Starting your own franchise is exciting but in today’s climate can also feel a bit daunting. Ben Stickland has been with the WPA Healthcare Practice since 2019 and has built a successful franchise helping companies and individuals find the right WPA Health Insurance plans to meet their exact needs.
Continue reading “Promoting the Health insurance industry through social media”
The Holiday Franchise Company Has Partnered With Everymind To Help Promote Mental Health Awareness.
The Holiday Franchise company and its parent company Holidaysplease has partnered up with Everymind, to help promote mental health awareness for its franchisees, homeworkers and head office staff. Last week, the partnership was launched as part of the Mental Health Awareness week campaign and had received fantastic feedback from their teams.
Data and GDPR Compliance and Implications after Brexit
On the 31 December 2020, the Brexit Transition period ended meaning that from 1 January 2021, the UK has been able to amend UK employment legislation underpinned by European law. The UK’s Data Protection Act 2018 is one example, which is underpinned by the European GDPR.
This hot topic considers the impact of having left the EU on the UK’s Data Protection Act 2018 and the flow of personal data in and out from the UK and EU. Any reference to ‘data’ in this article means ‘personal data’.
Continue reading “Data and GDPR Compliance and Implications after Brexit”
Birmingham Tech announces the first cohort on their ScaleUp Programme with 12 innovative and exciting businesses selected
The 12 organisations at the launch of the Birmingham Tech ScaleUp Programme at the Innovation Birmingham Campus (part of Bruntwood Sci-Tech Birmingham)
WEBINAR RECAP, PART ONE: WHY NOW IS THE RIGHT TIME TO BECOME A FRANCHISEE
We invited Imran Mamud, founder of Rooster Shack, and franchise consultant Matteo Frigieri, to participate in the first of our new “Franchise Forward” webinar series. These two experienced food franchise professionals gave us their take on why now is an excellent time to start a franchise.
Continue reading “WEBINAR RECAP, PART ONE: WHY NOW IS THE RIGHT TIME TO BECOME A FRANCHISEE”
The Benefits of White-Labelled Reviews
HR Solutions – Interesting Tribunal Cases 2020 and UK Employment Law After Brexit
HR Solutions look back over some of 2020’s key interesting employment tribunal cases, as well as consider how UK employment will be impacted by Brexit.
Continue reading “HR Solutions – Interesting Tribunal Cases 2020 and UK Employment Law After Brexit”
Come out of COVID19 Fighting – by Using Reviews!
During economically challenging times there’s a clear temptation for businesses to cut their budgets, with marketing spend very often being the first budget to be squeezed. However, reducing your marketing spend during challenging times can significantly impact your business. As The Balance Small Business website says, “Many small businesses make the mistake of cutting their marketing budget to the bone in lean times, or even eliminating it entirely, but this is exactly when your small business needs marketing the most. Continue reading “Come out of COVID19 Fighting – by Using Reviews!”
What to Consider When Creating a 2021 People Plan – HR Solutions
It is vital to put 2020 behind us and look positively to the future. Planning how you will rebuild and become successful in 2021 relies heavily on having an effective people strategy. In this article, we look at creating a 2021 people plan so you can achieve success through your people.
Continue reading “What to Consider When Creating a 2021 People Plan – HR Solutions”
FranScape supports COVID impacted Franchisors
FranScape gives new clients up to 50% off with fees only due when Clients go live
FranScape is a Franchise Management Solution built by Franchisors for Franchisors.
Continue reading “FranScape supports COVID impacted Franchisors”
2021 Planning for the Year Ahead
We know that we will start 2021 still working in a Covid-19 secure way, but we will also see the UK move out of the Brexit transition period and therefore start seeing the changes that Brexit will bring to the UK.
Elite Franchise December 2020
Seasons Greetings! Here is some exclusive must read content from Elite Franchise to get your teeth stuck into and finish off 2020 in style. Our lead exclusive interview this month is with the President for Subway in the EMEA region, Mike Kaehoe. Continue reading “Elite Franchise December 2020”
HR Solutions – Hot Topic – Brexit – Right to Work
The transition period for the UK exiting the EU expires on 31 December 2020, at which point there will be no more free movement of people. To replace free movement, the Government are introducing an Immigration Bill which will see the introduction of a new points-based immigration system. In this hot topic we explore what is entailed with this new system and what it will mean for employers and recruitment.
Continue reading “HR Solutions – Hot Topic – Brexit – Right to Work”
The AFA Awards 2020 – Winners list and judges comments…
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we at the Approved Franchise Association were in the throws of planning our second, annual awards ceremony, which was due to take place this month. Our first awards event, last year, was a huge success, and we were excitedly organising a fantastic ceremony and gala dinner that was sure to outdo last year’s efforts.
