Business Categories
Dec, 01 2007

Top 25 franchise managers

With franchising concept gaining momentum and acceptance among various industry sectors, the model is visibly gaining acceleration in its growth in the country. As the year ends, TFW brings out Top 25 Franchise Managers in India and related performances i

1) Veta:

Started in January 1981 with the motto of `English for all`, Veta was mainly addressing spoken English needs of heterogeneous learners through its direct training centre in Chennai and reached others through distance education. The company embarked upon its franchise operation in 1996. Initially, the company started six franchise centres in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka despite demands in other states too. At present, the company has more than 150 centres across India (from Kashmir to Kanyakumari) comprising 100 franchised centres and 50 own centres. They are spread across 90 towns (or cities). By year-end, the company is likely to have more than 200 centres. By 2010, it intends to establish over 500 centres in the ratio of 1:5 (own: franchise). With international Head Quarters established in Singapore, Veta attends to franchise requests from Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam. The company will be rendering its franchise operation in SE Asia by January 2008. Year 2008 will witness Veta to cater to global market becoming thus a pan -Asian brand.

“Enactment of franchise laws in India will enable us to progress like in USA, UK and Australia. These laws not only protect the franchise model helping franchisors and franchisees but also encourage financial institutions to support franchise business start-ups.” - Major Rajan, Executive Director, Veta

2) Safexpress

Safexpress came into being in 1997, time when franchise model also came into existence. As the company was looking to covering every square inch of the country, the concept of franchising appealed to it and turned out to be the perfect solution for the model met its requirements. With just 12 vehicles and nine offices, the company started off as a very small unit. Today, the company is one of the leaders in the logistics industry. In the beginning, the company worked with business agents who would operate as franchisees. Later, a need for a chain of interdependencies was felt in order to provide better and more efficient Express Distribution service to customers. It was this thought or feeling that brought franchise model into the picture. At present, the company has 45 hubs and super hubs, a fleet of over 3,000 weatherproof ISO 9002 certified vehicles serving 553 destinations and covering five lakh kilometers daily. Today, Safexpress is a company worth Rs 500 crore.

“In 1990s, franchise industry was in its nascent stage. But today, franchise industry is coming up in a big way. Franchise plays a vital role in extending the reach of companies. As various companies eye for expansion, they are beginning to rely greatly on franchise. I am certain that franchise industry has a very bright future.” - Pawan Jain, MD, Safepress Pvt. Ltd

3) ZILS

ZILS or precisely known as Zee Education Network was started as a division of Zee Telefilms in 1994. Subsequently, it was developed as a separate company in 1999 to bring the required focus to franchise ZedCA, the IT education for franchisee model in the country. The franchise market size is approximately 40,000 crore with over 40,000 plus franchise outlets. Currently in Kidzee, we have signed approximately 700 plus franchisees across the country wherein approximately 450 plus are operational and the remaining are in the various stages of getting operational. The company expects to have 1000 Kidzee centres by this financial year. In Kidzee, the company already has seven operational centres and expects to close this financial year with 35 centres.In Kidzee High, we have seven operational schools and expect to start 15 more from the coming session in 2008.

“The franchise industry of India is still in its nascent stage. Before eight years, it was hardly an acceptable format for expanding business, except in IT education. In India, there are currently around 1800 brands and many of these have opened outlets overseas in developed economies and running very successfully. I foresee tremendous growth of franchising in India.” - Mr Arun Khetan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Zee Interactive Learning Systems Limited (ZILS)

4) GFA

Founded in 1996, the Global Franchise Architects is a group based in Geneva (Switzerland) and specialises in building, operating and franchising specialty retail brands. The current portfolio consists of brands such as Pizza Corner, Coffee World and Stone Fire Pizza Kitchen. Its primary focus is on providing a holistic high quality customer experience. It is expanding through a combination of franchised and company-owned stores. Global Franchise Architects first launched brand Pizza Corner in Chennai in August 1996. In India, brand Pizza Corner has today over 50 profitable outlets and eight stores in project-stage. Out of these, 31 are franchised stores. Brand Coffee World has 10 outlets and six of them are franchised stores. In 2007, GFA launched its third brand, `The Donut Baker`, at Brigade Road in Bangalore. Presently, the company has 37 franchisee-operated stores and this number will increase by 10 per cent in 2008, 20 per cent in 2009, 25 per cent in 2010 and 2011. GFA is present in Thailand, India, UAE, Reunion Island and Bangladesh.

