Business Development from the Franchise Perspective #1

Dear Readers,

Franchising have never had a better time than now. Now is the bast time to expand and take that opportunity to fill up the gaps not serviced by your competitors. Once the air clears, you are in a good position to reap the "fruits of your labour". Anyways this is not what i say, this comes from a "Franchise Expert" I'll provide the link later.

So how do we do this you ask? OK, so in this series of blog post we will cover from end to end on how you can start a business develop it and expand using the franchising technique.

1. Business Start-up.

Start a business with a franchise strategy in mind. I say this is a must if you want to consider franchising in the future. Why? If you don't have an end objective or if you can visualise the end result, i don't think it will be as smooth sailing as you thought it would be.

So what are the points to consider when starting up a business with a franchising option in mind?

#1. Automate where possible. Automating certain processes in your business will help lower you headcount, and as such, running cost. Automation will also allows your business concept to be easily duplicated / replicated, which is an important aspect in franchising.

#2. Branding and trademarking. Do this as early in your business as possible. Do research on what can and cannot be done. Get an honest and knowledgeable marketing personnel / outsource it. You will need a fresh look, a striking color, a professionally created trademark / logo one that is synonymous to your business. Do research on your trade mark, make sure its unique.

#3. Keep track of your equipments. Keep an inventory. Trust me, you can thank me later.

#4. Keep clean and accurate records of your accounts. Get an accounting software, get an accountant if you can afford one. Else at least use a spreadsheet to keep track of your accounts. Keeping track of accounts will tell you in a glance if you are profitable. This is important. If you look at your accounts and you know that the business is not profitable, how could you sell your business concept? Know what's your gross sales, your net profit, cost of sales, percentage of waste, etc.

#5. Be a good pay master. Diligently and promptly pay off your debts. you will want to expect the same from your franchisees on their royalty.

#6. Have good relationships with your supplier. Refer to #5. After sometime, you will know if they are able to support you on your business expansion. You can't expand if you don't have a good supplier that can deliver raw materials and equipments to your franchisees.

#7. Get to know your business. By this i mean, each and every function in your business. Many a times we encounter business owners who don't know what their staffs are doing. :)

These 7 non-exhaustive list will help you in your plan of starting up a business for franchising. Without them, you can still do it, but of course, the path will be alot more winding than you would have thought.


We will discuss these in another post:

2. Planning for Expansion (Franchising)

- Knowing your Strength and Weaknesses.
- Staffing Requirements
- Business Expansion Strategy

3. Execution of Plan

- Selecting a Consulting Company
- What Makes a good Consulting Company.
- Research and Consultation.
- Legal landscape (local / International)

4. Post Implementation

- Reporting
- Support and Relationship Building