Once the pandemic hit, we made the decision not to cancel the event, but hold a free, virtual ceremony instead. Our awards play a vital role in boosting morale within the sector at a time when it is really needed, as well as helping people to raise their profile within the sector. We also wanted to recognise and reward those franchisors, franchisees and suppliers who have worked tirelessly over the past year to ensure the sector continues to flourish, despite these challenging times.
Our virtual ceremony enabled the finalists to attend the ceremony with their family and friends and opened the event up to a far wider audience than we had originally expected. This provided great support for all of our finalists and initial feedback suggests everyone enjoyed the event as much as we did! If you missed it – catch up here; https://fb.watch/1OwKIxwAZO/
We are delighted to extend our warmest congratulations to our finalists and award winners, who are as follows:
OUTSTANDING YOUNG FRANCHISOR AWARD – Sponsored by The International Franchise Show London
FINALISTS Simon Duong – Little Mandarin Classes, Cameron McClure – Support Solutions, Rachel Fay – Little Learners
BRONZE Cameron McClure – Support Solutions
Summary of judges comments “Cameron’s story demonstrated high levels of thought provoked leadership, having grown the business on his own initiative. The commitment and high level of support dedicated to their franchisee’s was highlighted throughout. We feel Cameron has a lot of room to develop and continue growth of the franchise.”
SILVER Simon Duong – Little Mandarin Classes
Summary of judges comments “What stood out in this particular applicant was the dedication and hard work from such a young age. Simon’s entrepreneurial spirit shone through the application, along with the unique concept of Little Mandarin Classes, making him a deserving winner of the AFA’s Outstanding Young Franchisor Award of The Year.”
GOLD RACHEL FAY – LITTLE LEARNERS
Summary of judges comments “Rachel’s story is so inspirational, she has almost single-handedly grown Little learners into an international franchise active on two continents, balancing motherhood and whole heartedly engaging with her franchise community. Everyone has been highly impressed by her passion for Little Learners and her network.”
With thirty-six franchisees, a story book collection and huge entrepreneurial spirit, the judges agreed that Rachel’s story was most inspirational.
FRANCHISOR OF THE YEAR – Sponsored by TRUSTist
FINALISTS Andrew Alleway – Tidy Green Clean, Cressida Bullock – Fun Science, Cherry Simmonds – Driving Miss Daisy, Simon Smith – Tubz Brands, Anna Neville – Kidslingo Ltd, Joanne Aldridge – The Holiday Franchise Company, Paul Mitchell – Business Sales Plus / Accentia, Angela Stirling – Lingotot, Caroline Sparks, Gabi Lixton – Turtle Tots
BRONZE Andrew Alleway – Tidy Green Clean
Summary of judges comments “Great franchisee support, product and service USP”
SILVER Angela Sterling – Lingotot
Summary of judges comments “Clear focused and progressive”
GOLD Caroline Sparks and Gaby Lixton – Turtle Tots
Summary of judges comments “Superior support in the face of extreme adversity”
The judging for this category was particularly difficult as every entry demonstrated such inspiration and talent, it was a very tight race. The standout with Turtle Tots were really creative solutions and extreme determination despite being forced to close down without being able to offer an online swimming alternative, the network didn’t just shut down, instead took time to reflect and prepare which was very admirable. With over fifty franchisees in the UK and Ireland, with Caroline and Gaby leading the way we are sure Turtle Tots will continue to flourish.
Anna Neville from Kidslingo Ltd, Paul Mitchell from Business Sales Plus and Accentia and Joanne Aldridge from The Holiday Franchise Company were all highly commended for being within one point of a winning entrant in the final.
FRANCHISE LEADER OF THE YEAR – Sponsored by Darwin Gray
FINALISTS Anna Neville – Kidslingo Ltd, Anton Skarlatov – Fantastic Services, Luke Western – The Holiday Franchise Company, Angela Sterling – Lingotot, Andrew Alleway and David Moncur – Tidy Green Clean, Nikki Geddes – Kiddy Cook, David Mathie – Just Cuts
BRONZE Angela Sterling – Lingotot
Summary of judges comments “Her application demonstrates how she taken this year by the scruff of its neck and used it to support, grow and direct her franchisees. She has been hugely proactive and the way in which she has inspired and motivated her franchisees during such a turbulent time is testament to her abilities as a franchise leader.”
