If the original is fuzzy the photocopy will be blurred

Jean-Michel Illien, founder of the firm Franchise Management why duty-free represent a potential commercial strategy for the industry and wholesalers

Preserve the grey matter

The franchise may represent a response to an issue of marketing and distribution for manufacturers and wholesalers: "an industrial will always invest more brainpower to raw in what it designs and manufactures." It does not manufacture a product isolated, but a range of products which each element is its legitimacy by juxtaposition with other products in the range. ", All this brainpower is not intact to the customer by the system of multi-brand dealers, because these last cherry in the range, do not purchase it in full and the mix with competing products," said Jean-Michel Illien, founder of the Franchise Management firm.

Width of chaussures and spirit!

To illustrate his point, Jean-Michel Illien said his debut in the manufacture of footwear for babies Bidegain - French leader group: "30 years ago, the range of footwear Babybotte"b3"was designed to meet an important stage in the life of the child: the time where he learned to walk." This range proposed three different foot widths for each size, innovative technical comfort designed to protect the child in the learning of his movements. However, only the median width shoes, judged easier to sell, were purchased by multi-brand stores. All the podiatry read was annihilated, the price became the only criterion for purchase! Multi-brand dealers did not have the competence to recognize the grey matter contained in the product. Frustrated manufacturer, Bidegain group has therefore decided to launch its stores under its own name.

Vendors formed 100 on the products

Nestlé, Lacoste, Nike major industrialists are more today to launch their own points of sale. "When the industrialist mark becomes sign, its grey matter comes fully to the consumer." The notion of price is relative, since the proposed cost, it precisely meets the need of the consumer. "Can benefit from improved margins on sales, because it is no longer the least expensive product that is being sought, but one that will make the service expected by the client," says Jean-Michel Illien. In a store distributing all of the references of an industrial, therefore without enter in competition with other products, there is no loss in the rationale, with vendors specifically trained to pass messages. "Everyone is winning." The seller is fun by offering the right product with the needs of the client. The consumer buys intelligently and the engineer, who developed the product, sees its role as valued. Industrial, it offers all of its lines, with a showcase of know-how. Developing points of sale to its name, it grows even the multi-brand retailers improve the supply of this mark in their stores under sentence to see disappear. Finally, the industrial optimizes inventory management: with immediate information on sales made, it can work in tight flow and better organise its production units. "What is valuable for example in a sector such as ready-to-wear where collections change quickly," said Jean-Michel Illien.

Points of sale of an industrial development: why to prefer the franchise

Each its field of competence

When an industrialist develops its brand through its own points of sale, under name, two solutions are available to him: the franchise or the succursalisme. "The development of a network is very consumer capital, including for signs of distribution, because the quality of the location is important." A cost of already heavy windowsills, which must be added the work and the arrangement. Frankly, it is the franchisee who pays the investment at the local level, i.e. the marketing of products. The franchisor can concentrate its financial efforts - at the national level - on the communication of the sign, the R & D, production tool and the training of franchisees. Each invests finally in its area of jurisdiction and in a complementary way. Furthermore, a franchisee on average generates a higher turnover of 30 to that of a succursaliste Manager for a point of sale identical. Because it works for him, which will particularly increase production if the network is being developed in franchise. ", explains Jean-Michel Illien.

The mark, to defend capital

"Today, some very well known brands are".

"cannibalize" by DSD - own brands / distributors-, leading to the demise of the heritage of reputation of the industrial undertaking. The brand is a promise to the final customer, subjective value, which leverages through a development free when it becomes sign. Frankly, can even become revenue: free training to resellers multi-marques is charged when it is done to franchisees. Ditto for pop and the VLTI - advertising and Information on the place of sale. "The mark will be known, more on the sell dear", prevents Jean-Michel Illien. Under what conditions can an industrial launch free to distribute its products

1st condition: modelling economic format

"The franchisor sell know-how, a"turnkey"business." He must promise to earn money to franchisees, collecting an entry fee and royalties on their farms. To validate that it is possible, prior to network development, the industrialist must acquire distribution expertise, define the economic model and test himself the business format that it wants to franchise. Must be reasonably a minimum of one year of full-scale test to validate economically a concept, that advocates the European Code of conduct of the franchise. Only very rarely encountered exception: when the franchisor brings a "rupture innovation" with the market. In the case of a true revolution where he must invest the market before it to take his idea, it may be sometimes possible to go faster on the explicit condition that franchisees are fully informed of the situation. The industrial-franchisor will need to add to the control of manufacture of a product, control of its marketing in order to be credible to its distributors (franchisees). This will be his responsibility to franchisor to identify the elements of know-how, to well to transmit them to the future franchisees of the network. If the original is fuzzy, the photocopy will be blurred. ", said Jean-Michel Illien.

2nd condition: the choice of the casting of franchisees

Very often new franchisors believe recruit their franchisees in their professional environment of origin. "However, because of their experience, this medium multi-brand dealers hear all the arguments given to the training course and will tend to want to return to their old habits, thus misapplying the know-how." "Will it have more respect for the concept on the part of a franchisee who is not with the same professional universe, which puts on the franchisor liability to perfectly transmit know-how", insists Jean-Michel Illien.

3rd condition: constitute the hard core of the first franchisees

"If the first franchisee signs his contract without having met other franchisees and to issue, the following them, meet the first before signing." Or even, them copy in the how to apply more or less well knowledge-faire The first should therefore imperative, to be completely satisfied with the franchisor, and on the other hand, be sur-accompagnés by the franchisor so the concept is fully respected. A poorly recruited franchise cost much more than what it does and have a negative impact on the rest of the network. ", says Jean-Michel Illien. 38 Years of experience in the management of the networks, the founder of the Franchise Management firm, who accompanied more than 115 signs, says: "in recent years, when recruiting franchisees, a new test has emerged in casting: what will be the added value of the franchise network candidate." For example, if the candidate previously worked in the service marketing of a large group, will it not then work on the communication from the network in a consultative committee The franchise is a matter of groups of beings human, whose good management is more important than the evolution of the sector of activity itself. There is that the behaviour of men in the franchise network breed almost the same in all sectors of activity and their evolution to 3, 5 or 10 years can thus to predict, and therefore the phases of growth of the franchisor. It is a reassuring of the profession of franchisor and this is the reason for which the French Federation of the Franchise plays an important role by allowing franchisors to exchange their experiences. I come to the conclusion that the franchise arrived at maturity for the creation of network management tools. It is now how to use him remains significant margins of progress.