What is the franchise recruitment process?

The usual process

The recruitment process will vary from franchise to franchise, however, there will be the same key steps across all companies, which are:

1. The initial contact – this can take the form of a text message to set up a follow on call, a phone call straight away, or an email exchange and will usually result in further information being sent over to the prospective franchisee
2. A fact-finding stage – where you both undertake research about each other via sources such as Companies House, social media platforms, CVs, Google search, speaking to other franchisees/referees
3. A meeting – either via video call or face-to-face and can be on an individual basis or in a group setting. This can be formal or informal but it is important that you meet each other before any money changes hands
4. Possible follow-up discussions/video calls/meetings – to answer any outstanding queries that either party may have
5. Due diligence – the franchisor may ask the prospective franchisee for bank statements, a credit history, financial forecasts and a business plan. The franchisee may enlist the help of their accountant at this stage
6. The payment of a deposit in order to reserve a territory. At this point the Franchise Agreement will also be sent over to the franchisee to get checked by a lawyer specialising in franchise law. A list of British Franchise Association member law firms can be found on the here: https://www.thebfa.org/franchise-directory/

What to look out for during the recruitment process

• Quality control: the franchise should be as concerned about your suitability as you are about theirs
• Company background: ask what this is, how long they’ve been operating for and how many franchisees they have
• People: make sure you gel with the franchisor’s staff, it’s critical that you get on and can work well together
• Recruitment rates: ask how many franchisees the franchisor is planning to take on in the next year and what their current company structure is, that will give you an idea of how much support you’re likely to receive
• Failure rates: the franchisor should be honest about their failure rate. A proportion of all businesses fail but the key is why they failed, make sure you ask about this
• Other franchisees: try to speak to as many existing franchisees as possible, they are an invaluable source of insight into how a franchisor operates
• The premises: if possible, arrange to meet the franchisor at their premises which will give you a more rounded view of the franchise business as a whole
• Legal documents: it’s quite common to be asked to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), sometimes called a Confidentiality Agreement, prior to more detailed financial projections being provided by the franchisor. Make sure you have read and understood the terms of the document before signing
• Timescales: the franchise recruitment process can often be lengthy, even up to a year in some cases. The average is around three to six months but this varies dramatically depending on the franchise business

PGH Beegone process

We take a personal approach to our franchisee recruitment, when you enquire for information from us we will first message you via WhatsApp or text to arrange a suitable time for an initial chat. This initial chat will last approximately ten minutes and will cover topics such as your career background, what it is you’re looking for, what appealed to you about our franchise, what franchise model you are interested in, how much you are planning to invest and the timescale in which you’re looking to set up your business.

Following the initial chat, you’ll be sent our prospectus, details on the breakdown of your investment plus any other information discussed on the call.

We will then follow up with you via phone call at a mutually convenient time to see if you have any queries or feedback on the information sent. If you are interested in taking your research in the PGH Beegone franchise further at that point a short video call will be set up between you and our MD, Peter Higgs.

Once you’ve spoken to Peter and both agree that further discussions would be beneficial, a video call/face-to-face Discovery meeting will be set up where you’ll be given a detailed insight into life as a PGH Beegone franchisee including operational information, in-depth financial projections, sight of territories available to you plus any other topics that require further discussion. We will ask that you complete a short application form and a Confidentiality Agreement in advance of the Discovery meeting.

After the Discovery meeting, further meetings may be necessary to talk about any outstanding queries either you or we might have, after which, if we both decide the franchise is right for you, you will pay your deposit.

The deposit is 10% of the franchise fees, is refundable (minus a small amount to cover third party expenses), and will secure your territory for a period of four weeks. During this four weeks some of the tasks for you to undertake will be to get the Legal Agreement checked, seek advice from your accountant, apply for financial support (if necessary), start working on your business plan, register your own limited company and apply for VAT. After this point the franchise Legal Agreement will be signed by all parties and the remainder of your fees will then be due.

In the proceeding months there are a series of business set up tasks to do before you can start running your business, which we will provide a detailed list of and support you with. All-in-all the recruitment process takes around three to four months from start to finish.