“ Although the franchise industry is a huge market worldwide with close to 17 per cent of world business being conducted through franchising; in India, it is less than three per cent. Despite low figure, the industry is growing at 40 per cent annually in India. Surprisingly, Indians own 90 per cent of 600 franchises presently operating in India! Indian franchising industry is likely to witness an exponential growth in the coming years.” - Mr Alok Totalani, Assistant VP Franchising and Business Development, Global Franchise Architects

5) Eureka Forbes Ltd

Eureka Forbes Ltd was born in 1982 as a joint venture between Electrolux of Sweden and Forbes Forbes Campbell of the Tata Group. A subsidiary of Forbes Gokak Ltd, it became in 2002-03 a part of the Shapoorji Pallonji Group. The company closed the year 2006-07 with a turnover of Rs 755 crore. Around 70 per cent of its business come from water purifiers branded as AquaGuard, Forbes and AquaSure. Eureka Forbes pioneered the concept of water purification in India. It has today nearly 45 lakh satisfied customer households spread over 500 towns in the country. Eureka Forbes began franchising early in the 1988. Today, it has over 950 service franchisees all registration. Most of these franchisees operate from their homes, employ, train and motivate their teams of four to five technicians each, and service water purifiers installed in their surrounding localities.

“Although the Indian franchisee industry is predominantly perceived to be for retail stores, Eureka Forbes believes that a lot can be done in the areas of pre-sales, during sales and after-sales work. Eureka Forbes has 950 franchisees today and the figure may go up to 1,100. We would like to consolidate and have `master business partners`.” - Mr SK Palekar, Senior Vice- President (Marketing)

6) Yum Brands Group

In 2005, outside the United States, the Yum! Brands` system opened around three new restaurants each day of the year, making it one of the fastest growing retailers in the world. Yum! Brands Inc., based in Louisville, Kentucky, is the world`s largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants with over 34,000 restaurants, which include over 2,000 licensed restaurants, in more than 100 countries and territories. Four of the company`s restaurant brands - KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and Long John Silver`s - are the global leaders of the chicken, pizza, Mexican-style food and quick-service seafood categories respectively. Yum! Brands has been the world`s largest restaurant company since 1997 after KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell spun-off from PepsiCo. Internationally, the first KFC was started in 1952 and the first Pizza Hut in 1958. In India, Pizza Hut and KFC were parts of Pepsico until 1997 when the restaurant business was hived off into a separate company called Tricon, renamed as Yum in 2002.

“Currently, India is poised for an imminent explosion in the growth of franchisees across a range of product and service sectors. Healthcare, education and food, to name a few, have both domestic and international franchisors. Yum India via Pizza Hut and KFC will have 175 stores by year end and is targeting to expand to 400 stores by 2010.” - Mr Nirain Chaudhary, MD, YUM Brands

7) The Loot

Mr Jay Gupta, MD, The Loot, conceptualised and set up the first The Loot store in mid-2004. The concept was well accepted and appreciated by both customers and business associates. Soon, there was multiplication of stores and Loot (till August 2007) set up 25 stores (approximately 60000 sq. ft. retail carpet area) throughout the country. He started his business in 1996, initially to get into the garment and footwear business by opening some franchisees stores for brands like Colour Plus, adidas, Nike, Weekender, etc. Then, realising that he was not able to give the best to customers, he got into the idea of giving the best brands to customers at the best prices under one single roof. The Loot India Pvt. Ltd has a very unique franchising system and offers unique facilities: the only retail organisation that offers a 100 per cent buyback on unsold stock. The company does not charge any franchisee fees. The Loot does not differentiate between its own company store and a franchisee store.

