Our Franchise Mistakes and What We’d Change

Challenge

We launched our franchise with a clear sense of purpose but limited budget. Like many growing brands, we were resourceful and hands-on. We managed the model design, the early documentation, and the recruitment ourselves. But over time, the weight of doing everything in-house started to show. Certain choices helped us grow faster. Others slowed us down or created avoidable pain points.

Looking back, it’s clear which decisions gave us momentum – and which ones left us playing catch-up.

Solution

One of the best decisions we made was getting professional territory mapping in place from day one. This gave us clearly defined franchise areas backed by real data. It showed us where our customers lived, what local demographics looked like, and how much potential we had. It also allowed us to define more territories than we thought possible, which made our franchise network more valuable in the long run.

We’re also glad we had our financial forecasts and business plans built externally. That early structure became a solid foundation for both franchising and day-to-day operations. Likewise, having our model pre-approved by the British Franchise Association and the banks meant we could offer franchisees access to funding of up to 70 percent of their fees – a game-changer for growth.

On the digital side, we’re proud we took the time to build our own franchise operations portal. It allowed us to support franchisees at scale and reduced the pressure on our team to answer the same questions repeatedly.

But not everything went smoothly. One thing we underestimated was how green new franchisees can be, particularly if they’ve never run a business before. We wish we had put more emphasis on basic business skills and everyday know-how right from the start.

We also wish we had sought financial backing earlier to support franchise recruitment. It took a lot of our personal time and energy to bring new franchisees into the network. Looking back, we would have grown faster and more sustainably by outsourcing the sales process and freeing ourselves up to focus on strategy, support and delivery.

Results

These lessons now shape how we work with clients at Familia. We know what’s worth doing yourself and where external expertise pays for itself. We also understand that no two businesses are the same – so we don’t push you into a rigid programme or expect big upfront spend.

Instead, we work flexibly and become part of your team. You stay in control, but you don’t have to carry everything on your own.

We’ve been in your shoes. And now we’re here to help you build better, faster, with fewer wrong turns.