-called Latte Levy has dominated the press. The idea put forward by MPs is that adding a 25p tax on disposable coffee cups would reduce the waste from these cups. In response, launching our own reusable KeepCup has seen us meet customer demand for an ethical

response. We’re also researching the launch of a more sustainable cup too. Drilling down into the buying habits of these customers reinforces this. On average, they’ll typically spend around £5 per visit, which equates to a coffee plus accompanying food items. Offering breakfast, lunch and other hot and cold snacks ensures that we cover a wide range of tastes and needs. Our operating experience has demonstrated that this is what customers want. High quality coffee, other hot beverages and cold drinks are now an essential part of any event organised around the UK. Our mobile coffee vans can obviously go anywhere any time for any type of events. This is something we actively encourage our franchisees to arrange in their local areas, attending everything from fivea-side football tournaments and park runs to school fetes, village fairs and even car launches at car dealerships. By carefully planning their rounds, budding franchisees like yourself can ensure they are operating in areas with less competition. We have a professionally mapped territory set with priority areas across the UK and we’re constantly looking for motivated baristas to launch in new territories. Through our low-overhead, high-profit model, we are confident we can help franchisees make the most of the current coffee boom and look forward to adding to 90 plus vans currently operating across the country. franchises@uk.cafe2u.com www.cafe2u.co.uk/franchise-opportunities

JULY 2018 | ELITEFRANCHISE

Mike Lane

Made to f t Measuring his success, Mike Lane details the challenges of being a bespoke tailoring franchisee with Suit the City By Angus Shaw

ike Lane has just tied up his first year as the franchisee for Suit the City Bath, the bespoke tailoring franchise. But while he’s happy with how things have turned out, he’s not afraid of mentioning that it has required a lot of hard work. Lane was in the fabric of the corporate world before joining a franchise, having clocked time in different management roles with various industrial packaging companies and his own for 14 years. However, tired of pencil pushing, he threw in the towel in his 30s and spent some time as a tour guide. “When I got out of that I didn’t want to go back into that world or anything like it,” he remarks. But the allure of self-ownership kept grabbing him by the collar. “I wanted to be my own boss again, to work for myself,” he says. “So I started looking around for things that interested me.” While joining a tailoring franchise may seem like an off-the-cuff career move, Lane has always had an eye for quality clothing. “I always had an interest in men’s fashion,” he says. Although, while previous jobs initially enabled him to experience the sartorial bliss of wearing suits and ties on a daily basis, things had changed. “In recent years, as I’ve got middle-aged, I’ve gained weight,” he says. “So I’ve found it harder to be fashionable when I was living the corporate life.”

80 elitefranchise | July 2018

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Mike Lane

Seeing the chance for familiar selfownership yet a fresh line of work as a franchisee, Lane kept his eyes peeled for an opportunity. And upon discovering Suit the City, he was blown away by the prospect of combining his latent fashionista tendencies with a strong franchise model. “Through various franchise shows and things like that I met Suit the City and I didn’t know there was a franchise for tailoring,” he recalls. Striking up conversation at a franchise show at the Olympia in London with Tony Carr, franchisee of Suit the City Guildford, is what brought him into the fold. “I just thought it was right,” he says. Having considered his options, Lane decided Suit the City was the right fit for him. After signing the dotted line, he quickly set out to make the most of his new venture. The first step of which was to embark on Suit the City’s

rigorous franchise training regime. “There was an awful lot to learn,” he says. During several weeks, Lane repeatedly visited the franchisor’s head office and was rapidly brought up to speed about how the model worked. “Because it was totally new to me, [I had to learn] the technical side of it and how the franchise, systems, relationships with suppliers, measuring and everything else works,” Lane explains. Despite the steep learning curve, Lane was thrilled when he opened for business. “It was a very exciting time,” he recalls. “Very exciting but daunting, wondering if anyone was going to come through the door.” However, he didn’t rest on his laurels but actively worked on getting clients through his doors, utilising his considerable networking chops in the process. Indeed, skills picked up in his

Being a bit older, I was interested in a franchise so that it would help me with training and getting started rather than starting absolutely from scratch again.