“We started as a franchisee with 12 super brands toand travell and understand the entire journey of the franchisee. Our franchisee model has been specifically designed keeping in mind may factors. The Loot will have 100 stores by 2008-09.” - Mr Jay Gupta, Managing Director, The Loot

8) Ferns `N` Petals

The company entered this business in 1994. Mr Vikaas Gutgutia came to Delhi and laid the foundation of Ferns N Petals. In one year`s time, he entered the franchise industry. Despite many problems faced in the initial stage, the company settled down with the passage of time. Today, it has 52 outlets spread all over the country. In Delhi and NCR, the company has presently 25 company owned outlets. For Ferns N Petals, it is a very tender stage as it is growing on a very fast track. The whole work model and franchise structure is set in the company, which is very important for any company to grow. Five years hence, the company would become an International brand. All over the world, the company has nine company owned outlets and 43 franchises.

“Eight years back, the franchise model was not as smooth as it is today. With new technology, people are more aware and are able to adapt it in their day-to-day life. So, the franchise structure has really outshined. We expect it to become even better in the coming years.” - Mr Vikaas Gutgutia, MD, Ferns N Petals,

9) Shaadi Point

People Group took the initiative to develop Shaadi.com centres in 2003, to publicise Internet match making service. The blue print was conceptualised for a standardised, accessible, transparent matchmaking retail outlet. Then Shaadi Point was launched in 2004 after extensive research on consumer need and psychographics. Shaadi Point changed the consumer experience by offering a personalized, scalable, economically viable service delivered at consumers` convenience. Shaadi Point was not only instrumental in providing a structure to the fragmented matrimonial services industry but also in empowering the consumer to choose from a wide range of services. Not many innovative franchise concepts were available then in India and people were afraid of taking risks of new methods (franchising). At present, Shaadi Point serves over five lakh members across 86 cities through 151 centers. By 2009-end, Shaadi Point network would be present in over 100 cities with 500 centres. In addition, Shaadi Point would be launched an international chain across UK, USA & UAE by April 2008.

“Franchising, contributes today about one per cent of the total retailing activity in India.. When carefully observed, India has a very big opportunity. With internationalisation of franchising and emergence of new technology, it is a dynamic method of doing business. The franchising industry is only set to boom with the changing trend.” - Mr Om Prakash Hassanandani, Business Head, Shaadi Point

10) VLCC

VLCC Group, one of the largest wellness brands in India was started in 1989. The company is widely recognised for its scientific weight loss solutions and therapeutic beauty approach. The group has a pan-India presence with its VLCC centres spanning a quarter million sq.ft of retail space across nearly 110 outlets in 53 cities, employing over 3,500 people. One-third of them are established and trained doctors, dieticians, nutritionists, cosmetologists, psychologists, physiotherapists and counsellors. Today, VLCC is also the umbrella brand for all the businesses and other brands: VLCC Personal Care, VLCC Workout Factory, VLCC Spa, VLCC Institute, VLCC Alive, VLCC Beauty Zone and VLCC Foundation. Currently, the company has nine franchise centres (Nepal, Gorakhpur, Kolhapure, Meerut, Patiala, Siliguri, Yamunanagar, Ajmer and Mathura). The company is signing agreement for starting 55 more franchisees across the country by the next year. This model will help people belonging to small towns to get an access to world-class beauty treatment.

