Choosing Your Franchise by Industry in 5 Easy Steps
Shaun M Jooste, writer
The franchise business has attracted a lot of people in recent times. There’s plenty of opportunity when it comes to choosing a franchise. There are various factors that will determine the success or failure of your business. This is why it’s essential to identify which franchise business is right for you.
Step 1: Define Your Personal and Professional Goals
The first step in choosing a franchise is clearly outlining your goals. While making a profit is obvious, there are various other factors you need to consider. For example, the amount of time you would spend in the business, whether you’re open to travelling, whether you’re looking for the business to be your primary source of income, and so on.
Step 2: Assess Your Contribution
Choosing a franchise is not just about randomly picking something that seems popular at the time. There will be many franchisees that will do well but might not necessarily be up your alley. You need to see where your passion lies and pick an industry accordingly. The more you know about a business, the easier it will be to adapt. For example, if you’re from the hotel management industry, taking up a food chain franchise makes a lot of sense because there’s a lot you will already know about the industry.
Step 3: List the Undesirable Sectors
While it’s important to know what you want, it’s also important to know what you don’t want. Certain sectors might not appease you or may not be the right fit for you based on your qualifications, likes, and goals. When you narrow down your selection of potential franchise industries to opt for, you should also have a list of the ones you don’t want.
Step 4: Be Aware of the Reality
Starting a franchise is a challenging feat. It involves time, hard work, and money. While it’s exciting to imagine and set goals for the best-case scenario, you must also prepare yourself for the worst. Having a backup plan in case your franchise fails is always advisable. It would help if you also accounted for the total expenditure of the franchise and how long you’ll be able to sustain the business without a profit. You should ideally have at least six months of capital ready when starting a franchise.
Step 5: Analyse Market Trends
Market trends play a huge role in determining your franchise selection. Please remember that this doesn’t refer to a trending franchise but what’s trending in the market. These include various factors that include an upcoming neighbourhood that doesn’t have a coffee shop, for example, or a mall that does not have a fast food restaurant.
You can also look at trends like where the latest sports academy opened up, so you can consider opening a sports apparel and accessories store nearby. Investing in a trend early on can pay off in the long run because you’ll be one of the first to reap the benefits.
Are You Ready to Choose an Industry Franchise?
Starting a franchise isn’t something you can do over the weekend. You need to plan for at least a couple of weeks before deciding. You must also mentally prepare yourself to be available for the business for at least the next six months. There are various other factors that also determine how successful your franchise will be, and the nature of the business is one of the factors.
When you take it one step at a time, there’s less chance of failure, and you can confidently choose an industry you believe in.
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Shaun M Jooste, writer