Meet the BFA Team

Pip Wilkins QFP
CEO

What Pip doesn’t know about franchising probably isn’t worth knowing! With 25 years’ experience in the franchise sector, her career has been focused on the BFA and she now leads one of the most successful franchise associations in the world. Pip’s vision for the BFA is very clear: to maintain & strengthen standards, provide educational opportunities that influence success and to ensure the wider promotion of franchising.

The BFA team is passionate about franchising and aims to provide a bespoke customer experience to help you, your brand and teams connect, learn and develop within the franchise industry.

You can contact us at any time on 01235 820470, or by emailing mailroom@thebfa.org

Emma uses her passion for planning and organisation to support the smooth running of the association and help meet the demands of the wider business. She leads on BFA Academy strategy and development, working closely with our events manager to delivery a variety of activities for our members. She also oversees finance and is the guardian of the BFA’s internal HR systems and employee onboarding.

Emma Cook

Head of Business Support

James leads the BFA’s Membership & Standards Team and also heads up the Marketing Department, ensuring members remain at the heart of everything the BFA does. He thrives on creating strong relationships, building trust, and delivering value that maximises engagement. With a dual focus on member support and brand growth, James works to strengthen the BFA’s community while driving impactful marketing initiatives that showcase the breadth and value of franchising.

James Fay-Sedgwick QFP

Head of Operations

A seasoned franchise professional, Simon is working with the Executive Team on projects relating to membership recruitment and retention, utilising his wealth of franchisee management knowledge.

Simon Bartholomew QFP

Project Consultant

Helen is our Senior Support Manager, dedicated to building strong, trusted relationships with our members. With a wealth of franchise experience across multiple sectors, she brings industry insight and a practical understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing business owners. Her commitment to exceptional support ensures our members gain the full value of their membership with us.

Helen Thompson QFP

Senior Support Manager

Andy guides franchise brands through the BFA’s accreditation process so spends most of his time knee deep in training manuals, company accounts and franchise agreements. Stress testing franchise business models is what he does best! Andy’s mission is to continue to strengthen the association’s standards and compliance.

Andrew Dick QFP

Standards Manager

Sam enthusiastically works to perfect the BFA customer experience. He ensures that our customers are engaged and he actively assists and promotes facilitating growth in the franchise business. Taking ownership of any issues that may arise and follows any problems through to resolution, he strives to ensure our customers receive the best possible services, the highest standard of customer support and supports our members to achieve satisfaction and success.

Sam Wise

Franchise Support Manager

Monica is always looking for ways to help people grow, and she is passionate about supporting growth personally and in business. She truly believes that franchising is the future. Having a deep passion for great customer service, she strives to provide the best support. Always helping anyone she can, if she cannot find the answer, she will definitely make introductions to people who will. It's why she is always smiling and loves to make new partnerships and franchise friends.

Monica Basuc

Franchise Support Manager

Matthew's a detail driven individual, who is passionate about making a difference to our members. He provides vital support across the Membership & Standards team and is responsible for looking after the ongoing compliance of brands through re-accreditations.

Matthew Taylor

Standards Assistant

Louise is the PR guru at the BFA. She has been working in franchise PR since 2006 and uses these many years of experience to guide, shape and form the BFA’s PR strategy. She works directly with the CEO to ensure our messaging reflects top-level thinking and long-term vision.

Louise Bruce

Head of PR

Gabrielle is responsible for shaping and safeguarding the organisation’s brand identity across all channels; ensuring consistency and creativity in how the brand is represented, from campaigns and events to digital and social platforms. With a strategic yet creative approach, Gabrielle delivers concepts that bring the BFA’s values to life, while overseeing the ongoing growth and maintenance of the website, BFA Magazine and other brand assets.

Gabrielle Birch

Brand Manager

Venu manages the BFA’s digital and social media strategy, driving campaign management, Google Ads optimisation and increasing brand visibility. He collaborates with the press team to ensure the BFA’s digital efforts align with its overarching objectives.

Venu Sivasubramaniam

Digital Media Manager

Keith is highly experienced in events management with a wealth of knowledge and expertise in the field. He makes sure that the planning and execution of events and activities runs smoothly and successfully across the BFA and BFA Academy. With strong organisational skills and attention to detail, he is well-equipped to handle the diverse and dynamic demands of his role.

Keith Kwan

Events Manager

Jo supports with day-to-day bookkeeping, helping to keep the financial side of the association running smoothly. She brings extensive experience from previous accounting and bookkeeping roles, as well as from running her own pre-school business. Jo's responsibilities include raising invoices, managing credit control, and overseeing a variety of financial administration tasks, ensuring everything runs efficiently behind the scenes.

Jo Mengham

Finance Assistant

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