Local Franchise Opportunities in the franchise territory of Southampton -

Why should I choose Southampton as the Franchise territory for my prospective launch?

Undertaking due diligence on select franchises you’re interested in isn’t the only research you as a prospective franchisee must undertake, Oh no! Deciding what territory will fit you best is vitally important, although it’s key to understand that established franchisors will already have franchise territories mapped out, so it’s not a case of you choosing your own boundaries. There may however be a territory that offers more potential than the territory that you live within, so you need to consider whether commuting is an option to ensure you’ve truly got the best deal! Franchisors with a much smaller network who are seeking to expand may be inclined to adjust territories slightly and give you a little more than they usually would, as they’re in a position where they need to establish their network for two reasons. The first reason being that of prospective franchisees are more likely to buy into a proven network that can clearly demonstrate a track record of franchisees succeeding (the best testimonial for any franchisor) and secondly, the quicker the franchisor establishes his network, the more funds he will generate through your own success. Franchising is a win/win for both the franchisor and franchisee as you both harbour the same interests to succeed. It is key to note that Franchisors are reluctant to just accept anyone and everyone to establish their network in a timely manner as this could serve up serious repercussions with franchisees underperforming and tarnishing the brand/reputation that the franchisor has built up.

These pieces are constructed to help ease the process of franchise territory selection, as we analyse the positives in every major city, so we’ve basically done all the hard graft for you!

Travel Links within the franchise territory of Southampton

So why Southampton? Southampton is renowned for being one of the busiest business hubs on the south coast and presents serious tourism opportunities to potential franchisees. Southampton is in fact nicknamed the ‘cruise capital of Europe’ and witnesses in excess 4 million tourists every year, presenting a huge opportunity to franchisees operating within the retail franchise sector, food & beverage franchise sector and any consumer-facing franchise opportunity. On top of the tourists coming in via the port, Southampton is also renowned for its international trade and exportation, it’s suggested that over 80% of the small businesses and franchises within the franchise territory of Southampton trade overseas. Could this be the perfect franchise territory for a logistics franchise or courier franchise opportunity?

A huge benefit to operating within the franchise territory of Southampton is the fact that it’s so easily accessible to London via both train and car (90 minutes travel time for both modes of travel). Southampton also has access to the Southampton Airport Parkway that presents access to even more destinations.

Access to staff within the Southampton Franchise Territory

Southampton is seen as being a major university town and hosts both the University of Southampton and Southampton Solent, presenting the opportunity to access good local talent to help launch or expand your franchise.

The University actually runs programmes with suitable facilities for tech, digital and business and hosts a variation of enterprise units for business.

Access to support in the Southampton Franchise Territory

Any Franchise looking to launch within Southampton will be pleased to know that they are a number of business support programmes to really assist with the growth of your franchise opportunity. The Solent Growth Hub LEP supports businesses and franchises within the following sectors;

• Financial Services
• Creative
• Digital
• Engineering
• Marine
• Tourism
• Mentorship
• Strategic advice
• International market access
• Business partnerships

To name just a few. The growth hub was created to assist launches with accessing grants, support & funding and to locate suitable premises for your franchise.

Southampton is also home to the SETSquared which is a partnership that is ran between the universities of Bath, Bristol, Exeter, Southampton and Surrey and it offers businesses and franchises alike the opportunity to access support including;

Some franchises and businesses may be able to apply for grants from the Advanced Manufacturing Expansion Fund, where they will match up to 20% of the cost of projects.

Premises to launch your Franchise within

Some cracking sites to launch your franchise within can include the following;

• -University of Southampton Science park
• -Solent Business Park
• -Chalcroft
• -Centurion Industrial Park
• -Acorn Business Park
• -Hamilton Business Park
• -Longbridge Industrial Park
• -City Industrial Park
• -Rushington Business Park
• -Flanders Industrial Park
• -South Hampshire Industrial Park

For work from home franchises or internet-based franchises, there is the opportunity to work within a co-working environment named ‘Venture Coworking’ and this can be located within the Ocean Village Marina Complex and presents users with virtual office services and serviced office space.

Southampton should strongly be considered as a potential location to launch your franchise as it boasts an impressive start-up rate with over 1,300 businesses launched in 2015 alone. 

Please click here to view Local Franchise Opportunities available within the Franchise Territory of Southampton