Great business ideas just need kindling
A unique Franchise consulting service for Franchisors
“We are going to experience the roaring twenties of Franchising. The World of work has been turned upside down, and backwards is not an option. Millions of people are assessing their life goals, and will never return to the office or how it was before. As an industry we are uniquely placed, providing limitless life and career choices to allow people to rebalance. Now is the time.”
— Andrew Walters, Founder & Franchise Consultant
Our approach as Franchise Consultants
Franchising can be lonely… Whether you are running a successful growing Franchisor, or are aspiring to do so, our industry demands a knowledge of all areas of business, and a need to be a best in class thought leader to your network.
Our two decades of experience in leading Franchisors spanning the globe, give us a unique ability as Franchise consultants to fill the gaps in your leadership team. We can help you to step back to “work on”, not “work in” your business.
Our ethos is that Franchising starts and ends with the success of it’s smallest piece. A happy and profitable unit Franchisee is the only way to success… get that right and the rest falls into place. As a leading Franchise Consultant we will help you to construct your operations from the ground up… setting up healthy foundations that will allow you to grow faster and further. This is as true if you are looking to franchise your business, or if you are already established. Put the right building blocks in place as early as you can, but don’t be afraid to make changes if you have been doing things the same way for a long time.
We specialise in helping brands with a great concept understand how to Franchise their own businesses - working with companies spanning every sector, we provide consulting, strategic guidance and all the documentation you need to get started. Where we truly excel though is getting under the skin of our clients and building a Franchise strategy and brand voice that stands out in the highly competitive market that the UK is now. Downloading basic templates from the internet simply doesn’t work, you need to fundamentally build
So how are Kindling different?
Our experience extends far outside of the Franchising world, and we understand Franchising intrinsically - for both it’s positives and it’s faults. As a model it is wonderfully flexible, but it’s not right for everyone and there may be other models that are more appropriate. Whether that is organic expansion, licensing, joint venture to name but a few. We believe in a unique approach for all and will not force our clients down any path - simply because that is how Franchising has always been done. Every client we work with will get a Franchise operation that reflects them, their brand values and personalities with a Franchise model that fits to that - and not the other way around!
Our team
Andrew Walters - Founder
Andrew has been a creative driving force in the franchise industry over the last 20 years, with experience shared between the UK & North America. An advocate and pioneer in International franchising, he has an exceptional pedigree of growing brands both domestically and globally.
Over the past 10 years, Andrew has been a Director of franchise superbrands Pitman Training and most recently Stagecoach Performing Arts, playing a leading role in their expansion and continuing success. More recently he is the founder and lead consultant of Kindling Franchise consultants, and senior advisor to FinlandWay schools.
Janie Labelle - Director
Janie, a native Montrealer, is our head of Operations, responsible for both making the business tick, and for operational insight on business processes for our clients.
Spending a decade driving the healthy snacking revolution as Head of Planning at giants Graze, Janie has deep logistical experience in businesses with multiple moving parts. Including the launch of Graze to the US market.
She has most recently worked as a project manager, leading processes from product concept to delivery.
As a native French speaker, Janie also acts as translator for our clients.
Our Franchise Consultant Services
The World is going through a period of unprecedented change. We have all wrestled with what this means for us as individuals, for our businesses, our franchisees and our workforce. One thing is for sure… we are not going back. Necessity is the mother of invention and the Franchise industry has gone to extraordinary lengths to adapt… many Franchisors have made fundamental adaptations to their model, and seen their networks embrace profound changes over the course of just a few years. Changes that might have otherwise taken ten.
We firmly believe that there is an opportunity to embrace this change, and to work smarter
The services that we offer to Franchisors at Kindling Franchise Consultants allow you to allocate resources quickly, and efficiently as needed. We have all proven we can work flexibly and adapt - and we allow you to take this a step further forward. Critically appraising your business, your strengths and shortcomings, and then filling those gaps is what we are all about. We allow you to bring in highly skilled, experienced talent at a fraction of the cost of recruiting full time.
Franchise Recruitment
We don’t just talk the talk, at Kindling Franchise Consultants we’ve walked the walk.
Our experience comes from selling franchises. Every day. Across multiple concepts in multiple locations. From small unit franchise deals sold to families taking their first steps in business, through to national Master deals. We’ve done them all.
The World has moved on so much in just 12 months, and we can guide you on how to develop a modern and joined up sales and marketing strategy to proactively go out and find the franchisees you deserve.
Franchise Operations
Managing a diverse Franchise network is as challenging as it is rewarding. A culture of mutual respect, a shared commitment to your brand and most importantly happy, smiling franchisees is key.
Having led Franchise Operations teams at three major Global Franchise Superbrands, the team at kindling franchise consultants are ideally placed to help you put in place processes and procedures to power up your operations.
We’ve written Operations manuals, and led high performing support teams to networks of 100’s of franchisees. Let us share the load.
Franchisor Mentoring
Running a Franchise can be a lonely business, particularly as a start-up. You are expected to know everything about your own business, and also how to support and grow a diverse group of franchisees.
Our unique franchise consulting and mentoring packages provide an incredibly cost effective way of adding senior management experience to your leadership team.
We will be there for you, whether it is to bounce ideas, to strategise deeply or help you to overcome challenges that you may be having with your sales or your network
International Franchising
Had dreams of opening that first Franchise location overseas?