past career meant Lane found more comfort with his clients than expected. “It really reinforced my thoughts that it was the right thing to do,” he says. Opening a new business is always a daunting experience but fortunately the franchisor was there to support Lane. “They’ve been incredibly supportive and helpful,” he says. But while the head office was always just a phone call away, the size of the network meant that, for the most part, Lane had to do most of the heavy lifting. “But on the other hand I’ve got people that I can talk to and you probably wouldn’t have that so much if you were part of a big franchise that would be more formalised,” he says. “So it’s got pros and cons, definitely. At the moment it’s been right for me because I like that support and interaction.” Looking back on his first year as a franchisee, Lane is happy that the company has grown. Albeit not in the pace that he first predicted. “This is effectively a brand new business in a new area backed by a franchise that isn’t well-known and a brand that isn’t well-known,” he says. “You wouldn’t expect much more.” Luckily, as the business heads into its second year, Lane is confident all his hard work will pay off. “I just hope the growth will continue and I think a lot of things that haven’t come in like referrals and repeat orders will start coming in,” he says. “What I would expect with this sort of franchise is you reach a point where you’re not fighting for every order, some orders will come in naturally.” Despite the slightly disappointing growth, he’s optimistic about the future and happy that he decided to try something new for size. “On a personal level I’m enjoying it and it’s what I hoped for and it’s not any better or worse than I hoped it would be,” he concludes. “I’m prepared to work hard so all that is absolutely fine.” With that attitude, his business seems tailored for success. JULY 2018 | elitefranchise

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v2-Daltons business - full page ad - 196x270 with 3mm bleed CMYK 300dpi.pdf 1 05/10/2017 16:55:02

Buy or sell a business or franchise today...

• Search over 30,000 businesses for sale • Franchise opportunities to suit every budget

• The UK’s favourite place to buy or sell a business

www.daltonsbusiness.com Untitled-3 Untitled-12 1 1

12/01/2018 05/10/2017 17:53 17:14

OVER 3 5

FRANCH 0 IS WORLD ES WIDE

www.ﬁltafryplus.co.uk | dslater@ﬁltagroup.com

Could YOU be the next UK Franchisee?

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29/06/2018 18:31

RESALE V VIRGIN TERRITORIES

Like a BY KATE LEGG, CEO, KOMERSE

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Budding franchisees have two options when buying a franchise – getting either an established territory or launching a new one. The choice makes all the difference for what happens next

o you’ve decided to buy a franchise and have chosen a network. Sometimes, the decisions stop there. However, in many cases, you will have the choice between either buying a virgin territory and setting up a new branch in that location or buying a resale from an existing franchisee. This month, we look at the pros and cons of these two options.

Virgin territories

In the case of a virgin territory, you’ll be the first person to open a branch in your area. You’ll have a blank canvas and be free to select your location, recruit your own staff, launch the business and grow your reputation. Having said this as you’ll be starting from scratch, there are no guarantees the business concept will work in your area. The franchise brand may not be well known in your territory and it may take some time before you’re able to establish the business, recover the initial investment and grow your turnover to a profitable level. You’ll be starting from zero customers and will most likely spend considerable time and money on marketing. Similarly, although you’ll be able to recruit your own staff and choose the people you want to work for you, you’ll also have to train them. None of the staff will have any prior experience of the business and so you’ll be upskilling the staff at the same time you’re learning the ropes yourself.

84 ELITEFRANCHISE | JULY 2018

Resale territories

Conversely, in a resale, the buyer takes over an already established business. This usually includes an established customer base and existing employees. In this sense, the buyer hits the ground running with a franchise that already has a turnover and hopefully, a loyal customer base. Existing staff will already be familiar with both customers and business processes and can often assist with a smooth handover to the buyer. Further, the business will have been tried and tested in the relevant territory for some time. The buyer will be able to review historic performance figures and is more likely to be able to make a better assessment of the potential future turnover and profitability. The risk with a resale is that if the business has

RESALE V VIRGIN TERRITORIES

a poor reputation or troublesome employees, the buyer inherits those problems. All employees will have a right to transfer with the business, regardless of whether the resale is an asset sale or share sale. As a result, any employment issues will also transfer. This could include, for example, a course of disciplinary action or grievances raised by staff or even simply a group of employees who’ve become set in their ways and are resistant to changes that a buyer may want to introduce. Similarly, if the business has a poor reputation in the area, the buyer will need to overcome the negative perception and invest heavily in new marketing initiatives to try and regain customer trust.

