Thinking of owning a franchise business? Asking these questions will ensure you are ready to get started!

Have you decided to buy your own franchise business? Great! Now comes the difficult part – ensuring you are ready to own a franchise business!

As an award-winning franchisor, MOLLY MAID has helped a wide range of franchisees get their business off the ground. With this knowledge, we have put together a list of questions you should ask before taking the plunge and buying a franchise!

Is there a requirement in the location I want to serve?

A key factor that must always be a primary concern is the number of potential customers in a location. This will need to be drilled down further to identify if the location demographics match the target audience of the franchise you are looking to start.

You also want to evaluate the competition that currently exists in the area. Is it a saturated market with lots of businesses where you might struggle to gain a foothold? Or is there room for a new supplier who can quickly gain market share?

A final location factor to consider for franchises that requires a physical presence is the price of real estate.

Can you speak to existing franchise owners?

One of the first steps we all take before making a purchasing decision is checking reviews. When it comes to a decision as big as buying a franchise, this should be no different. A franchisor with nothing to hide will happily provide references of existing franchisees that you can speak to and ask questions.

But why stop here? Corporate websites will often have names and contact details of franchise owners. Use this information to reach out to the existing franchise owners and discover what they have to say when they haven’t been primed and prepared for such a call!

What business plans exist?

Creating a business plan is one of the lengthier processes when starting a business. A good franchisor will offer plenty of help, suggestions, and resources to guide you along the way.

It might seem like a good idea to choose a franchisor that has readily built business plans in place but be sure to understand exactly what these contain. The more generic the plan, the less tailored it will be to your business.

Help, suggestions, resources, and referrals to experts are welcome additions, boilerplate templates are not.

How much support will you receive?

One of the biggest benefits of setting up a franchise is that support processes already exist to help get businesses up and running. Whilst support is great, and always welcome, you must understand the following support questions:

• How much support you will receive?
• What does this support look like?
• When is the support available? Is it ongoing or solely available for new franchisees?
• What areas of the business does the support cover?

Answering these questions from the outset ensures that you start any business with your eyes wide open and you can make plans with specific resources in mind.

Do you have the license to do things your way?

Much of this blog has concentrated on the help that is available from the franchisor, but with it being your business, you need to understand exactly what you are and are not “allowed” to do.

For example, marketing support and resources may be available via the franchisor, but what about if you have ideas or agencies you want to work with? Are you required to do things a certain way, or do you have the freedom to go about your business in your way?

About MOLLY MAID

As one of the largest franchisors in the United Kingdom, MOLLY MAID is an industry-leading brand with award-winning business systems and processes in place.

Whether you are looking to start a new MOLLY MAID franchise or purchase an existing one, we are with you every step of the way!

Want to find out more about becoming a MOLLY MAID franchise owner? Click here to request more information.

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