With 20 years of experience, multiple franchise openings for multiple franchisors in multiple countries our expertise is unrivalled. Take that first step for an honest assessment of where you are at, and where and how you can expand.
Making your brand into a global business requires a distinct skillset, level of experience and mindset. We will help you to develop them all, and give honest advice of the pitfalls you are likely to face along the way!
Franchise Your Business
We love working with new startup concepts. Whether you have just a vision of what your Franchise could look like, have a proof of concept and want to start Franchising or are an early Franchisor and need help to ignite sales, we are here for you.
For anyone looking to Franchise your business, theres is a huge amount to consider. Not least of which is whether it is something that you should pursue - or indeed whether there are issues that you should address before you do so. As part of our Franchise Consulting services we will work with you to produce World Class documentation - but more importantly will ask the crucial questions and help you to put in place the right strategy to develop a thriving Franchise network.
It will be challenging, but it’s a hugely fun journey. We will ask the difficult questions and push you to be better - but know that we are there with you every step of the way and for many of our clients it’s a long term relationship developed and a lifetime affinity on our side.
"Andrew is an absolute professional and a genuine pleasure to work with - always professional, always friendly, always measured and an extremely safe pair of hands. He has seamlessly become viewed as a senior expert member of our team over the past months.”
— Noora Laitio, FINLAND WAY
Children’s Franchises
We have unrivalled experience in the Kids and Education Franchise space.
Having been part of the leadership team of some of the UK & North America’s biggest franchisors we know how to scale up and manage complex franchise networks. Children’s Activity Franchises are a unique and vibrant part of the industry and have their own challenges and amazing opportunities - we’ve worked with more than 25 of the UK’s best kids Franchisors so have a reputation and a pedigree in this space that is second to none.
We are also proud members of the Institute of Children’s Actitivty Providers, and love helping to drive growth in the wider community of businesses.
How we work
1
Initial consultation
We will usually spend up to an hour just talking about your business - where you are at and what you need.
Each Franchised business will be at a different stage of their lifecycle, and will have a head office team with varied skillsets. We work with you to understand what makes you and your aspirations unique and provide the appropriate franchise consulting services that you need.
2
Bespoke options
Based on your needs we will come up with a range of options to help you achieve your goals.
That may be relatively light touch, such as our mentoring programme. Or us becoming much more deeply ingrained in your business such as our full service Franchise recruitment offering. The key point being that we don’t believe one size fits all - we work in the way that fits you and your business.
3
Becoming part of your team
Once started - we love to speak to as many of your team as we can to understand your strengths.
We believe that the best way for us to help is for us to provide our experience in short, specialised bursts to fit a particular goal. Franchise consulting when done well should help enhance every element of your Franchise leadership and strategy.
FAQs
Why should we choose Kindling Franchise Consultants?
There are many Franchise consultants, but with Andrew we have a proven Franchise leader who has been at the top of the industry for many years. Not simply advising on it, but actually doing it as part of some of the UK’s leading franchises.
We like to think that we are a very different type of consultancy.
We know how important it is to create Franchising documentation that will allow you to scale and grow effectively, and we can provide a total solution to Franchisors on this. What is absolutely most important though is the strategy that underpins. We believe we are absolutely the best in the business when it comes to taking the time to understand what makes you unique and your business tick - and then helping you to create a bespoke strategy that fits your needs - and not just a generic one rehashed over and again.
How long are your services typically?
Very much dependent on the project to be honest. We love to get under the skin of a business, but it’s all about providing value for you. It can range from a couple of hours of consultation a month to provide strategic guidance, through to creating and leading your entire Franchise recruitment project.
What are the fees?
Every franchise is different - so as a first step we look to understand the stage in your business lifecycle that you are at, and build something bespoke for you. It could simply be an ear to listen and to lend a gentle steer or something much deeper.
Fees start from a few hundred pounds for our mentoring service, but let’s talk and work out what franchise consulting service works best for you.
All things Franchising at the BFA Franchise Show - Birmingham NEC
Andrew joins host Adam Lovelock from Coconut Creative on the Franchise Marketing Show to discuss the world of Franchising and what are the latest trends, opportunities and challenges facing the industry.
Listen in to Andrew on the legendary Tezlom podcast sharing his path into franchising
Alongside Ryan Armitage QFP, the Tezlom podcast takes a deep dive into Andrew’s history and ethos. It’s an honest, raw and in depth insight into what makes him tick and the things that have driven Kindling to be the brand that it is/
Listen in and Watch our Podcasts…
Our Founder, Andrew Walters shares his experiences and stories on Franchising with host Ed Purnell of the Disenfranchised Podcast. With nearly 20 years of learning - it’s a must listen for anyone in the Franchise community or interested in joining it.
With close to 20 years in Franchising, we’ve always been proud to have been a regular and active member of the Global Franchise community.
As a franchise consulting firm accredited by the British Franchise Association (bfa), we have consistently proven to demonstrate the highest standards of care and quality for all of our Franchisor clients. We maintain a commitment to working in the right way, and with the best brands, in order to promote the industry both ethically and effectively.
We are part of a wider network which believes in collective ambition, knowledge sharing, support and best practice. As part of this we have access to a wide range of suppliers and peers that we can utilise to help grow your business.
