What the British Franchise Association Can Do For You

Franchising Background Information

The British Franchise Association (bfa) evolved from the franchise industry itself in 1977, as the only voluntary accreditation body for franchising in the UK. Its remit was and is to develop and continuously improve the standards of good practice in franchising and to accredit franchisors who meet these standards. Many organisations say that they are 'franchisors' - not all are, and not all are accredited by the bfa.

The bfa accredits franchise companies for membership on the basis of an established standard structure. These standards are based on the company's financial position, its day-to-day business activity, the disclosures made to prospective franchisees and the terms of the franchise agreement. These standards are based on the European Code of Ethics for franchising - agreed by the member associations of the European Franchise Federation in 1990 and recognised by the European Commission. Companies are re-accredited for bfa membership on a regular basis.

However, it is important to note that the bfa’s detailed checks concern the company's fitness to franchise rather than the suitability of, and prospects for, a particular product or service for a particular market.

Alongside the bfa’s reputation for franchising standards, which in turn works to enhance the image of its members and their businesses, the bfa offers many services and benefits to support members and provide all levels of help for prospective franchisees. UK & Europe

As part of the European Franchise Federation (EFF) the bfa are able to lobby the European government as well as the UK government on behalf of its members. The bfa is ensuring that its members' voices are heard and its members' interests are protected from unwanted legislation in UK and Europe.

Franchisee Recruitment

The bfa assists members with recruiting good quality franchisees. They provide many marketing platforms, including The Newsline newsletter, exclusive to bfa members. The bfa website also provides a direct link to its members for prospective franchisees who are shopping for franchisors 'on line'.

The bfa also runs an established Franchise Development Programme of Franchisee and Franchisor Seminars. The seminars run nationally and support prospective franchisees and existing businesses in identifying and assessing available franchise opportunities, as well as developing the skills necessary to exploit those opportunities.

Information

The bfa produce independent Franchisee's and Franchisor's Guides, which features details of all bfa members. Approximately 34% of all new franchisees purchase the bfa Franchisee's Guide prior to making a decision.

Exhibitions

Restricted to bfa members or genuine business format franchise opportunities, there are three bfa endorsed exhibitions held throughout the year. Members are entitled to automatic discounted entry to these exhibitions and discounted advertising and other costs.

Training and Communications

All members have access to accredited professional advisors and experience is shared at the annual conference and regional meetings held in five regions three times a year. The bfa offer a regular news producing a bi-monthly newsletter and technical bulletins to keep members updated on news and bfa activity on their behalf. Newsline is the bfa’s web based newsletter e-mailed to some 24,000 mainly prospective franchisee subscribers every month.

Dedicated Website - www.thebfa.org

The bfa website, offers all the information a prospective franchisee or franchisor will need. In addition, an 'information request' facility ensures that prospective franchisees can link directly with bfa members to ask further questions. All members have access to a private area providing the latest news and views.

The Franchise Awards

The annual bfa Franchisor and Franchisee of the Year Awards, open only to bfa members and sponsored by HSBC and The Express Newspapers, promotes the image of sound franchising practices and draws media attention to both the winners and franchising as a whole.

Mediation and Arbitration

Both schemes are operated by the bfa to ensure that any disputes between franchisees and franchisors can be resolved in a cost effective, timely franchise environment.

Why Franchisors join the bfa

For franchisors, bfa membership is a benchmark of quality, providing public recognition as well as evidence that your company is truly established and offers a fair and ethical franchise opportunity.

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For further bfa information or a copy of the bfa Franchisor's Guide, contact the bfa on tel: 01865 379892, email the bfa's Marketing department.