The Filta Group has been asked to provide its widely acclaimed services to not just one, but two major venues serving the 2010 Winter Olympics to be held in Vancouver, British Columbia.  The FiltaFry micro-filtration service will be used to purify the cooking oil used around BC Place, the site of the 2010 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies.  The FiltaFry service will also be used at GM Place, another of the Olympics main venues.

FiltaFry works by using a highly effective vacuum filtration system to purify cooking oil used in commercial fryer.  The end result is cooking oil that tastes fresher, heats more easily and lasts longer.  This enables vendors to provide a better quality food while using less oil and less electricity.  By using the FiltaFry micro-filtration service, GM Place and BC Place have both made a commitment to reducing the environmental impact of their extensive food service industry during the Winter Olympics.

The owner of the Filta franchise in Vancouver, Steven Hughes, has expressed his enthusiasm about this opportunity to show the world the benefits of FiltaFry.  Steven Hughes is no stranger to providing large scale services to major sporting events.  He also provides FiltaFry services at GM Place during the NHL season, when it serves as the home of the Vancouver Canucks.

Conservative estimates suggest that over 300,000 gallons of oil will be filtered using the FiltaFry micro-filtration process over the course of the 2010 Winter Olympics.  The amount of oil that would be used without FiltaFry filtration could be easily twice that amount.  To give a clearer idea, 600,000 gallons of cooking oil would be enough to completely fill an Olympic size swimming pool.  Obviously, halving that amount is a massive step in reducing waste for this major event.

Though the 2010 Winter Olympics is an exciting chance to show the world what Filta can do, Filta has already been hard at work in changing the environmental impact of commercial kitchens around the globe.  When the Winter Olympics kick off in Vancouver there will by 27 different countries participating in which Filta already has a presence.

As Filta continues to grow by offering franchises in new locations throughout the world, it will also continue to grow by expanding its products and services (such as FiltaCool) to help Filta customers further reduce their negative impact on the environment.  In fact, several exciting new services are already in the works.  Filta hopes to offer two exciting new cost and waste reducing services, FiltaTAB and FiltaBIO in the near future.

Understandably, not everyone is going to have a look into franchising and decide that they want to take on more than one territory, store, or location all at once- but some do. For those people, multi unit just makes more sense. Another group that sometimes considers multi unit franchise didn’t start out that way, but perhaps discovered the location that they found themselves in, the franchise they’d bought really worked out well, and from an economics standpoint- more locations equals more profits. The realist also says that it brings about more issues in management, staffing and overhead, but at the same time, for many, this is a risk that pays off in some big ways.

One of the best things to have going for you is in fact already being a franchisee with a given company, and having a great working relationship. The franchiser is the one that is going to be in your corner, particularly if you have been a success within their umbrella. More often than not, franchisers are very encouraging of this method of business because it does mean more profit, and usually they offer a wealth of resources to those seeking to expand.

Also, the relationship you have with your current supplier may take on a whole new light as more locations mean more volume of order- which often comes with some exceptionally nice discounts for higher quantity. Banks tend to favor second locations and more also, if the franchisee has an already established business that is turning a nice profit or a stable one.

A key thing to remember when thinking about going multi unit is that you have to be realistic and conservative. If you’ve got the capital to open more than one location at a time, you still need to be sure of many things- for instance, not every location is going to work out well and that can really cause financial distress on your entire system. This is where demographics and studies of the area are going to come in particularly useful as you will have to have a very clear understanding of the areas in which you plan to expand and what sort of profits you can realistically bring in from them.

Multi unit franchising may seem like a steep hill to climb for some, and for others it may be exactly what they seek out to grow. Depending on your long term goals, capital and the passion you have for your work, you may find that multi unit franchising is just the thing for you.

The next thing that you need to have in place is a five year plan. This may or may not include the potential franchise you are looking at- but what this does is to map out your lifestyle and this way, you can sort of cross reference it to the various franchise options you are looking into and decide if the franchise is a good fit. This will help you to narrow your choices down quite a lot and help you to really find a franchise you feel good about for the long term. In addition to this, at this time you may want to consider talking to the people at the franchise, looking into it more deeply and getting more informed so that you know exactly what this will entail and what your responsibilities and rights will be. Again, you do this in order to see if the franchises you are looking into fit into your life, and if they can stay a stable part of that long term.

