bfa and ITN Productions launch 'The Future is Franchising'

The British Franchise Association (bfa) and ITN Productions have launched ‘The Future is Franchising’, a news and current affairs-style programme exploring the opportunities available for franchisors and franchisees, as well as how it is contributing more than £15 billion each year to UK plc.

With franchising receiving many misconceptions and people showing little understanding of how it works, this programme brings to life why franchising is not for those who believe it is unaffordable, only for entrepreneurs or impossible to fail.

Successful franchising needs good support, systems and training provided by the franchisor and ‘The Future of Franchising’ showcases how franchised businesses maintain a failure rate of less than 5% after five years, compared to the small business survival rates which are as high as 91% after one year of trading. The programme also looks at how franchising offers the opportunity for entrepreneurs to establish and expand a business on a small scale, as well as the number of rewarding careers available.

Franchising has unlocked unprecedented growth and success for some of the world’s best-known brands, the programme features exclusive reports from some of the leading franchisees who tell their unique success stories. From well-known restaurant chains, care homes and financial services, the programme looks at how others can learn from those leading the way.

The programme also features an interview with Pip Wilkins, CEO of the British Franchise Association who talks about the need to educate and train both franchisors and franchisees, as well as how the bfa are supporting women in franchising.

Drawing upon ITN’s 60-year heritage and expertise in storytelling, presented by newsreader Duncan Golestani the news-style piece combines key interviews, case studies and sponsored stories from Bluebird Home Care, HSBC Bank, McDonalds Resturants, Pirtek and Telefonica O2.

The programme will form part of an extensive communications campaign featuring industry partners, as well as relevant journalists, writers and bloggers.

Pip Wilkins, CEO of the bfa said: "Promoting the success of the franchise model in the UK is a key pillar of the bfa’s central mission, and driving visibility of the strength of the sector forward is a major focus for the Association this year. Franchising is one of the real success stories of the UK business landscape and collaborations like the ‘Future is Franchising’ programme are designed to educate both the public and media to this effect. We are really thrilled with the results of our partnership with ITN Productions, with so many high profile businesses drawn from across the length and breadth of the industry contributing to the show. With such high quality input from our members, together we have created an amazing and informative snapshot of the sector, covering a huge range of industry topics, from the basics of the ethical business format franchise model to the growth of specific trends like multi-unit and lifestyle franchises. We hope you all find it as enjoyable and useful as we do, so please let us know what you think."

Simon Shelley, Head of Industry News, ITN Productions, said: "ITN Productions has been delighted to partner with the British Franchise Association to create ‘The Future is Franchising’. We hope this programme will help to inform and enlighten viewers of the importance of the franchise industry and the opportunities available. We are extremely pleased with how this programme brings to life the various success stories from franchisees around the country and how others can learn from these.”