Franchising with your 'other half'

Franchising has often been referred to as a ‘marriage’ – a marriage between the Franchisor and the Franchisee.

However, there is a new spin on the ‘marriage’ concept; married couples looking to become business partners in a franchise. Married couples across the country who constantly struggle to balance the responsibilities of working long hours, trying to spend time with each other and possibly caring for their children, too; are eager to find a solution. 

According to Business Development Alliance , more couples are turning to franchise ownership as a way to gain control of their work/home life - and still bring home the bacon. Franchising gives husband-and-wife teams the opportunity to capitalize on a turnkey business model, recognized branding, training and more, all the while allowing couples to be their own bosses. 

Such opportunities provide greater flexibility than a traditional corporate job, freeing up more time to spend with the family - and each other. It's also a great way for former stay-at-home moms to re-enter the workforce in an industry about which they feel passionately.

Husband and wife franchisee teams working together can bring a sense of security; they are each others' most trusted advisors. But don't be mistaken; similar to marriage, owning a business has its growing pains and challenges. Knowing when to work together is just as important as knowing when to stay out of each other's way!

Good clear honest communication, is the key as many little ‘misunderstandings’ have the potential to explode both at work and on the home front.

Some key considerations are:

• Who gets paid the most and why?
• Can you fire your spouse if they are bad for the business?
• You have a vested interest in the spouse, first, before work.
• How hard is it to separate business and leisure.
• How do you tell your spouse they made a bad business decision?
• If you have an argument at work, do you bring it home?
• You have no chance to escape talking about the job or company, it follows you home. Is this ok?
• Even if you say it's work-related, it's always personal.
• If you divorce, how do you divide the company?
• What if one ends up doing all the work?
• Your personal issues, what happens when they carry over into the business.
• Who will make most of the big decisions and why?
• Who is the ‘numbers’ person in the organisation?
• How will the marketing be determined?
• Do we take holidays together – do we even get holidays?

In order to have a successful franchise, it is imperative that you invest in a franchise system that can accommodate the responsibilities you have at home.