Cost

From a financial perspective, it’s often difficult to make a straight comparison between a virgin territory and a resale. With a virgin territory, the cost of buying the franchise rights themselves may be cheaper, but the buyer may also need to invest in new premises, buy initial stock and equipment and the costs of recruiting and training new employees. In the case of a resale, there will be the purchase price, plus the legal and professional costs associated with the acquisition. These are likely to include

advice from a solicitor and accountant and the buyer may also be required to contribute to the franchisor’s legal costs. However, usually, there wont be further costs to fit out premises, buy equipment or recruit and train staff.

From a financial perspective, it’s often difficult to make a straight comparison between a virgin territory and a resale. Legal processes

The legal process is usually quicker and cheaper to acquire a virgin territory. Typically, the only legal document will be the franchise agreement. All buyers should have the agreement properly reviewed by an experienced solicitor to ensure they fully appreciate the extent of obligations they are taking on. A review of a franchise agreement can usually be completed fairly quickly and is relatively inexpensive. If the buyer is taking on premises, then legal advice may also be required in connection with the grant of the lease. Locating and securing suitable premises may take some time. If the premises are leasehold, timescales will be governed in part by the speed of the landlord’s solicitor. In the case of a resale, the main documents will include the sale agreement and franchise agreement. Depending on how the sale is structured, there will also be a variety of ancillary documents. The legal process for buying a resale typically takes a couple of months, although if there are delays with landlords and/or funding requirements, the process could take much longer. Overall, there are pros and cons to both alternatives. Which option is best depends on the specific circumstances of each deal. Furthermore, in some networks, there may be no choice – a young network may have only virgin territories for sale whilst a more mature network may only be able to offer resales. In either case, the key is to thoroughly research the business opportunity you’re considering. Detailed business plans should be prepared, ideally including “best” and “worst” case scenarios. Only after thorough research is it possible to evaluate and compare the different opportunities that may be available. JULY 2018 | ELITEFRANCHISE

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The UK’s No1 dry carpet, upholstery and hard floor cleaners Earn in excess of £50,000 per year If you’re looking for an exciting career change that will bring you financial security without the constraints of working for someone else, a zerodrytime franchise could be the right choice for you. Our franchisees come from all backgrounds: Armed Forces • Police • Fire • Advertising Printers • Sales People • Carpet Fitters and many more...

Franchise areas available near you

Call: 0800 180 40 20

Key Benefits 4 great earning solutions Full training & support On job training in customers homes Online videos & information Dedicated area Domestics & commercial Man in a van or management roles Great earning potential Repeat customers

zerodrytime.com/franchise

ZDT adv.indd 1

29/03/2018 13:52

Buy a sandwich franchise. It’s the humble that sandwich tops the list of Britain’s favourite foods. The British ‘on the go’ sandwich market is currently valued at £4.4bn. Brits consume over 11.5 billion sandwiches a year.

Visit FranchiseSales.com to find out more about buying a sandwich franchise – and more! Untitled-7 1

08/01/2018 10:48

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Another quick starter at FiltaFry FiltaFry franchisee purchases second territory after being in business less than six months

t’s been a quick start to the year for FiltaFry franchisee Lee Morton who started business less than six months ago after purchasing his local territory: the Cardiff postcode. Morton has big ambitions of growing a multi-van operation after meeting with other franchisees at this years Filta franchisees conference. This annual event enables franchisees to network and come together as a team. Over the years, the franchise network has been known for their close relationship and willingness to help one another with advice and support. “I’ve now started looking for my first employee to man the other van whilst I look to build up my second territory – the Bristol postcode,” says Morton. “I’ll then get both vans running at full capacity before I begin to look to add another employee and a further third van to my business. “I have only been within the Filta set-up for a few months but already it’s significantly better and more professional than my previous experience with a franchise and it reaffirms that I made the correct decision to invest. “The support I’ve been given from the head office, in particular from Damian Slater the franchise manager, has been second to none. Filta have even recently agreed to sponsor

