Advice on franchising by Pieter Scholtz, Master Licensee for ActionCOACH SA. ActionCOACH is one of the fastest growing and most successful business coaching franchises in the world today. Why would you want to go into business for yourself? Just look at the statistics. Around 80 percent of businesses started now, will be gone in five years. The franchise model eliminates many of the risks. It offers ease of opening and operation, ensures longevity and promotes overall success. The advantages of franchise ownership offsets the disadvantages inherent in self-employment by providing the kind of resources and empowerment that promote dynamic success and sustainable profitability. A single fragile twig may be easily broken, while a bundle of twigs, because of the strength inherent in numbers, can be impossible to even bend. Whether or not you choose the franchise route, there is something special about owning your own business. For many people, dreaming of being in charge of their own d...

Johannesburg, 22 September 2011 – Maxi’s recently brought its unique mix of a family oriented atmosphere with wholesome and delicious food to the Durban central business district (CBD), with the opening of Maxi’s Durban Smith Street. Maxi’s Durban Smith Street owner, Tandokazi Kali, who was previously involved in the construction of the King Shaka International Airport, notes that her experience as a regular patron of the franchise motivated her decision to change careers and start up a Maxi’s store in the Durban CBD. “I was a regular customer at Maxi’s, and was always captivated by the quality and variety of meals the restaurant had to offer. Subsequently, I noticed that there was no Maxi’s in Durban CBD, and decided to pursue this opportunity and introduce the brand to the area. Opening up my own franchise has always been a dream of mine.” Kali adds that she is completely committed to the long term prosperity of the store. “I view this investment as a long term career choice, a...

Despite the fact that local and global sentiment are at an all-time low, now really is the time to buy property says Bryan Biehler, MD of long established property group Huizemark. “Global economic concerns, riots, war, famine and local socio-political unrest have all contributed to the pall currently hanging over the property markets of South Africa and the rest of the world for that matter,” says Biehler. “Nonetheless if you look beyond the upheavals there is still a lot going for this country. Our banking and financial systems are sound, our national debt   is low, we still enjoy a comparatively high standard of living and the country is blessed by an abundance of resources, natural and otherwise. Yes we have issues but which country doesn’t? Another factor which could further dampen buyer sentiment is a recent report by property economists Rode & Associates which states that property in South Africa remains “overpriced” and will probably decline in value over the next fe...

Now that the road toll system is a given and scheduled to come into effect in February 2012, whether we like it or not, let’s give you the bad news on how it will affect your business.  According to analysts, the new toll system will be an administrative tax burden for companies and their employees. the e-tolling system will result in significantly higher transport, distribution and related services costs and will inflate producer and consumer prices. It will affect the cost of commuting for individuals adding to our tax burden. It will alter road-use patterns and potentially change the flow of economic activity. You may need to reconsider your employees’ existing travel allowances to make provision for the new toll fees. If your employees make use of company cars you may need to analyse the costs of the e-tolling and place a limit on travel expenses. there may be hidden tax implications of the new toll fees for both individuals and companies as employees travelling to and f...

Real estate industry representatives have officially lodged an objection to a piece of national legislation which could have disastrous consequences for South Africa’s property market. Dubbed the Property Rates Amendment Bill, the new legislation could effectively compel those who own more than one property to pay commercial rates for additional properties. Bryan Biehler, MD of Huizemark property group and an instrumental driver behind the objection says the manner in which the Bill was introduced is reprehensible. “It appears to be a deliberate and pre-orchestrated attempt by government to try and pass a highly controversial piece of legislation unnoticed,” Biehler alleges.   According to government, the Bill was apparently put forward for ‘well publicised public hearings’ in 2010 and was officially gazetted for comment on June 9 th . However, the real estate industry at large claims to only have become aware of the proposed Bill in mid-July, shortly before the cut-off date for...

Galaxy and Co, South Africa’s leading independent jeweller, selects Cloud VoIP to redefine its bottom line South African retailers are so complacent about their Telkom bills that they seldom seriously consider alternatives. Headlong against this trend is the high-ranking national jeweller, Galaxy and Co, which will soon harness a hosted Cloud Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) solution from Euphoria Telecoms to reduce telecoms expenses by more than R 500 000 per year. Gavin Blignaut, Logistics & Operations Director of Galaxy and Co says: “Galaxy and Co is a distributed retailer with a head office in Cape Town and over 80 stores nationwide. Each store has a dedicated Telkom line. 40% of the calls on these lines are inter-branch calls. Each branch further has an ADSL line, which provides Internet access, and a spare line on its ADSL service to support a fax machine. Our telecoms solution is complex and unwieldy and each month we watch it do damage to our profitability. Eight ...

Timbercity recently held their annual conference at Zebula Golf Estate & Spa near Bela-Bela.   Over 30 delegates represented branches across South Africa in what proved to be a successful weekend away. The conference kicked off an afternoon of presentations followed by an evening of fun where awards were handed out to the deserving branches.   Categories included Brand Builder of the year, where Stuart Oliver from Timbercity Stellenbosch happily received the award.   Best Growth overall went to Tony di Loreto from Timbercity Trichardt and several stores received a merit award for overall growth in the cabinetry category. Emphasis was placed on the Steinhoff/JD Group deal and the benefits of the transaction to the SteinBuild Group (holder of the Timbercity and Pennypinchers brands). The transaction was successfully concluded and SteinBuild was incorporated in the JDG Trading (Pty)Ltd Group of companies on 1 July 2011.   Timbercity is in the proces...

Gauteng – Janine Allis, dynamic Founder of Boost Juice Bars, recently regaled media and other guests at the Boost outlet in The Mall of Rosebank whilst on a rare visit to South Africa. Janine truly inspired her audience with her exuberance, free spirit and unwavering will to succeed, reliving the Boost Juice journey from its origins to becoming the fastest growing Smoothie Brand in the Southern Hemisphere. Janine started Boost Juice Bars in 2000 from her kitchen in Melbourne after noticing a lack of truly healthy fast food offerings in the market place. A working mother of four, she is an advocate for healthy eating and living and understands first hand the demands a hectic urban lifestyle can put on an individual. Janine and her husband Jeff did extensive research worldwide and started to develop a business concept that was different to anything else in the world. Her vision was to do retailing differently, delivering a unique customer experience based on the ‘love life’ philosophy wh...

Children from the SAVF Rethabile Child and Youth Care in Klerksdorp, as well as a few lucky Scooters Pizza customers, had the opportunity to enjoy a fun-filled and entertaining day when Scooters Pizza Klerksdorp treated them to a viewing of the movie Zookeeper , on 28 August at the City Mall in town. 30 children between the ages of 7 to 13 from the SAVF Rethabile Child and Youth Care, 85 loyal customers from Scooters Pizza Klerksdorp as well as Scooters Pizza staff and their children joined in on the day’s festivities. Each child that participated in the outing received a pizza surprise box, which consisted of various fun items such as a Scooters Pizza pen, coloring activities, a balloon and a few sweets which kept them entertained and happy. Scooters Pizza Klerksdorp owner, Jonathan Dineen says that the outing helped realise several positive outcomes. “This outing not only gave the children from SAVF Rethabile Child and Youth Care the opportunity to experience a movi...