“Franchising mode of operation is growing and the operational convenience through franchising makes it all the more promising. Franchise industry was fragmented and unorganised but the present scenario is better. As it is growing and becoming more organised, we can expect greater gains for the benefit of the society and nation.” - Mr Yogesh Sethi, CEO, Services & Education Business Indian Sub-Continent VLCC Health care Limited

11) Gitanjali Group

The Gitanjali Group was set up in 1996 by Shri Chinubhai Choksi. The young and enterprising Mehul joined the business soon after his graduation. He formed Gitanjali Gems Ltd, which swiftly grew to become the flagship company of the Group. Gitanjali is a pioneer of branded jewellery in India and manages five of the top ten jewellery brands in India like D`dadmas, Asmi, Nakshatra, Gili, Sangini, Mayagold and Desire. The company owns and manages more than 30 branded jewellery lines. Thus, the wish to leverage strong brand equity to aggressively increase the retail presence and get closer to the end consumer, made the company enter the franchising world in the year 2005 with its flagship brand D`damas. It enjoys a first mover advantage in the branded jewellery segment. The Group has approximately 50 franchisees and its retail presence including Lifestyle stores, shop in shop etc. is approximately 300 stores. The company plans to have approximately 250 to 300 franchisees by the year 2010.

“Franchising made it easier for jewellery brands to understand its customers closely as the channel partner who agrees to be the franchisee of the brand knows the market closely. Thus, the franchising industry is growing at a rate of 25 to 28 per cent in the jewellery sector.” - Mr Mehul Choksi, Chairman, Gitanjali Gems

12) Cadd Centre

Cadd Centre started in 1998 with three employees and four machines. The company has 219 plus centres in India and six in other countries. The company started franchising to make it convenient for every Indian a) to get quality CADD training within 50 kilometres from their homes; b) to build a brand respected for quality in CADD education and c) to create entrepreneurs in different parts of India who could provide job opportunities locally. In 1988, there was no well-organised CADD training to suit working professionals and students to meet their demands. CADD centre was started to fulfill this need. In 1995, the company started its first franchisee at Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu. Starting small and building a national footprint is always is a challenge. The company expects to see franchised businesses penetrating into many small towns and cities.

“We expect to become one of India`s largest and most respected franchise brands in five years. We currently have 219 and we expect another 70 to 80 in one year`s time.” - R Parthasarthy, Cadd centre

13) Titan

Established in 1984 as a joint venture between the Tata Group and the Tamilnadu Industrial Development Corporation, the company brought about a paradigm shift in the Indian watch market, offering products of quartz technology with international styling, manufactured in a state-of-the-art factory at Hosur, Tamilnadu. Titan Industries entered into manufacturing and retailing business in 1987 with its first exclusive showroom named `World of Titan`. Exclusive retail outlets offered customers the space, ambience and customer experience that Titan preferred to deliver. Today, the World of Titan channel is a network of 222 stores spread across 110 cities in India. Spread across 1.54 lakh sq. ft, the network caters to two million customers annually. Of these 222 stores, 195 are franchised stores. The company launched a second independent watch brand – Sonata - as a value brand to those seeking to buy functionally styled watches at affordable prices. The company has also diversified into fashion eyewear by launching Fastrack Eye Gear sunglasses and recently into Prescription Eyewear with Titan Eye+.

“Today, with 70 per market share, Titan sells its watches through over 9,000 outlets in more than 2,300 cities and in over 30 overseas countries including UK, Spain and countries in the Middle East and Asia Pacific. The company has expanded to 690 service outlets covering more than 329 towns.” - Mr Bhaskar Bhat, MD, Titan

14) Dr Lal PathLabs Pvt. Ltd

Dr Lal PathLabs Pvt. Ltd is one of India`s most respected and state-of-the-art laboratory services providers. Today, the company has nearly 30 laboratories spread all over India and more than 5,500 collection The company also employs the largest number of people: about 900 people work for the company out of which 50 may be old pathologists. At present, the company has only franchised its collection centres, and it will raise the centres from 500 to 1000 in a next two to three years' time.