Once you have this in place, you probably already have a good list of prospective franchises. The next thing to do is analyze start up cost. It’s a good idea to have not only enough for start up but enough set aside to get you through start up and keep you afloat until you have your feet on the ground a bit. Sit down and working with your five year plan, consider the long term, and consider which franchises fit into that long term budget and what you feel comfortable with. This should narrow the list even further.

Basically, the very best thing you can do is to begin with a list of prospective franchises, and then, weigh the information your receive on them as it comes in, against your own goals and dreams. One of the bigger mistakes that some people make is not going into a franchise sure that it will fit in with their lives- remember, going into business for yourself is also about quality of life. Make sure that you are reasonably aware of what the job is, what parts of it you’ll have to be very involved in, and if that franchise really is for you.

While not every franchise is going to be able to give you a solid estimate of how much you can actually earn, they can deliver some pretty big promises based on estimates made using statistics of similar franchisees. However, there are a number of legal reasons that some won’t do this- it is not usually because the franchise has anything to hide, it’s more over a legal maneuver for the protection of the company. The projections are known as Financial Performance Representations and these can usually enable a prospective franchisee to at least get a decent idea of how well a franchise will work out for them. If you receive your FDD and there is no item 19, asking the franchise why this is can help you to also gauge the company’s integrity. As stated prior, the absence of an item 19 is not so much a red flag, and generally speaking, an honest franchise will be able to clarify to you exactly why they did not include it. This is a very important part of the document when it is included, and like all aspects of the FDD, you have to read the whole thing through and note aspects you are unclear on so that you can ask pointed questions. The only way to make a fully informed choice about this important investment, is to be fully informed. While this may sound very obvious, statistics do show that many prospective franchisees do not read the entire disclosure document in its entirety- and this causes much worse things but can lead to unrealistic expectations and failure.

For the ones that do include this section, it is absolutely vital that you full read the FPR- because sometimes, statements may be true, but padded a bit in favor of the franchise. Common ways of doing this are taking the most successful franchise locations in the company, during their most successful months and using those statistics. Paying careful attention to the way these projections are displayed, as well as how realistic they seem to you is a good way of working it through with a critical eye. Again, this is not a red flag, it’s simply smart business, however, balancing this in with your overall impressions of the company, those representatives you have spoken to, and the rest of the FDD can enable you to have a very clear picture of exactly what that franchise can do for you.

Over time many owners begin to realize that franchise ownership was not quite what they had anticipated.  The very involved franchisor, who at first seemed like a great and solid support as the new owner struggled to establish the franchise, may come to seem like more of a meddlesome burden.  A great number of franchisees begin to realize too late that what they thought would be their business has not done much to increase their sense of independence.

The high degree of accountability involved may make franchise ownership feel a lot more like employment than business ownership.  Though the franchisor may have represented franchise ownership as a collaborative effort between franchisor and franchisee, this is seldom the case.  The reality is most often that the franchisee finds him or herself under the thumb of a watchful franchisor that dictates much, if not all of the aspects of the business.

This sense of not owning his or her own business can lead to a high degree of dissatisfaction.  This disenfranchisement with the franchisor is only compounded by the ongoing royalty fees due to the franchising organization.  The added cost of doing business, coupled with heavy restrictions can quickly sour the franchise owner.
Franchise royalties may seem well worth it while the franchisee is first starting out.  As the franchisor helps to establish the franchise and to guide the franchisee in successful operation, the franchisee may not begrudge having to hand over a hefty percentage of the franchise’s revenue.  However, as the franchisee becomes more sure in his or her ability to run the business without the assistance or interference of the franchisor, those ongoing royalties may begin to feel like paying for the privilege of being subservient.

The twin barbs of minimal independence and ongoing royalties are what most often create schisms between franchisors and franchisees.  Unfortunately, these two aspects are inextricable parts of franchising.  There is little the franchisee can do to circumvent them and it is in the franchisor’s best interest to adhere to them.
Since franchisor control and royalties cannot be eliminated from franchising, it is the responsibility of the franchisee to find out how much of each will be expected by the franchisor and to determine if those amounts are acceptable prior to entering into a franchising agreement.  Not all franchisors require the same percentage for royalties.  Not all franchisors exercise the same degree of control.  The investor must find a franchisor who meets his or her needs.

The best way to do this is to ask questions as early as possible.  Much of this information can be found in reading the franchisor’s Franchise Disclosure Document.  However, the most reliable way to find out the truth about franchise ownership under any franchisor is to talk to the franchisees who already operate under the brand.