Franchise, anyone run one?

Need a change of direction but I am out of ideas? HAs anyone here taken the franchise route? They seem very expense but might be worth it if the quoted returns are realistic. Would probably be looking at “van based”

Watching with interest, I’ve been thinking about a chips away franchise but not sure how they work really.

Don’t forget that selling a franchise is actually a business – so of course the returns look good 🙂

My fiancee’s step dad did a couple of franchises (he’s retired now) – first one was some kind of office secure paper shredding business, which sounds so dull I’d probably jump in the shredder myself, but it appeared to be lucrative based on their lifestyle.

Second one was I think a vanity project of his wife’s – spa/salon thing – which bombed.

Pretzel wagon?

I ran a franchise with DPD when it was still Parceline.

I was offered 25,000 a year profit based on 52 stops in 2003. It was right on the cusp of the internet shopping boom so within a year, I was averaging around 75 -80 stops a day of which 25-30 were pure profit on top of the 25,000. I did over 40,000 a year for 3 of the 4 years.

When my contract was up, they reset my drop rate so I’d be getting 25,000 for 80 stops – I declined but it was great while it lasted.
Nowadays, the DPD franchise offers about 30,000 profit(outside London) based on 100+ stops. That’s too much like hard work for me but some people may be ok with it ?

That doesn’t sound particularly good on that one.

Would probably be looking at “van based”

By which you mean deliveries? Abso-****-lutely not.

on 100+ stops in a nominal 8 hour day (I know) you can see why when someone’s not in then dumping it in the bin and pushing a card through the door happens!

My local DPD man, has a few franchises with DPD.

He’s giving them all up next month. The new contract he has been offered means it’s simply not viable.

It’s a shame because he was really good.

By which you mean deliveries

No. There seem to be general categories, like home baed , van based, office based. Food based.
So van based means you work from a van primarily, e.g. garage door fitting, Dyno rod etc

So van based means you work from a van primarily, e.g. garage door fitting, Dyno rod etc

Gotcha.

My next door neighbours have a few car washing franchises – when i say they’re my next door neighbours, the house is their holiday home and twice the size of my only home. Oh and they’re both only 32….

It does make me wonder why I spent $$$$ on some fancy certificates to hang on my wall just to scrape by each month…

It does make me wonder why I spent $$$$ on some fancy certificates to hang on my wall just to scrape by each month…

We’ll running a business employing people is only going to be beaten by the the very top jobs

So van based means you work from a van primarily, e.g. garage door fitting, Dyno rod etc

Quite a few you see around here:

Wilkins Chimney Sweep https://www.franchisechimneysweep.co.uk/
Wheely Fresh bins https://www.franchiselocal.co.uk/green-cleen/
Lawn Doctor https://lawndoctorfranchise.com/

My next door neighbours have a few car washing franchises – when i say they’re my next door neighbours, the house is their holiday home and twice the size of my only home. Oh and they’re both only 32….

Just be nice to them, car washing franchises are on par with tanning salons for dodgy stuff 😂

Just be nice to them, car washing franchises are on par with tanning salons for dodgy stuff 😂

Yep scummiest of the scummy. Had a mate in CID, always interesting on a car trip as he could tell you which crime organisation they were all linked to. There was not a single hand car wash in Glasgow he would take his car to, put it that way.

Washing cash and cars, like Walt in breaking bad.
Seemed to work well for him, up to a point.

Talking to a chap in town the other week – he set up a car washing and detailing business on a bit of spare land he had – he’s turning over £30k a month now.

PAT testing? Money for old rope that one is.

PAT testing? Money for old rope that one is.

Paternity tests?

From a van?

PAT testing? Money for old rope that one is.

Falling market though – there’s just not as many PATs around nowadays that need testing.

PAT testing? Money for old rope that one is.

I wondered this. Not sure it is quite the ‘big income’ as some other franchise, but I get the feeling there would be a lot of work…

Mr Whippy? Definitely van-based, lunch included, and insanely lucrative judging by the mansion down the road with six vans parked outside. Possibly a bit murdery depending on whether you’re muscling in on someone else’s territory.

Don’t just have to sell ice-cream either…

Ice cream men round my way sell some expensive ice creams

I had a Snap on tools franchise for 5 years in the 90’s (hence the user name)

I did very well, earned double my previous years earnings, rookie dealer of the year award, paid off my five year business loan in under two years, managed to pay £30k overpayments off my mortgage in that time.

But I got a bit bored with it after 4.5 years & it took them a couple of months to find someone to take over my area.

Some good info here

It was good at the time but they were tightening the terms up when I left & I don’t think it would be so lucrative now.

My OH runs a kids teaching one, makes naff all and she’s trying to get out of it. Not surprising that there’s not much money in teaching, but choose carefully anyway!

I used to sell hashish for a friend. That the same thing ?

Reading this thread next to a copy of Franchise magazine that someone has left on a table in a waiting area. My impression is that most of the businesses on offer are barely scraping by themselves at store level.

Suckering others in under a franchise model will help them generate fees to survive another few years. Each time Someone new gets to call themselves business owner / director while getting paid under minimum wage if they account for all their time.

Maybe I’m getting cynical in my old age. Better off taking a full time job from one of the poor franchise owners 😂

Dominos Pizza before everyone wanted to be a healthy vegan maybe an exception. Interested to hear from others.

My impression is that most of the businesses on offer are barely scraping by themselves at store level.

This is the thing I wonder is it all a bit Ponzi scheme ish?

Maybe the ones that work are the bigger investment one (like a MacDonalds) but the smaller ones are a bit close to the bone.

Franchising is basically a way for companies to outsource a lot of the grief/admin etc onto the franchisee in return for potentially greater autonomy and reward.

Depends on how good the overall company is.