“In India, the franchising industry is going to stay in various areas. If franchise network worked well in the US and western countries, it will definitely do well in India too because Indians are very progressive.” - Dr Arvind Lal, Chairman and Managing Director, Dr Lal PathLabs Pvt. Ltd

15) Tanclean Pvt. Ltd

Mr Sunil Uplap conceived and founded the Tanclean Pvt. Ltd in 1999. The company started with just four franchisees in Mumbai and Pune in that year. Today, it has more than 343 franchisees in more than 85 cities of 21 states in India. Started as a proprietary firm in the name of M/s. Tanclean Hygiene Assurance, the company was incorporated in early 2001 as a Private Ltd company. What inspired the company to start in a professional and scientific manner was its concern to fulfill the basic need for ensuring safe drinking water facilities for fellow citizens. Secondly, it was for creating hundreds of successful entrepreneurs and thirdly for creating enormous employment opportunities across the country. Thousands of youths have been trained and are employed today directly or indirectly as a result of the TANCLEANTM revolution.

"The company is present in about 400 cities and towns having a population of more than two lakhs. Presently, its has over 300 franchisees in about 87 cities and towns. Plans of the company includes having at least 600 more in three to four years and also expanding in southeastern and neighboring countries." - Sunil Uplap, MD, Tanclean

16) Aptech

Aptech started its operation with one centre in Mumbai in 1986. Between 1986 and 1989, it established nine own-centres in major state capitals. Today, the flagship brand, Aptech Computer Education, is present across 40 countries and addresses the manpower requirement of IT/ITES industry. It offers comprehensive, industry-validated programmes like ACCP and SSi JQ. Launched in 1996, Arena Animation is the global leader in animation and multimedia training with strong offerings like the animation engineering, AAASP and multimedia specialist programme. Here too, the company chose franchising for growth. Avalon Aviation Academy, Aptech`s foray into non-IT education, has been making rapid strides since its acquisition in 2006. It has a national presence through 31 centres (company owned as well as franchised). Recently, N-Power to address the need for certified hardware and training courses. Aptech has today a total of nearly 1000 franchise centres. Expanding especially in China, Vietnam, Middle East and Latin America, the company plans to establish new centres at the rate of 60 to 70 centres per year.

" A decade back, franchising was not as evolved as it is today. It was followed by only a few industry sectors and not so organised. However, franchising has become a norm for expansion today. Aptech is proud to have rolled out a sound franchising model, which has been emulated by many organisations. The boom in the retail industry has given a major thrust to franchising in the country." - Mr Pramod Khera, CEO & MD, Aptech Limited

17) Shahnaz Husain

The Shahnaz Husain Group, pioneer and leader in Ayurvedic skin, hair and body care, has received unprecedented international acclaim for the perfect practical application of Ayurveda. The company started with a single herbal salon in 1970 and the first franchise salon was opened in 1979 in Calcutta. Soon, there was a clamour for the Shahnaz Herbal franchise. Over the years, the company has made the franchise agreement more comprehensive, based on legal advice and also added clauses to protect rights of both the franchisor and the franchisee. The company has a chain of over 400 franchised salons, shops, spas and beauty training institutes worldwide. The company would like to see the Shahnaz Husain brand going ahead and gaining more and more strength and positioned as a leader in Ayurvedic beauty care both in domestic as well as international markets.

“In India, franchising is mostly done by Indian companies. However, with the opening up of the retail industry, the franchising business is expected to grow in the coming years. It is estimated that franchising will see growth in certain segments like health care and fast foods.” - Shahnaz Husain, Founder and Shahnaz Husain Group

18) Reebok India Company

Reebok International Ltd, headquartered in Canton, MA, is a leading worldwide designer, marketer and distributor of sports, fitness and casual footwear, apparel and equipment. In 1995, Reebok started operations in India through its 100 per cent subsidiary Reebok India Company, exactly 100 years after Foster handmade the first Reebok shoe. In a short duration of nine years, Reebok has become a leading marketer and distributor of sports and fitness footwear, apparel and sports equipment in India. Reebok has an extensive distribution network: it reaches out to its target customers through 500 exclusive Reebok stores, 200 shops in shop outlets and 2,500 dealer outlets. Reebok boasts of 51 per cent market share in the premium sportswear category. As regards its retail initiative, approximately 500 stores are planned at strategic locations besides opening of stores in tier II and III cities with the aim of reaching 1095 outlets by 2010. Lifestyle is also under its focus this year.

