Why You Should Never Franchise Your Business – If You’re This Type of Business Owner

Franchising Success Criteria

At Bane Enterprises, we’ve seen our fair share of business owners – from driven entrepreneurs and frustrated franchisees to mature franchisors and international corporations. But one particular type of business owner tends to stand out: the wannabe franchisor.

Unfortunately, many of these hopefuls don’t quite understand what franchising is really about. Instead of putting in the hard work, following the legal guidelines, and building a sustainable franchise system, they just want to get rich quickly by tricking others into investing in their business. And more often than not, they turn to franchising as their quick fix.

So, who shouldn’t franchise their business? If you identify with any of the following points, franchising might not be the path for you – and it’s better to recognise this now before you end up in a whole heap of trouble.

1. Franchising is Not a Get-Rich-Quick Scheme

Let’s get one thing straight: franchising is not a shortcut to riches. It’s a steady, consistent process that takes time, leadership, solid systems, and a lot of support for your network of franchisees. If you’re someone who’s only interested in fast financial gains and isn’t prepared to put in the hard yards to build a sustainable business model, then franchising is not the answer. It requires dedication, vision, and a commitment to making sure your franchise network thrives. If you’re not in it for the long haul, maybe step back before you make things worse.

2. Your Business is Not Profitable Yet

Here’s an uncomfortable truth: if your business is consistently losing money, you shouldn’t even be thinking about franchising. We recently had a couple approach us after they’d been through another franchise consultant who, unfortunately, let them believe their business was ready for franchising. The reality? Their business had been in financial decline for years. If you can’t get your own operations profitable, how can you expect someone else to invest in it and make money? Focus on fixing your own business first before trying to sell others on the idea of franchising your failing model.

3. You’re Not a Natural Leader

Franchising is all about people. If you’re the type of person who struggles with leadership, dislikes coaching, or can’t handle difficult conversations, franchising probably isn’t for you. A franchisor’s job is to lead by example, build relationships, and guide your franchisees to success. If your style of management involves barking orders or grumbling under your breath at your team, it’s time to reconsider. Being a leader in franchising requires empathy, patience, and the ability to teach others how to succeed within your system. If this isn’t something you’re naturally inclined to do, franchising may not be your best fit.

4. Your Business Is a Constant State of Chaos

Franchising requires structure. If your daily routine is a chaotic whirlwind, where you’re constantly putting out fires and flying by the seat of your pants, you’re not ready to franchise. The backbone of franchising is a well-defined system and processes that ensure consistency across all locations. If you don’t have a structure in place – and can’t stick to it – then your business is likely not ready for franchising. Your franchisees will need clear guidelines to follow, and if you can’t provide that, your franchise system will falter before it even takes off.

5. Innovation and Feedback Are Not Your Things

The saying “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it” doesn’t work in franchising. In fact, it’s one of the biggest reasons why many brands fail. Innovation is key to staying competitive, and that comes from feedback – from your franchisees, your customers, and the marketplace. If you’re stuck in your ways, dismissing new ideas, or ignoring valuable input from the people who are running your business on the ground, your brand will stagnate. The best franchisors are the ones who embrace change and continuously look for ways to improve their business model. If you can’t listen, adapt, and evolve, franchising will only lead you to mediocrity.

So, if you’re reading this and feeling a little uncomfortable, it might be time to take a long, hard look at your approach to franchising. None of this means you’re beyond help. In fact, recognising the problem is the first step to solving it. If you’re open to coaching, development, and growth, we’re here to help you get ready – but right now, you’re not ready to franchise.

Take the time to build your business properly before diving into franchising. Otherwise, you might end up with disgruntled franchisees demanding a refund, and trust us, that’s not a position you want to find yourself in.

Ready for an honest chat? Get in touch with us at Bane Enterprises – we’re always here to guide you in the right direction.

Bio - Barry Money, Founder - Bane Enterprises

For the first ten years of Barry’s career, he consulted in global franchise standards and led significant transformation and innovation projects.

Barry has diverse corporate experience across multiple disciplines including sales, marketing, customer service, product management, export, quality assurance, engineering, IT and supply chain with full accountability for P&L

At the end of Barry’s corporate career, where he earned the nickname “Goliath Slayer,” Barry transitioned to the C-Suite. Barry Money is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a C-Suite professional, with an MBA in entrepreneurship.

Barry has held director, board member, CEO and and leadership positions in start-ups, NFPs, Founder-operated entities, industry peak bodies and commercial organisations. 

He held a leadership role at Australia’s largest franchise group, where he was instrumental in driving disruption and growth.

Barry has worked in franchised industries, franchise consulting companies and some of the largest franchised brands globally.

After many years living and working all around the world, he is fluent in Japanese, French, German and conversant with several other languages.

A dynamic, results-driven leader who prides himself on lateral, entrepreneurial thinking and creativity, Barry is renowned for developing and fostering strong teams and a collegiate spirit.

Barry Money now heads up Australia’s ethical, efficient, effective, end-to-end choice for franchising solutions,

Bane Enterprises.

Contact details

E: online@baneenterprises.com