SILVER Anton Skarlatov – Fantastic Services
Summary of judges comments “A strong entry from Anton who has been proactive in seeking solutions to support his franchisees during this difficult year. This application showed strong leadership and clear vision.”
GOLD Anna Neville – Kidslingo Ltd
Summary of judges comments “The application consistently demonstrates that Anna is a strong leader and has successfully grown her franchise network over the last year. The application highlights how Anna has transformed her business model quickly to offer online learning programmes as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Excellent application.”
David Mathie from Just Cuts, Nikki Geddes from Kiddy Cook and Luke Western from The Holiday Franchise Company were highly commended for scoring within one point of a winning entrant in the final.
BEST FRANCHISE SUPPORT FINALISTS – Sponsored by The Franchise Protection Company
Richard Bryan – Wilkins Chimney Sweep, Charlotte Salter – Debutots, Galina Karsheva – Fantastic Services, Vicki Vinton – Platinum Property Partners, Jessica Bonnard – Language for Fun, Dean Martin – Bluebird Care, Niri Patel – Fit20, Helen Simmons – Caterpillar Music, Caroline Sparks and Gabi Lixton – Turtle Tots.
BRONZE Caterpillar Music
Summary of judges comments “Helen’s bespoke software stood out, it was great to see such a personal touch from the top”
SILVER Fantastic Services
Summary of judges comments “Very structured approach with clear objectives, lots of investment has clearly gone into systems and processes such as The Academy”
GOLD DEBUTOTS
Summary of judges comments “Great structured support pre and post covid, really strong application. It was amazing to see the detailed level of thought gone into support at every stage of a franchisees business development.”
The judges were particularly impressed with Debutots’ efforts to design comprehensive support packages for each stage of a franchisee’s business and believe a clear and strong strategy has been demonstrated – both pre and during the COVID pandemic – with excellent, tailored communication schedules in place.
Turtle Tots, Bluebird Care, Platinum Property Partners and Fit20 were highly commended for being within one point of a winning entrant in the final.
OUTSTANDING FRANCHISE MARKETING – Sponsored by DTP Print
FINALISTS Amy Cross Webber – Spoton.net, Becky Hoare – Pop Up Play Village, Galina Karsheva – Fantastic Services, Rebekka Westwood – Lingotot Wakefield, Dean Martin – Bluebird Care
BRONZE Spoton.net
A summary of judges comments “This entry has shown a very well developed marketing strategy. Their use of social media and other relevant media and event to grow business and franchise sales is thorough and clearly very effective. They have demonstrated a very adaptive approach based on measuring results and listening to feedback. They also show some plans for future marketing around case studies.”
SILVER Fantastic Services
A summary of judges comments “The supportive approach to their franchisees sets this entry apart. Their marketing strategy is admirable in its balance of driving business to franchisees, but also passing on through training to master franchises. This year they have adapted extremely well to maximise opportunities within their sector and have grown business and franchise sales accordingly.”
GOLD Bluebird Care
A summary of judges comments “What sets this entry apart is the clear and committed approach to their marketing and in particular the measuring of results which is key to any good strategy. The entrant has demonstrated a strong commitment and a good balance to supporting and growing their franchisees as well as caring for the end user of their services. They make good use of social media platforms and have had strong and relevant press and media coverage. Clearly a business committed to their marketing strategy and succeeding demonstrated in their achievement of several goals well ahead of schedule.”
Lingotot Wakefield and Pop Up Play Village were highly commended for being within one point of a winning entrant in the final. The judges were particularly impressed with Bluebird Care’s clear and committed approach to its marketing, demonstrating a strong commitment to its marketing strategy, including allocating specific headcount for local, franchisee marketing and rigorous monitoring of marketing spend and results.
BEST NEW FRANCHISE – Sponsored by Accentia Franchise Consultants
FINALISTS Kelly Jenkins – Beaming Babies, Suzy Sanders – Alchemy Virtual Assistance, Dee Gardner – The Menopause Experts, Lee Hesketh – Your Mortgage Plus, Michelle Nicklin – Sandstone Yoga and Pilates and David Mathie – Just Cuts UK
BRONZE The Menopause Experts
Our judges said “Unique franchise – broad offering for franchisees with clear structured business with growth”
SILVER Your Mortgage Plus
Our judges said “Well thought out concept, great opportunity and good growth. What else would you look for in a new franchise opportunity?”
GOLD JUST CUTS UK
Our judges said “Very clear application with clear description of their mid to long term vision, business plan is concise and ingenious. Supporting evidence from franchisee business growth and testimonials really help this application to shine.”