"Reebok believes in the franchisee model and recognises the spirit of the new Indian entrepreneur. The company will pave its way into new markets of tier II and III cities. Reebok believes in offering the same experience, variety and technology at all levels. Franchising helped the company to grow and more strength." – Shubhinder Singh Prem, MD, Reebok India

19) EuroKids

EuroKids is the leading provider of pre-school education in India. EuroKids International is involved in children`s publishing and education services. EuroKids has been the leading children`s publisher for the last 10 years and publishes under license from Walt Disney, Mattel, BBC, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Casterman etc. Having strength in the area of entertainment and educational content, the company decided to venture into the space of pre-school education with an objective to corporatise the prevailing unorganised sector. The potential for the business is enormous and franchising was the obvious route in order to scale the network across the country. Uday Mathur is an engineer and IIM graduate with more than 20 years of experience in consumer companies. Euro Kids started franchising in 2001. EuroKids pioneered the concept of national franchising of pre-schools in the country and is clearly positioned as the `specialist`. The company has a network of more than 450 successful franchisees and more than 60,000 delighted EuroParents whose kids have undergone the EuroKids experience.

“EuroKids plans to have a network of 1,500 centres with international footprint and 200,000 students at its centres in the next five years.” - Uday Mathur, MD, EuroKids

20) Bharat Matrimony

Bharat Matrimony Pvt. Ltd was established in 1997. Today, it is India`s no.-1 matrimony service provider. The company uses an effective business model to provide its services (online as well as offline). BharatMatrimony has launched its offline business venture `BharatMatrimony Centres`. Positioned as `The worldwide marriage bureau`, these centres cater to non tech-savvy customers to deliver quality service. BharatMatrimony offers every customer credibility, comfort and convenience. The company started with centers in July 2005. In November 2005, the company launched its first franchisee centre. Today, it has a network of 100 centres across 88 cities in 21 states. Its franchise-network has grown by 128 per cent in the year 2006-2007 over 2005-2006. Franchisee business in matrimony space started just two to three years back and is still evolving. After establishing a leadership position in online space, BharatMatrimony entered offline space for total market coverage. BharatMatrimony is `co-creating` products and services in collaboration with consumers (members) thereby offering a `value proposition` and `brand experience`.

“BharatMatrimony.com has a very strong presence and membership base in overall market share. The company will also have centres in UAE, UK, USA, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore and other destinations. The company is targeting 300 centres in a phased manner through franchisee route.” - Uday Zokarkar, Business Head

21) Dr Lal PathLabs Pvt. Ltd

Dr Lal PathLabs Pvt. Ltd is India`s most respected and state-of-the-art laboratory services provider. It is currently doing maximum +the number of patients a day by any pathology lab provider which is may be 8000 patients per day. It has nearly 30 labs all over India and more than 550 collection centres. It is the biggest in India and has 1,650 tests and panels. The company also employs the largest number of people: around 900 people work and of these 50 may be old pathologists. At present, collection centers are functioning by franchisees. All the samples are collected but not tested at the collection centers. Samples are then transported to nearest lab of LPL. In 1982, LPL is the first one in the world to start franchising in health care. In India, the franchising industry is going to stay in various areas. Big names like McDonalds and Pizza hut are involved in master franchising deals. The future is very good in franchising industry.

