There are around 48,000 franchise businesses in the UK. The figure has doubled since the turning of the Millenium, with more and more aspiring business owners seeing the advantages of going down the franchising route.
From gyms to fast-food outlets, the sectors that offer franchise opportunities are plentiful. Home care is one sector seeing significant growth, particularly as more people look at ways to stay living at home in their old age, and the Government seeks out ways to keep people out of hospital and treated at home. The achievements of our 255+ franchise territories demonstrate that home care lends itself so well to a successful franchise opportunity.
What does franchising mean?
A franchise model involves a business selling the rights to use its brand, as well as its products or services, to an entrepreneur. The franchisee runs the business independently, though with the support of the franchisor.
Home Instead franchisees have the freedom to run their own business, while being part of a national brand which has built a positive reputation and is highly respected in the care sector. They reap the benefits of a business model that has proved successful over the years by our other franchisees. Receiving support, taking the form of consultative advice and a network of suppliers, our franchisees are stood in excellent stead to make a success out of their business.
What kind of franchises are on offer?
Franchises largely sit in two camps: product distribution franchising and management franchising.
Product distribution involves the franchisee obtaining a license to sell the franchisor’s goods. Whether it’s cars, food and drink, or clothing, the product can be sold by the franchisee independently.
In a management franchise, the franchisor provides the right to sell its products and services
under the brand name, while offering a whole system to operate the business. Usually the most popular route for franchising, this model involves the franchisor providing support throughout the business journey. It’s a business model, which has been tried and tested, that the franchisee is buying into.
Home Instead is an example of a management franchise. From day one, we work with our franchisees to help them run a successful care business, focusing on areas such as profitability, compliance and marketing. Using the training programmes we provide, franchisees ensure that their Care Professionals are equipped with the skills and knowledge to provide clients with quality care.
Upon purchasing the franchise, the owner will be told what the ongoing fees are, most notably the franchisee fee. Home Instead franchisees are asked to pay 6.5% of monthly revenues (+ VAT) to use the business’ name.
How do people fund a franchise?
Early on in their application, a franchisee will be asked about whether they have the required funds, or what means they have to access the funds.
Obtaining a business loan to get hold of funding is an option for franchisees that don’t have enough savings. The good news is that franchisees are often favoured by banks due to them being considered as low-risk, and often they will have specialists who can tailor funding packages to suit a franchise model.
Home Instead has relationships with banks who understand the needs of franchisees. As an established franchise brand, the banks know that it is a successful business and are happy to support our franchisees, often this can be 70% which is higher than some other brands. This of course is an important aspect of setting up a new franchise and this support is hugely important in the early days.
Why go into franchising?
Establishing a franchise means getting a head start that you wouldn’t get from running a start-up. You’re working with a proven business model. Instead of having to start from scratch and developing range of business processes yourself, such as recruitment processes and client acquisition, you can apply what has worked for other franchisees running the same kind of business.
Taking on a franchise, you’re joining a brand that has already carved out a name for itself in the sector. As a Home Instead franchisee, you’re establishing a business that is instantly synonymous with quality home care. Your local advertising is strengthened by us carrying out PR and marketing on a national level, exposing your business to a wider audience and making you the go-to person in the area for potential customers.
Running a start-up can be a lonely time. But being a franchisee means always having a support network. You are never alone. Experts can help you in different areas of the business. At Home Instead, our National Office has various departments, including marketing, quality and business development, which work closely with franchisees to strengthen their business operations. Regularly, we host webinars for franchisees, giving them the tools to take their business to another level and carry out marketing campaigns and much more.
Many industries, care particularly, are always in a state of change when it comes to legislation and new regulation to follow. Franchisors like Home Instead help their franchisees navigate this change and inform them on any adjustments they should make.
Support can come from other franchisees too. Franchisees are part of a network of people running a business like theirs. If you ever run into difficulty, chances are there will be a solution based on what other franchisees have encountered. At Home Instead, we’re proud to see our peer-support network, which comprises of over 200 owners, contribute to many franchises thriving.
Why become a Home Instead franchisee?
As a franchisee, you’re stood in great stead to grow your business significantly. At Home Instead, we have seen franchisees become multi-unit owners and expand the territories they serve. Many have a turnover in excess of £1m, and having built a team over the years, the franchisee is able to be more hands off on the day to day activity.
What has got them to that point? Our second-to-none support has helped them establish the business effectively via our proven business model, market their franchise as a trusted care company, and achieve a high level of profitability. The expertise that they can draw from our National Office includes marketing, IT, legal, quality control and business development; areas key to sustaining a successful care company.
Being part of a network of likeminded Home Instead franchisees has given them the chance to work alongside other owners who are at similar stages in their business journey. Getting this level of peer learning is generally not available for anyone starting up a new business alone.
Home Instead has more CQC Outstanding ratings than any other home care company. Not only that, we have more franchise offices listed in the top 20 home care companies in each region on homecare.co.uk, dubbed ‘the TripAdvisor for home care’. It’s no surprise why we’ve built so much respect as a trusted brand.
There are huge opportunities for growth at Home Instead. Many of our franchisees have gone on to become multi-unit owners, by purchasing additional territories, expanding the area where they offer care and increasing their revenue. Often, they build a centralised team, which means that they can efficiently run a significant business, with the opportunity of making efficiencies on running costs, whilst having consistency of support and management. Above all, they can boost the number of older people they can support with quality care.
The franchise sector is only getting stronger. As the number of franchise success stories grow, more will see the advantages of making this their route into entrepreneurship.