Franchising has been proven to be a very successful business model that is now recognised as a reputable way of doing business in Australia. You might be surprised at the extent of franchised businesses that you deal with on a daily basis – they’re now everywhere: take-away foods, petrol outlets and retail stores. In fact the Franchise Council of Australia says, “It’s impossible to imagine a shopping centre without franchised stores. Franchising has revolutionised retailing in Australia, and provided small business proprietors with the competitive resources to compete against the large corporations that dominate Australian retailing”.
The top 100 global franchises, as ranked by Franchise Direct, includes McDonalds, Subway, 7 Eleven, International Hotel Group, Pizza Hut, KFC and Burger King as the top seven. In Australia, other popular franchises you might recognise include Boost Juice, Gloria Jeans, Eagle Boys Pizza and Bakers Delight.
Emerging Green
Whilst none of these well known brands are specifically green enterprises, many are greening their business. The green industry, however, is now growing rapidly around the world, with a range of green franchise opportunities emerging in the areas of organic foods, waterless carwashes, energy efficiency products, solar products, green business certifications, organic beauty care products, and recycling.
The International Franchise Association recognizes that green franchising is on the rise as inquiries about green franchises are increasing and so is the presence of green businesses at franchising events. In August 2009, Alisa Harrison from the association told Gwen Moran from Entrepreneur Magazine: “We’re seeing it across the board, from existing franchises that are becoming greener to those who are building their whole concept around being environmentally conscious. The green trend has been growing for about 25 years now, but it has only recently become mainstream.”
Investing in green seems like a smart business move as the industry is growing and contributing to worldwide economic growth as the green message begins to translate into government policy and initiatives.
Green Franchise Opportunities in Australia
Green franchising was the cover story of the March/April 2010 issue of Business Franchise Australia. March also saw the Franchising and Business Opportunities Expo taking place at the Sydney Convention Centre (19 to 21 March 2010). The range of franchises presented at the Expo was very broad, covering industries including beauty, health and fitness, automotive, entertainment, food and… the green industry with two Australian businesses – AllSafe and GreenBizCheck – exhibiting to promote their franchise opportunities.
We interviewed the directors of both companies to find out more about their business, the reasons why they chose to use a franchising model, they strengths as a franchisor, what they are looking in franchisees and their recommendations for other green businesses that would want to grow into a franchise.
AllSafe started in 1997 as an insulation business and grew to diversify as the need for energy efficiency products was increasing rapidly. Now AllSafe is a one-stop shop for energy efficiency products.
GreenBizCheck was created in 2007 with a vision to offer a certification program that helps businesses become more efficient and save money. GreenBizCheck now offers an effective marketing tool and first-rate green credentials to businesses.
Both businesses were created by teams of people with strong business acumen and a passion for the environment. Although AllSafe and GreenBizCheck are very different businesses in their offering, they stand for the same principles and values. They aim to run successful businesses that will make money while caring for the environment.
Green Passion
Both Mark Hawley, director of AllSafe, and Nicholas Bernhardt, director of GreenBizCheck agree that for anyone to be successful in this business, passion is required. When recruiting new franchisees, Mark Hawley says “we look for passion, passion for having a successful business and a passion for doing the right thing for both the customer and the environment.”
When asked about their strengths as a franchisor, both directors mentioned their business experience. In fact, experience does seem to be key for a franchisor to be able to guide their franchisee into a successful business venture.
In addition, Mark Hawley mentioned that “our strengths as a Franchisor are that we have all been in the industry a long time, we have lived and breathed energy efficiency for a number of years so deem this as an extremely valuable asset for someone who is wanting to enter into the industry”. Furthermore, “the franchise royalty was set low to encourage successful trading and healthy relationships between both Franchisor and Franchisee” added Mark.
Looking at GreenBizCheck, Nicholas Bernhardt says that the benefits of his franchise are that it “is low cost and there is no inventory or stock. Additionally franchise owners can operate from a home office further reducing their overheads.”
When asked about their advice to Green Businesses that would like to grow using a franchise model, both men mentioned the importance of using a strong franchise development team.
Overall, from research on green franchising in Australia, it appears that opportunities within the green sector are varied and suit a variety of different franchisee needs. In particular, investment and mode of operation vary from one franchise to another. Generally investment ranges from $25,000 to $150,000, and operations can be run as a shop or as a home business with no stock.
The Benefits of Franchising
A franchise is an agreement between two parties where, for the payment of a fee and royalties, the franchisee gets the rights to market and distribute a product or service using the trademark and operating methods of the franchisor for a fixed period of time.
The International Franchise Association defines franchising as a “continuing relationship in which the franchisor provides a licensed privilege to do business, plus assistance in organising training, merchandising and management in return for a consideration from the franchisee”.
According to the Franchise Council of Australia franchising is “a way of doing business”, “essentially a marketing concept”. One of the key benefits of a franchise is that it offers someone starting a new business the opportunity to operate with the tools of an already well-established business. And it offers that well-established business the opportunity to expand rapidly without the need for additional capital injection. It is a win-win relationship that represents relatively low risks for both parties.
Franchise Family
Nicholas Bernhardt says “we looked at the whole spectrum of distribution models and opted for franchising as it offers the most advantages for both Franchisor and Franchisees. It allows Franchisees to run their own business within a tried and tested system”.
Mark Hawley adds that “the benefits of becoming an AllSafe franchisee include the support of both head office and like minded other franchisee’s which enables you to feel that you’re not alone.” Mark compares the franchise relationships to the one of a family: “if someone is in need of a hand or advice we collectively avail ourselves.”
The choice of a franchise to run is entirely up to the franchisee and can be suited to meet specific needs in terms of investment, operations and product or service offering. Nevertheless, before embarking in any green franchise, make sure it is a solid business that will meet all your expectations.
So if you are looking for a business opportunity that will earn you money, while caring for the Earth, you should certainly consider the fast growing green franchise sector!
The Green Times Directory now has a green franchise category in its business services section. Check it now to see the profile of the green franchises available in Australia!
Green directory of eco-friendly Australian businesses. This green directory is providing you all details about environmental companies around Australia. Find the green business around your place.
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