Starting your own business is a fabulous journey everyone should have the privilege to enjoy.
In the franchising industry, most of the industry tips and tricks should have been tried and tested by the franchisor. The level of your personal preparation will have a huge contribution to your success in running your own business. So to help out we have put together our top 7 important things you need consider before buying a franchise;
1. Skills and Core Competence – There are over a thousand franchise concept in the UK. There will be one close to your skill and your core competency. Should you decide to venture into a new and more lucrative franchise opportunity away from your core skills, look out for the product or services that you think you could enjoy doing. You will spend much of your time at work especially in your first couple of years in business. The potential of you succeeding in business is much higher when you enjoy what you do.
2. Financial Expectation – All franchise concepts offer various degrees of potential or actual earning. You will increase your chances of getting in with the right franchise for you once you have considered your financial expectation.
3. Team Building – Are you a team player or work well under pressure on your own? Running your own business will inevitably put you in situations where you have to work with people. Some franchise can work remotely and some work in a shop or site. In a situation where you have to hire your own team member, consider an expert support or ensure that you make this one of your top questions to any potential franchisor you are going to meet.
4. Geographical Location or Territory – The success of a franchise business usually lean on your local knowledge about the industry and the popularity or stability of the brand. There are territories in the UK that could be harder to develop than others.
5. Family Support – Some say never tell anybody what you going to do, just do it. Some says tell your family and friends about what you are planning to do and listen to their feedback. Both are true to my experience however in a husband and wife situation or when you are sharing financial responsibilities with another person it is important that you secure the necessary support. It would be difficult to look for an opportunity that you really like to do and make a success of it when your closer network such as your wife or partner are strongly against it.
6. Understanding Processes – Running a franchised business can be compared to successful implementations of series of tried and tested processes. Is this you?There are franchisors who welcomes innovators and radical thinking and usually adapt quickly. However most successful brand have gained their ‘Unique Selling Propositions’ due to the processes and systems they undertake to deliver their product or services. Entrepreneurs are naturally creative and innovative however sticking to the systems has its own merit in franchising.
7. Time – having a good idea what time you prefer to work, when and how long you set aside to consider your options carefully can be helpful. Franchise concepts can be tailored from full time to part time or work around your family commitment. Giving yourself sufficient time will enable you to pick the ones that suit you.
On average it takes about 3 months to find a franchise from enquiry to the application. This can be affected by the way you are going to fund your new business. Allow additional time for securing bank funding. Launch processes can also be affected by site availability for shops and delivery schedules for van based franchises. Some business can be up and running in 8 weeks and some in 8 months. Factor this in your planning time.
In my 16 years of helping our franchise partners from application to launch and exit their business, I know that there are more personal factors that you need to look out for. The above lists are the most consistent in our partner selection process. Discussing them with your prospective franchisors can also help you make a balanced and well-informed decision.
Good Luck in your business venture and we hope you see you networking with us soon. Contact [email protected] and call 07966 061 030 for more details.
