Franchise Info | UK franchises | Franchisor News | Summer Franchisor News 2008

Business Franchise has gone digital!

Business Franchise is now available in an online interactive digital format.

The June issue, out on Frida 30 May, will be the first magazine available in this format on BusinessFranchise.com.

This means that Business Franchise will be even easier for prospective and current franchisees to access.

With many potential franchisees looking for their perfect franchise online, Business Franchise, the only official journal of the British Franchise Association (bfa) and the only official magazine of the bfa-approved Franchise exhibitions, has ensured it stays at the top of its game with franchisee recruitment. By being published online Business Franchise places itself in front of a wider audience, and continues to uphold its commitment to uniting franchise seekers and franchisors successfully.

Visit www.businessfranchise.com to explore Business Franchise online in this new and exciting interactive digital format from today! Business Franchise is delighted to announce the appointment of Yudu Media (www.yudu.com) as our digital publishing partner to facilitate this.

UK franchise industry recognises excellence at the 2008 Franchise Marketing Awards

The leaders of the UK’s major franchise companies gathered to reward excellence in marketing when the winners of the 2008 Franchise Marketing Awards were announced on Friday 4 April.

Companies shortlisted ranged from Subway to Prontaprint and Gymboree to NBC Bird & Pest Solutions, all illustrating the sheer breadth and diversity of the franchise industry.

Supported by the Daily Mail, Lloyds TSB, the British Franchise Association (bfa) and Business Franchise, The Franchise Marketing Awards is now in its third year and recognises marketing excellence in the franchise industry.

Doubling up the cash

Cash Generator Holdings Limited (CGHL), a new company, has acquired Cash Generator Limited (Cash Generator) from its founder and owner Brian Lewis.  

Cash Generator was founded in 1994 and is one of the UK’s most successful ‘buy and sell and loan’ store concepts with a highly respected brand, widely recognised throughout the UK.

CGHL was set up by Stephen Altman and Nigel Berger, founders of New World Corporate Finance Limited, a UK M&A boutique. Stephen and Nigel together with the Cash Generator management team successfully structured a transaction to buy the company from Brian.

Julian Urry, Managing Director of Cash Generator, said: “We see this transaction as an exciting and positive step in the development of the business.  Stephen and Nigel have been aware of the company for a number of years and see the full potential of the business.”

North London Business bullish in 2008

North London Business reports a bullish attitude to business conditions in spite of the current turmoil in the finance sector.

North London Business surveyed local firms and discovered 16 per cent of North London businesses report they are actively seeking premises in order to expand their operations within the next 12 months. This is backed up by 59 per cent of North London’s companies developing new products for launch within the next year.

Firms also report that selling to Europe has become easier due to the decreasing value of the pound. With the channel ports just two hours away north London is ideally placed between the north of the UK and Europe and many businesses trade into the continent.

Gary Ince, Chief Executive of North London Business said: “We are continuing to see strong interest in north London with both new and existing companies looking to the area as a location to establish and grow their operations. We consistently receive almost 100 commercial property enquiries per month through our commercial property database.”

Are you exposing yourself?

The law on paid holiday entitlement has recently changed and will change again in April 2009. Peter Abraham, Managing Director of HR4UK.com said: “Many employers have missed the significance to their business and, as they give their staff four weeks plus bank holidays, they think they are not affected. They can be affected, and could lose at an employment tribunal by doing nothing – an expensive mistake.”

The minimum annual paid holiday is now 24 days and will rise to 28. Peter recommended franchisors check what employment contracts say for employees leaving, or joining in the middle of the year (a percentage of 20 days or 28 days?). Also, check for part time staff. Find out if your holiday year starts on 1 April as Easter can be before or after 1 April and this will affect entitlements in a particular year.  Peter added: “I suggest you review your contracts.”

Follow in Shared Earth’s footprint…

Shared Earth has embarked on a carbon footprint project to calculate the combined impact the business, its employees and franchisees are having on the planet. This footprint will then be offset by a tree planting scheme later this year.
Part of Shared Earth’s new product development process involves travelling to supplier countries to work with artisans. For an ethical and fair trading company like Shared Earth, the carbon emissions generated through these visits and all staff travel has conflicted with their values and has created an ethical environmental dilemma.
Shop Assistant Manager, Laura Wilson, leads the project: “I was thrilled to be asked to undertake this project,” explains Laura. “It is impossible to ignore the damage that humankind is causing the plant and the severity of the consequences of climate change if we do not act now. Travel is a necessary part of the job for some Shared Earth employees and franchisees, but this also means carbon emissions. Second best to not travelling at all is to travel responsibly by offsetting those emissions.”
As carbon offsetting becomes increasingly important in a company’s corporate social responsibility strategy, it is also becoming increasingly important to franchisees who want to own an ethical business that customers trust.

Free Wi-Fi with your coffee?

As from 1 May 2008, Coffee Republic offers free wireless Internet access for customer use across the majority of its UK coffee bar estate. The launch will see Coffee Republic become the UK’s first coffee chain to provide Wi-Fi free of charge to its customers.

The new service is aimed at providing Coffee Republic ’s broad customer base with added value to the service they receive in the bars; from business professionals looking for a comfortable ‘mobile office’, to students looking for a leisurely place to download music or work on a project.

The offer also represents significant savings for regular Wi-Fi users. Currently, the UK boasts several ‘hotspots’ but the majority are pay-as-you-go or contract services which means customers could be paying up to £4.50 an hour* to use the technology. By using the new service at Coffee Republic , which is linked to a purchase, customers who use Wi-Fi for one hour a week could be saving themselves up to £234 a year.

Steven Bartlett, Chief Executive Officer, Coffee Republic said: “The launch of free Wi-Fi in Coffee Republic Bars will be a huge benefit and attraction to our customers. People are increasingly looking for ways to access the Internet on the move, they want to lead a flexible and modern lifestyle and we need to help them do that with the service we provide. This new service in our bars will give them a new evolution in technology in a warm, comfortable environment.”

Introducing Franchiseinfo.co.uk…

Sarah Sweby, Marketing Manager, Franchise portfolio

Since its redesign last Autumn, www.franinfo.co.uk has been successfully helping franchisors find new franchisees. In order to maintain its position as the premier choice for prospective franchisees to research the latest franchise opportunities online, www.franinfo.co.uk, the official website for the UK Franchise exhibitions, is to undergo a name change from 1 July 2008 to become www.franchiseinfo.co.uk.
 
The introduction of the new domain name is to ensure that we continue to maximise the website’s search engine optimisation, which forms a key element of our overall online marketing strategy.

Visitors to the site will still be able to access essential exhibition information and exclusive online registration, as well as benefit from one of the UK’s most comprehensive online franchise directories.

The name change comes in response to developments in the market, and demonstrates Venture Marketing Group’s commitment to continually update and improve our products to ensure that they consistently deliver optimum benefit.

The name change, coupled with the new design launched last year, strengthens the website’s position as a premier source of franchising information and franchises for sale, and is a must for anyone looking online to find out more about franchising.