What does a franchisor look for in a franchisee?

Louise Harris writes:

Franchisors will usually have an outline avatar that may include age, skill set, past experience, location, educational standards and similar attributes.

If you look at the vast array of franchise opportunities, many will be looking for people who are already business savvy, but others will teach you how to run their business.

Some will need a franchisee to be a capable sales person. Others will need a franchisee to come from a specific role, usually where a technical service is being delivered.

What’s key, however, is that franchisees must be willing to put in full effort, whatever it entails for that franchise.

The franchisee must be able to learn and follow a model. Prospective franchisees need to be able to afford the initial investment and sustain their lifestyle while the business grows to a point of making profit.
What ‘hard work’ means can vary significantly and it’s important a franchisee is honest with themselves before delving into a franchise.

Not being honest means you might hamper the growth of your business. You and the franchisor want to maximise the opportunity, since this is how you both make money, so ask your franchisor what they’re looking for.

Louise Harris is an experienced franchisor, having built and sold an award winning franchise. She’s currently franchise operations manager at Mathnasium UK.