RESIDENTIALlettings
Who are the best franchisees? The simple answer is those who are motivated, resourceful, consistent in operation and have that passion for property. Roy Gover, of Reeds Rains says it does help to have an agency background, “Clearly it helps but only together with the qualities above, which are paramount. Our new franchisees are, typically, late thirties to early forties.” James Trimble, New Franchising
Manager at Winkworth, says that the majority of their franchisees come from an estate agency background. “Those that have been immersed in the day-to-day life of an agency will no doubt have a desire to reach the top and in many cases own or run their own agency. “Naturally those that have an estate
agency background will have an advantage, but running your own estate agency is also about understanding ‘business’. In a few cases this is the biggest knowledge gap and it has major consequences. “A good number of larger agencies now
involve their managers with branch profit which essentially – and inadvertently – prepares them for owning their own office! In some cases we have looked outside of agency for a franchisee who is business- minded, and in a property related field. In these cases we have worked closely with them to recruit a suitable manager with good experience to work alongside. “As for age groups, we would rather
existing franchisees and new faces. Your Move has 91 franchised branches
across the UK and expects ten new franchised branches to open during 2011. Winkworth, has 89 franchised branches
operated by 60 franchisees, a ratio that indicates that the model is so successful that franchisees stick with it and open second or even thid branches. Reeds Rains opened 51 offices in their
first four years, with five more in the pipeline. A high street regular across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, their expansion plan includes taking the brand across the border to Scotland, braving different laws and different homebuying systems. Aspire is a much smaller (but no less
effective!) South West London based franchise with seven branches, but they plan to open four more this year within the M25 catchment area. Kevin Hollinrake’s Hunters brand now
has 12 franchises, but his current focus is on the new model of ‘Personal Agent’. The move towards franchisees without high
street offices has been facilitated by today’s communication facilities, it’s a concept that is becoming very popular. “We are in advanced stages of discussions with potential franchisees in the South East of England, London and Birmingham.” Also operating on the personal level,
the new kid on the block, HomeXperts, has ten branches already, with an aggressive plan to open a further 22 branches across the UK this year. MD Sussanne Chambers says, “We want to find the best franchisees – soon – so we are currently on a twenty-five date recruitment tour across the UK with presentations in all the major cities”.
‘Our oldest franchisee will be 70 next year and our youngest
is in his early twenties. Age doesn’t matter.’ ian WiLson MD Martin & co
focus on the aspect of ‘if you are good enough’, rather than young/old enough.” This is a view shared by Kevin
Hollinrake, “Our top franchisee has no estate agency experience; we pride ourselves on having the best training possible. The main thing we are looking for is the right attitude. Young or old makes no difference.” Age doesn’t matter at Martin & Co
either; “Our oldest franchisee will be renewing after five years and he will be 70 next year! Our youngest is in his early twenties.” Another interesting comment on
suitability comes from Aspire, Andrew Townend says, “ Primary focus is on service so the important qualities for Aspire are typically attention to detail, smart appearance, resourcefulness and consistent performance.” Tenacity is another desirable quality.
HomeXperts, Sussanne says, “Our franchisees range in age from early twenties to fifties, what is more important than age is a can do attitude, willingness to work
PROPERTYdrum MARCH 2011 13
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