The judges were particularly impressed with Just Cuts UK application, new to the UK their business plan clear supporting evidence was provided of franchisee development and business growth.
Suzy Sanders from Alchemy Virtual Assistance was highly commended for being within one point of a winning entrant in the final.
OUTSTANDING YOUNG FRANCHISEE – Sponsored by Elite Franchise
FINALISTS Chloe Marchand – Kidslingo Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury, Sophie Lee Lewis – Pop Up Play Village, Caerphilly, Stacey Cooney – Rainbow International Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire and Dumfries and Galloway, James and Harry Tucker – Platinum Property Partners Habodes, Slough and Berkshire, Holly Feltham – Just Cuts Lakeside
BRONZE Stacey Cooney – Rainbow International Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire & Dumfries & Galloway
Our judges said “It’s great to see how through sheer dedication and hard work at a very young age, Stacey work her way up through the business to run her own that’s a great achievement. Also how she goes an extra step to meet her customers in order to give that additional support.”
SILVER Chloe Marchand – Kidslingo Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury
Our judges said “Really like that Chloe is building additional tools outside of the franchise to better her business and push herself further. She displays a clear passion and insight for a young entrepreneur. Also how she immediately looked to adapt the business when lockdown hit and that in a sense the business was already prepared for a disaster recovery situation.”
GOLD Holly Feltham – Just Cuts Lakeside
Our judges said “What a great brand ambassador, love this story. Great to also see Holly show her objectives and goals for growth in the future via expansion demonstrating what she has learnt and clearly built and improved a successful business. The application was great covering all areas of the business including motivation for her staff in difficult times and continuously looking at ways to improve business processes to make it a more effective business – Well done Holly and clearly going to be someone to look out for in the industry in the future.”
We would also like to highly commend Sophie Lee Lewis from Pop Up Play Village in and around Caerphilly and James and Harry Tucker from Platinum Property Partners Habodes, Slough and Berkshire, who were within one point of placing in the final.The judges were inspired by Holly’s story going from hairdresser and stylist to business and franchise owner. The judges were pleased to see Holly’s goals and expansion objectives for the future and her impressive progress in growing her turnover by 45% since last November.
FRANCHISEE OF THE YEAR – Sponsored by Just Cuts UK
FINALISTS Erica and Frank Mudd – Pop Up Play Village Reading and Basingstoke, Annette Barrett – Cook Stars Cardiff North and West, Jennifer David – Debutots Finchley, Hampstead and Muswell Hill, Ivanka Obreshkova – Fantastic Services, Becky MacLean – Kidslingo Plymouth, Michaela Nowik – Extra Help Milton Keynes, Anna Coggan – Caterpillar Music Newark.
BRONZE Anna Coggan – Caterpillar Music Newark
The judges said “Great business growth shown throughout COVID, really dedicated passionate franchisee.”
SILVER Michaela Nowik from Extra Help Milton Keynes
The judges said “Her passion shines through in her application she has shown impressive growth in her franchise.”
GOLD Ivanka Obreshkova from Fantastic Services
The judges said “True leader, we loved Ivanka’s story, outstanding levels of growth and commitment to supporting her teams even through difficult times.”
The judges chose Ivanka as their Gold award winner as they believe she demonstrates excellent leadership qualities. She empowers everyone around her, showing huge commitment to creating and adapting a systematic approach to growing her business. Ivanka actually began her career as a cleaner for Fantastic Services and now leads over thirty teams within her franchise! She is a fair leader and clearly passionate about her business.
Erica and Frank Mudd from Pop Up Play Village in Reading and Basingstoke and Becky MacLean from Kidslingo Plymouth were highly commended for scoring within one point of a winning entrant in the final.
FRANCHISEE NETWORK CONTRIBUTION AWARD – Sponsored by NatWest
FINALISTS John Cooper – It’seeze Website Design Leicester, Sarah Canavan – Lingotot Bexley, Amy Archer – Kidslingo Erdington, Great Barr and Aldridge, Erica and Frank Mudd – Pop Up Play Village Basingstoke and Reading, Amy Sinclair – Popolo Ceramico Sunderland, Duncan Attwood – Fit20 Exeter, Tony Antoniou – OvenGleamers Gravesend and Medway.
BRONZE Duncan Attwood – Fit20 Exeter
Our judges commented “A team player and positive role model for the brand, passionate about improving health but up against some really tough opposition!”
BRONZE Erica and Frank Mudd – Pop Up Play Village Basingstoke and Reading
Our judges commented “Truly passionate and brand ambassadors, in addition to running 2 territories, showing an outstanding level of commitment to support of the franchisor and wider network to develop and grow.”
