Top Franchises In Australia

With so many franchise opportunities in Australia, how do you know which one is best for you??? One thing for sure, it does not come down to price, number of established outlets or length of time in existence. Read on to find out what determines top franchises in Australia.

Kylie Courtie, Founder and Director of Fitness Matters recently attended the Franchising Council of Australia’s State Conference in Brisbane and learned that research recently conducted across the entire franchise sector by Griffith University showed that the top performing franchises in Australia were the ones with the highest levels of reporting and support. By reporting, most franchise groups are great at having their franchisees report sales figures, as that is mostly how franchise fees are calculated. Not so many however asked about profitability.

The research showed that franchise groups that had franchisees report both sales statistics and Profit and Loss financial reports for regular review outperformed others in revenue, profitability and at the end of the franchise term, retention!

So if you are considering a franchise opportunity, ask your Franchisor what systems are in place for regular reporting of sales figures and financials including profitability and what support the franchise group offers to ensure you are on track and winning at your game!

In business, everything comes back to the numbers. What are the key numbers / drivers in your business? For example, number of enquiries, number of appointments, number of sales (or at Fitness Matters, we say “number of new friends”), conversion rates, number of referrals, revenue, gross profit, net profit, etc.

At Fitness Matters, we offer an extensive reporting system where all the key drivers are recorded day to day which are then captured into a monthly stats report which is sent through to the Support team weekly and then at month end. This is checked by the support team on a weekly basis with feedback given weekly to ensure that each of our franchisees are on track and if not, what action they can take to get back on track. In addition, you will have a monthly support visit in your club where your Support Manager will run through your numbers and provide you with any coaching or training you need. Fitness Matters are focused on ensuring our franchisees achieve results, just like our franchisees and their team are focused on ensuring each of our members achieve results.

It is one thing to report sales figures and key drivers, but it is also essential to keep a close eye on your profitability by closely looking at both your Profit and Loss Report and Balance Sheet. As a minimum you should be looking at these reports monthly, however our company accountant Robert Steinhardt would be very proud of us suggesting that you ideally should be looking at both reports on a weekly basis!

The top franchises in Australia asked their franchisees to report their profit and loss figures on a weekly or monthly basis. The poor performing groups asked for these reports annually to tick a box and place in a file without being opened. If you want to increase your performance, then increase the increments of measure!

It’s not just the reporting you need to know about….

It’s one thing to request this information from franchisees, but what coaching and support is then offered? What is done with the information provided? It is also essential that franchisees understand their key numbers and know what to look for AND the franchisor support team should also be monitoring this information on a weekly basis to provide coaching and feedback to the franchisee. Otherwise what is the point of taking the time to send in the information?

Whether you are part of a franchise group or own your own independent business, you need to closely monitor all your key numbers otherwise how do you know if you are winning or not?? The best part of joining a franchise group rather than being in business on your own is that you have the systems and support to help you succeed. Whilst you are in business for yourself, you are not on your own as you always have support and help is just a phone call away!

The FCA has also launched a new initiative called the “Franchise Success Club” which is a recognition program for top performing franchisees who have achieved great results, or been a contribution to their community. It is expected that top franchises in Australia will support this program and nominate their franchisees where applicable.

If you are interested in finding out more about the Fitness Matters Franchise Opportunity we would love to chat with you!