I have only been within the Filta set-up for a few months but already it’s significantly better and more professional than my previous experience with a franchise and it reaffirms that I made the correct decision to invest 88 ELITEFRANCHISE | JULY 2018

Lee morton (right), shaking hands with Jason Sayers, CEO of FiltaFry

my sons’ football team, Caldicot Town AFC juniors, which is a gesture most appreciated by all involved and another example of the support provided.” Morton is just one example of how quickly the FiltaFry franchise network is growing. Not only are new franchisees looking to purchase territories but so are existing ones and even customers of the franchise’s service. Commenting on this impressive success, Slater says: “We now have several franchisees running multi-van operations, some of which have bought multiple territories from day one. Lee has the right attitude and focus to develop his business in the correct way and I have the utmost confidence that he will be very successful.” 01788 550100 www.filtafryplus.co.uk

Due to increased demand for arts & crafts classes, parties and events, the award-winning Creation Station are looking for proactive and friendly people to run their own successful franchise.

Rated 5-Star by customers on Trustpilot and in an independent survey, franchise owners rated the franchise as 5-Star.

Would you love to be your own boss, doing something you love with the backing of an established, tried and trusted brand? Request your free information pack today.

Over 120 people already enjoy running their own rewarding franchise.To check if your area is available and for more info call Maggie today on 01395 29700.

s so pleased my area was still available as The Creation Station really ticks all the boxes for me and my family.â&#x20AC;? Inspiring imaginations in North Watford, Hertfordshire

thecreationstation.co.uk/run-your-own-franchise Creation Station FP.indd 1 new tcs ad.indd 1 Untitled-2 1

As seen on.

01395 239700 07/12/2017 11:44 10:51 02/02/2018 12/01/2018 17:48

Franchise Resales

Buy an existing franchise

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Search 100s of franchise resales now Visit bfsale.co.uk/eliteresales

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an altogether friendly bookkeeping experience

Merry Maids has been one of the most successful home cleaning franchise operations in the world for the past 37 years, with almost 100 franchises in the UK. If you’d like to hit the ground running, perhaps one of our existing Merry Maids businesses is for you.

Northampton

Investment: £60,000 Established: 2005 Turnover: £140,000

Wigan

SOLD

Investment: £35,000 Established: 2015 Turnover: £40,000

Grantham & Newark Investment: £75,000 Established: 2004 Turnover: £130,000

Bromley & Orpington Investment: £195,000 Established: 2002 Turnover: £340,000

TruGreen is the world’s largest lawn care company. The journey began as a small private company in 1973 which was acquired by ServiceMaster in 1990 and we now serve more than 3.4 million residential and commercial customers throughout the UK and the USA. Be a part of the world’s largest lawn care company with one of our rare resale opportunities. We may also have other areas available for resale as our franchise owners’ circumstances can change at short notice so if you don’t see an area that you might be interested in listed, please still get in contact as we may not have had chance to update our resales information.

South Oxfordshire Investment: £54,000 Established: 2010 Turnover: £54,000

ServiceMaster Clean Contract Services deliver office cleaning, commercial cleaning and contract cleaning services to businesses across the UK. Our rare resale opportunities benefit from employees, equipment and customers, so that you can continue to grow a profitable business. We also have vacant territory available in Scotland, Yorkshire, the Midlands, Norfolk & Kent.

Bournemouth & Poole Investment: £80,000 Established: 2014 Turnover: £120,000

Glasgow & East Strathcylde Investment: £300,000 Established: 2003 Turnover: £478,000

Over 4 million businesses in the UK require a bookkeeping service and you can be a partner in supplying it! Whether you are a qualified or an experienced bookkeeper we have a route to suit you. As a Rosemary Bookkeeping franchise, you can benefit from the following: • Recurring income with average 50% net profit margins • Excellent growth opportunities to build into a management style business • Flexible hours – work from home – keeping costs down • Dedicated support in Bookkeeping, Operations, Sales & Marketing Although we don’t currently have any resale opportunities on the market, we do have vacant territories throughout the UK.

Contact ServiceMaster Ltd today on 0116 275 9005 or email franchisesales@servicemaster.co.uk for more information