SILVER Sarah Canavan from Lingotot Bexley
Our judges commented “On a daily basis going above and beyond, recognised by the franchisor as ‘Community Champion’, multi award winning and an absolutely outstanding ambassador to the brand. Very inspirational to the network and franchising as a whole, especially during lockdown!”
GOLD Tony Antoniou from OvenGleamers Gravesend and Medway
Our judges commented “Selfless enthusiasm and passion for the brand and willing to go the extra mile to inspire the network and offer the best service to its customer base. Always there to offer help and ideas, would be a credit to any network or company.”
Amy Sinclair from Popolo Ceramico Sunderland was also highly commended for scoring within one point of a winning entrant in the final. Tony is always there to offer help and advice to others and has demonstrated strong support for the network and franchisor.
SUPPLIER OF THE YEAR – Sponsored by The AFA
FINALISTS Stephen Thompson, Darwin Gray, Samantha Cameron, Social Media Expert, Simon Pullum, Azure Group Ltd, Keiran James, Stryde, Nigel Apperley, TRUSTist, Paul Mitchell, Accentia Franchise Consultants, Russ Turner, Business Digest Magazine
BRONZE Kieran James – Stryde
Our judges said “unique focused proposition to support both franchisees and franchisors”
BRONZE Nigel Apperley of TRUSTist
Our judges said “Great platform – really helping on many levels to grow business not only for franchisees but for the franchisor as well”
SILVER Paul Mitchell – Accentia Franchise Consultants
Our judges said “Strong application, working with clients long after helping them to franchise is a testament in itself”
GOLD Stephen Thompson – Darwin Gray
Our judges said “Stephen and the team show an endless commitment to promoting franchising not only locally but nationally. They provide a wide range of services to clients in different sectors throughout franchising, and dedicate lots of time to give back to the franchise community”
The judges also highly commended Simon Pullum from Azura Group Ltd, who was within one point of being a winning entrant in the final.
Sarah, Director of Operations at the AFA said “Stephen and his team at Darwin Gray have a long history of providing great support to the UK franchise sector, selfless and down to earth it’s been a pleasure to work with them over the years. It’s wonderful to see their services being recognised by judges at our awards ceremony, there was some tough competition we are however delighted that they won our gold award this year.”
The AFA would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who entered the awards, nominated their colleagues and attended our ceremony. We look forward to next year’s ceremony which, hopefully, will revert to the face-to-face, gala event we were originally planning and promises to be bigger and better than ever!
Visit our website to find out how you can get further involved with the AFA and become an accredited member; www.theafa.org.uk/how-it-works
For a full list of winners please visit www.theafa.org.uk/awards
For sponsorship enquiries for our 2021 awards please email sarah@theafa.org.uk
Why are Customer Reviews Even More Important for Small Businesses?
Collecting reviews is a top priority for most businesses as they’re the predominant, and most available, source for past customer experiences.
Local reviews provide an accurate and unbiased idea of the different features within a company, such as their customer service, efficiency, and quality of their service or product.
Continue reading “Why are Customer Reviews Even More Important for Small Businesses?”
Elite Franchise November 2020
Our lead exclusive interview this month is with Fantastic Services, Co-Founder, Anton Skarlatov. Tracing its origins back to 2009 when co-founder Anton Skarlatov was already running a cleaning business and fellow Co-founder Rune Sovndahl needed a cleaner – both quickly realised they shared an incredible vision and could deliver home services in a totally unique way. Click here for our main interview this month. Continue reading “Elite Franchise November 2020”
Elite Franchise October 2020
Find out what’s been going on in Elite Franchise Magazine this month – hear from Nigel Dawson from EasyStorage, Frank Milner from Tutor Doctor and James Thomas from D&T Accountants… Continue reading “Elite Franchise October 2020”
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE JOINING A FRANCHISE
If you have ever dreamed of running your own business but the thought of being out there all alone is a little too daunting, then joining a franchise could be the right option for you.
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TRUSTist at the What’s on 4 Kids Activities Awards
It’s safe to say that 2020 has definitely been an eventful year for all businesses. With restrictions changing every few weeks, many businesses were forced to adapt to remote working and some even had to pause services temporarily.
Continue reading “TRUSTist at the What’s on 4 Kids Activities Awards”
TRUSTist vs Feefo
Whilst each different review platform is more suited to specific industries, there are a few who stand out at being the most popular. One of these platforms is Feefo, who help their clients collect reviews from their customers in a variety of ways.