Getting Started in Franchising*

Job hunting can be a bit of a pain, can’t it? Especially if you’re a parent, this is why I use skills what I have and work from home. As a single parent, a conventional 9-5 Mon-Fri job just wouldn’t work with the cost of childcare. I feel so lucky I am able to find a job that pays and allows me to work from home, but this isn’t a case for everyone. A logical direction to go in if you wish to work for yourself and be flexible, is to start your own business. This can appear to be a lengthy and daunting process, especially if it’s the first time you’re doing it. Or you could instead, consider franchising.

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So what is Franchising? You still work for yourself, you’re still the boss and responsible for all the parts of the business would be if you owned it yourself. The difference is, with any good franchise you’ll receive all the training you need to run it effectively. You’ll have on hand support from people who know the brand inside and out. In the past, franchising really only extend to food and retail (big high street names you would recognise) but now in the UK alone there are over 900 franchises you could be a part of. You’ll be part of a community of business owners all working under the same brand. The people who started the business are the ones who went through the set up process and the franchise you are buying into will be tried and tested so you can only go forward and succeed.

If you decide that franchising is for you, you need to decide what sector you would like to go into and how much you have to invest. Like any business you still need start up costs, but the difference is, you don’t need the business savvy, you’ll have all the help and support once you have joined a franchise. You also need to remember that you will have to pay a percentage of your earnings, but this could be a small price to pay if you have on going help running it. 1/5 start up businesses survive past their first 5 years, with franchises, that’s 4/5, a small percentage of earnings for that kind of success seems to be worth it.

Most of the big franchises you’ll be familiar with tend to be food or retail but if that isn’t for you, why not look into something like cleaning and restoring? Rainbow International have been delivery excellence in cleaning and restoration for over 30 years, they’re a reliable name in their industry and have even won awards! They’re also a member of Encouraging Women Into Franchising (EWIF) and have a number of a female owned areas. This really could be the franchise for us parents as it’s not a store franchise, you don’t need a premise and could do this from home around your child’s school hours! If this sounds like the one for you, you can visit their site.

As i’ve mentioned before, franchising is tried and tested, you won’t be going in blind and will be part of a community of business owners under one brand. If you’re lost for a career direction, this could be for you.