A franchise opportunity can be a highly effective business model, especially with considering the current challenging economic conditions. Buying into a franchise limits your exposure to risk whilst also providing you with the framework to achieve real business growth.

Such a business opportunity should allow you to replicate the success a franchisor has already had, the same success that has enabled them to offer a franchise for sale. It should be running with a robust business model and the potential for growth in it’s own market should have been recognised before a franchise opportunity is offered. There should also be a clear structure for the new franchise and appropriate resources and support should be available to ensure the business start’s with strong foundations.

An important part of this is the relationship between the franchisor and the franchisee. This should be a close relationship. The franchisor should be approachable and willing to spend some time working with the franchisee, especially at the start of the new franchisee. Also the franchisee should have a clear understanding of the franchisor’s expectations and understand how the franchise brand & resources should be used. An example of this is the amount of freedom a franchisee has to make use of intellectual property, something which varies between companies.

Of course all of these things should be established from the outset. As a formal business opportunity a rigorous franchise agreement should be prepared. This should protect the integrity of the business and be fair to both parties. These are the foundation stones of trust that a successful franchise is built on. There should also be a strong procedure and documentation system in place. This ensures that the franchise set up runs smoothly and that all the necessary information is captured and recorded. It also means that the franchisee should be running the business in the way in which the franchisor intended.

It’s been said that franchising is like a marriage and this analogy rings true in many ways. It should be a long term commitment founded on trust, transparency and integrity. As with marriage it takes time for to build upon these qualities and both parties must adapt and learn from each other. And like a marriage the rewards continue to grow as the relationship matures.

However just like a marriage if the relationship becomes stale you can expect the franchisor’s head to be turned by a younger model who flashes a few firmer bits and promises to perform all sorts of exotic acts to make their relationship more exciting and dynamic.