"The company has only franchised its collection centres. It will raise the strength of the centres from 500 to 1000 in the next two to three years` time.” - Dr Arvind Lal, MD, Chairman, Lal Path Labs

22) The Apollo Clinic

In November 2000, Apollo Health and Lifestyle Limited was formed as a subsidiary of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise. Franchising in the healthcare segment is common all over the world. (so why not in India?) According to the Confederation of India Industry (CII), 17 per cent of world business is through franchising. In India, it accounts for less than three per cent indicating therefore huge potential. This was one of the many reasons that inspired the company to get into franchise business format in 2000. It brought the concept of retailing into healthcare systems through its franchise-based business model. Research findings confirm that there is a need for comprehensive day-to-day healthcare requirements in the country. The group intends to utilise Apollo`s expertise, standards and cost competitiveness to tap this immense opportunity, primarily through the franchise route. It took nearly a year to finalise the concept and put all the pieces together. Today, s more than a million customers visit The Apollo Clinics every year.

“We plan to get more aggressive about overseas expansion and explore some more formats. The Apollo Clinic has 53 operational clinics across India and abroad. Initial plans include establishing a nation-wide chain of more than 250 primary healthcare centres on franchisee basis.” - Ratan Jalan, CEO, The Apollo Clinic

23) Spykar

The brand Spykar was launched in 1992. It was in the year 1998 that the company was incorporated as a private limited company under the name of Spykar Lifestyles Private Limited (formerly Span Apparels Private Limited). Spykar products are available at over 500 MBOs across the country, apart from the large format stores like Shopper`s Stop, Globus, Lifestyle, Pantaloons and Piramyd. They are also available at exclusive Spykar Jeans outlets at Ahmedabad, Ghaziabad, Hyderabad, Indore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nasik, New Delhi and Pune. Spykar Jeans currently has 99 exclusive brand outlets. To mark its foray in the international arena, Spykar has also opened its first exclusive outlet at Glades Mall, London. The company believes franchisees to become professionally managed: they should be very much involved in the job and understand the real retail business game. Some people enter the business of franchising because they think it is easy and it can be done. But, the company does not want that thinking for its wants involvement in the business.

“Spykar has hundred and five franchise outlets. By March 2008, the number will go up to one and a half times more becoming 250. The company looks to becoming the one thousand crore company with four brands under its net.” - Prasad Pabrekar, MD, Spykar

24) Baskin Robbins

In India, Baskin Robbins came into existence in 1993. The company introduced franchised model in 1994, just a year after it opened the first store in Mumbai. Thirteen years hence, the brand has come to exemplify mass retail success through independent franchising. Growth can never come with one mans contribution. It is the complete team effort, which helped the company grow from 125 outlets to 240 outlets in six years. Baskin Robbins has been accepted by most of the premium hotels and retail outlets because of its quality and finest flavours. Over the past years, the business opportunity to franchise in India has grown as the low risk option. With the growth of foreign brands and liberal government regulations, both the franchisors and franchisees see maximised profits in this option. An Indian franchisee will get a world of opportunities to start a franchising business. The company expects more and more professionals to start their franchising business and a lot of women also prefer this flexible option of business.

“The company will also foray into neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka, Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal and Bangladesh. The network of franchised ice cream stores currently stands at 240 outlets and will keep adding new stores each month. The company plans to achieve a total of 300 stores by this year- end. All of them would follow the franchised route.” - Pankaj Chaturvedi, CEO, Baskin Robbins

25) Travelport

Travelport Holiday India Pvt. Ltd is a creative, young and dynamic travel management company founded with three objectives viz to create innovative travel products, redefine distribution channels and make new business models. The company provides the best travel experiences at affordable prices and is set to become the most reputable travel and tourism company in India by providing quality travel and related services and solutions. The company started franchising four years back and it is the largest network of franchised travel agencies in India. Travel Port works with a mission to create a new generation of entrepreneurs to promote travel tourism and travel related services across India. The growth of the company has been phenomenal. Travel business is all communication-based. So, it is very for easy for somebody to start up a franchise set up in travel services. It hardly requires an investment and requires minimum of training. Travel sector is very suited and ideal to franchising.

“At present, Travelport has 70 franchisees across India. The company plans to take the number to 120 by next year.” Henna, founder, Travelport

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