In these times of economic change many are considering their future. Often we are driven by motives of being made redundant, ambition or sometimes retirement preparation and contemplating self employment through franchising as a potential way forward. Clearly the self employed franchise route is not right for everyone.
Below are a number of tips for researching the right franchise for you. The tips will also help you determine if in fact franchising will work for you.
1. Think about what it is you enjoy doing and what your strengths are. Deciding on a major lifestyle move will always work the best when your work is focused around doing what you enjoy and do best.
2. Talk to your partner or spouse and tell them about wanting to build your own business. Make sure that the people that will be most affected by any move in your employment are informed of your reasoning. Make sure that those close to you will be there for you financially if necessary but more importantly, emotionally.
3. Recognise that running any business is not an easy ride and like anything in life has its ups and downs. Replicating a proven system is what franchise business is all about so this helps to reduce the downs and maximises the ups. It is vital therefore that you want to follow a system that has been tried and tested.
4. Visit information rich sources online such as franchise directory sites and reading franchise publications where you can research information about franchising and genuine franchise businesses that could be of interest to you.
5. Make an appointment to visit the franchise companies that interest you the most. Meet the key people that would train and support you. Do you get on well with them? Could you work with them? Do you come away from your visit feeling confident?
6. Obtain permission to speak to some of their franchisees. Speak to the franchisees and ask about their experiences. Ask questions such as, do you feel happy with running this franchise? Do you make a profit? What support do you get? How has the recession effected your sales and profit? Would you buy this franchise if you were me?
7. Having completed your research, identify which franchise opportunities are of the most interest to you. Draw up a short list of options.
8. It is vital now to speak to your bank. You can ask the bank for a report of what they know about the franchise systems of interest to you. Lenders tend to keep records about franchises they know about. With this information you can gain an independent report about the bank’s opinion of your short listed options.
9. Often you will need to borrow money to start a proven franchise and for this banks may lend up to 70%. This is because over 90% of UK franchisees run their businesses at a profit according to the British Franchise Association National Franchise Survey which gives the banks a lot of confidence to provide lending to franchise start up owners.
10. Finally you will need to look closely at the franchise contract which your chosen franchisor will present you with. This document governs the trading agreement between the franchisor and yourself. Consulting a British Franchise Association accredited lawyer is highly recommended.
When you have completed the above steps you should be well positioned to decide which franchise suits you best. It will then fall to you and the franchisor to sign contracts, arrangement payment of fees, book in for training and agree on your franchise business launch programme.
Take your time, find the right franchise for you and then work hard with your franchisors and customers support to build your own successful business.
Nick Strong is Managing Director of SelectYourFranchise.com and is one of the leading experts to the Franchise Market in the UK.
Visit Franchises UK site to find out more about Select Your Franchise.