[Dave-mac]

looked at a driveway and sealing franchise recently. looked good.
I then found an article on thisismoney.co.uk where a guy called Chris Jarrett and about 14 other other franchisees were fighting the company about projected earnings in the company prospectus and alleged promises.
 I hope he doesn't mind me using his name;tried to find him in tel. directory, but Im sure he wouldn't mind me warning people.
Go onto above website and type his name in the search.
I would have gone further with my enquiries had I not seen this article.
Dave

[Clear Vision]

Why would you ever consider a franchise??? Worst Idea ever!!!

Why do you want you business to be controlled by someone else!!!

You will be tied Into it for maybe 2,3,4,5 or more years!! Why would you want that?

What happens when they decied they want to upgrade all there vans and machinery? YOU WILL have to pay for It!!!!!!!!

I am totally anti franchise!

My uncle was In a franchise and It nearly finished him off! He was so glad when his 5 years contract was up.

They got him a £550 mobile phone what he didn't want or need it but was made to pay for it! Loads of other things aswell.

It's not a good Idea!

Matthew

[calmore]

the only time I can see that a franchise is worth having is when it's a *really* well known company.

Never seen the point of buying a franchise that no one's ever heard of.

[HQCS (John Kastrian)]

Only people that get sucked into franchises are the ones that cannot make it alone for some reason.
here is another example,the company that signed my van were a franchise,and had to part with 30% of their turnover,by the time they paid out their expenses there was nothing left,6 months later they were history.
John

[craigp]

i heard a well known respectable buisness man say on TV the other day, he did not want his buisness associated the sort of companies that franchise,

seems they have a low standing in the buisness world, somthing i never knew.

[Jeremy]

I think you must be careful about labelling all Franchise operations the same. In South Africa there are some large retail chains that offer franchise operations in the more remote areas.

The guys that buy into these operations usually end up making heaps of money with turnover and profit that far exceeds the corporate branches.

The reason why this is done is because the owner/manager can make the store more profitable than a manager working for a salary.

Having said this, I would never consider buying into a Franchise operation that I had never heard of, or couldn't offer certain gaurantee's

Jeremy

[Atlantic Cleaning]

Having had experience running a franchise i would recommend that you never even consider buying one. When you first meet them they tell you what they will do for you and how profitable you will be just follow their proven formular. But once you have parted with your money it all changes, they could not care less, and there is no proven formular, all they wanted to do is make the maximum amount of money from me by draining all my profits. I lost everything due to them even my house.. They will even tell you what you have to buy from them etc

I have since found out that over 900 franchisees have gone through their network in the uk in 20 years (only 100 areas available in the uk) .. So make up your own mind who makes the money. Every franchisee I knew struggled from day 1 and could not make money. They win allways. And this particular franchise is very well known and established.

Duncan

[Robert Watson]

Hi Duncan.
Sorry to hear of your bad luck. Hope things are going good for you now.
You know the question we all want to ask you. 
Rab

[Atlantic Cleaning]

Picking up the pieces slowly. I will get there in the end. I would love to name and shame but cant at the moment for legal reasons. But believe me I would love to tell you all and trash their so called reputation, and save some other poor soul from losing all their life savings.. I could tell some real horror stories about franchising....

Duncan

[Robert Watson]

Good luck to you mate.
Cleaning related?

[jasonl]

There are as many positive as negative aspects to franchising and franchises.
there are many major brands and owners making big profits out of owning a franchise.
To say you were involved with one and it was no good , you are calling yourself a failure , rather like saying your wife was no good , we all have to take personal responsibility for our lives, who chose your ex wife? who chose to buy that franchise? who chose that friend who let you down ?
Bad choices can be learning opportunities or spirit crushers!
I know just as many wealthy as poor franchise owners, it depends if you follow the programme and pick the right franchise for your personal circumstances.
the following are franchises, I would love to own a branch of any of these brands
Specsavers, ford motor co, mcdonalds, shell oil co, itv, any rail company, national express coaches, sony centres, 02 mobile shops , thorntons, hall mark cards.
Are they all bad for thier owners? no ,they just have really high ingoing costs, likewise , very large potetial gains.

[murky]

Jason,

Bang on. (Bang & Olafson is a franchise).
Total petrol, Wimpy bars. etc etc

Go to the Franchise shows and see the queues around the fast food businesses.
Half of the High Street is a franchise!!!
Dynarod are also a franchise, if you know where your local one is go and look at his house, ok they pay 40% but they are printing money.

A pub is a franchise, you agree to live in the property as long as you buy most of the beer from the brewery, you make a profit from that or not.

I had one. It wasnt brill but if you did what you were told to do, it would float, just.

In the states there are people who make good livings from them, they buy one,market it, make a decent living for 5 years or so and then sell it and move on to another.

They are called entrepreneurs.

As I said on another thread you have to go out and get the work, half of these people just sit at home and stare at the phone and wonder why it wont ring.

Well it wont if you stay in.

MARKET YOURSELF.

[Len Gribble]

I’m with Duncan on this; I’ve been there, but did not lose my house, I’d just a lost of money. This only relates to cleaning franchise!

Len