Considerations before you buy a franchise in the UK
Buying a franchise certainly makes a lot of sense. When you invest in a franchise you receive the benefit of support, brand recognition, and sometimes built-in customers will help you skip over a lot of the pitfalls that take down entrepreneurs starting from scratch. But there are still a lot of things that you need to consider to ensure which franchise model is right choice for you.
After you’ve found the perfect franchise, here is a checklist to make sure you’ve covered all of your bases before you buy:
Did you ask all the right questions?
Successful franchises are all about details and numbers, like turnover, failure rates, and the interaction between franchisees and the franchisor. These questions will help you to get to the root of exactly how the franchise works and know what you should expect.
Are you ready for the responsibility?
A franchise can be much easier than starting your own business from scratch, but that doesn’t mean you’ll have a completely easy ride. Any business requires hard work and determination. How do you feel about dealing with the public? Will the franchise be your main focus? Is there more that you would like to do professionally later on? These are important questions to know the answer to and to consider against the expectations of the franchisor.
Do you know the total cost?
Many franchise agreements will include quite a few additional costs beyond the initial buy-in. Rent, legal fees, travel, insurance, and more can all become your responsibility, depending on the arrangement you have with your franchisor.
It will undoubtedly be more than a one-time fee to get your franchise up and running, so make sure you have a clear idea of the financial responsibilities you are taking on. A specialist franchise solicitor should be employed to review the full franchise agreement and advise you of your liabilities under said agreement.
How do people view the franchise?
Brand recognition is important, but it’s even more important that people have positive connotations with the brand. Whatever industry and company you have chosen, you want to make sure that you are dealing with a franchise that customers already are drawn to.
Do you have the right location?
Location is everything with any business, but for franchises that usually have an intense competition to deal with, you have to make sure that your business will be filling a genuine need in the surrounding community.
These are some of the considerations that you must bear in mind as you begin on your franchise journey.