Human dynamics in business are challenging at the best of times. When your business involves family, a spouse, significant other or a friend, the stakes are even higher. By Carl Bates Picture this scenario. A father hands over his business to his son and then retires. Then the son discovers that his father has been continuously overriding his instructions to his team behind his back. Or, the married couple who start a business together and years later, as they approach divorce proceedings, their entire business faces collapse over their battle for control. Does this sound familiar? Have you seen this before? Human dynamics in business is challenging at the best of times. When your business involves family, a spouse, significant other or a friend, the stakes are even higher. In my book, The Laws of Extreme Business Success, I approach this challenging aspect of business through the Law of Family and Whanau. In New Zealand, my home country, whanau (pronounced farn-oh) refers not o...

Maxi’s second store in Secunda, Mpumalanga, is set to not only ensure that locals are able to enjoy undeniably delicious and wholesome meals, but also add immense value to community members. Maxi’s Secunda owner Martin van Wyk says that in addition to creating a restaurant characterised by quick, friendly and efficient service, a quality product, and a friendly, clean and well maintained environment, he plans to become involved in several worthy community projects, and uplift underprivileged people. These projects will include funding for schools, environmental projects, religious organisations, and old aged homes in Secunda.  Martin notes that his desire to involve the store in these projects is linked to his core business philosophy. “Community relations are one of the most important elements of a business, as people located near your area of trade are your main source of income, and it is vital to build a good relationship with them.  I am therefore excited to...

While remaining true to its core values of serving the freshest ingredients, complimented by unparalleled service and customer relations, Sandwich Baron has revitalised its image by implementing an attractive new look based on its concept ‘Layers of Love’. The re-branding, which is incorporated into the new and modern looking overhead menu boards, stylish tablecloths, printed menus and brochures, packaging and other point of sale items, was rolled out during November to all 64 stores nationwide. Layers of Love not only aligns closely to Sandwich Baron’s core value offering, but also symbolises the experience that customers are provided when ordering from walk-in store orders, over the telephone or via the online ordering system. The value is further entrenched in the process of preparing meals, which involves taking care when making Sandwich Baron’s delectable sandwiches, using only the freshest and best ingredients, carefully preparing and slicing the ingredients, wrapping the ...

Having assessed the feasibility of your proposed expansion, it is now time to consider your pilot operation and the franchise package elements. By Lindy Barbour Having followed the steps recommended in our preceding article, you should by now be well into the process of delving into the nuts and bolts of your franchise to formalise your expansion plan. As you get into the nitty-gritty of the expansion plan, you may find it necessary to further refine your financial projections. The next step after completing the franchisor business plan is to plan your pilot operation. Considering that franchising is about rolling out a proven business model and that potential franchisees want to buy into a ‘tried and tested’ system, a successful pilot operation is crucial. Most often an existing pilot model will require further refining as new ideas, processes and procedures are tested and honed here before they are implemented in the franchised business units. The more standardized a business...

Johannesburg, 26 November 2012:- Sandwich Baron recently rewarded its top three performing franchisees at their annual celebratory year-end event held last week. The company’s franchisee awards take into account its 64 stores nationwide, and evaluate each store against a number of criteria which include the store’s turnover, growth, store and staff management as well as compliance to their franchise agreement. Sally J’Arlette Joy, founder and managing director of Sandwich Baron says that it’s important to acknowledge franchisees for their efforts throughout the year, not only as an incentive to work towards but also to uphold brand standards which foster franchise growth. “Sandwich Baron’s franchisee awards have a high standard and we only have three categories for a reason, we don’t just acknowledge for the sake of it. I have found that this method motivates franchisees further because when a business owner is recognised, he or she knows that it is well deserved.” T...

So you have survived “The Wave” numerous times and yet you just can’t seem to pin down the reason you keep going down there again and again.  By Michael Said Einstein’s Theory of Insanity states that ‘Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result’. I’m sure there are days when you feel you must have been insane to voluntarily give up the security of your steady job with all its benefits, set daily hours and free weekends!  Well, let’s not get into those strait jackets just yet… Remember, you are not alone. Almost every business owner I know has made most of these mistakes, including me, and if you are just starting up, try to avoid at least some of them. Let’s look at the seven mistakes that all small businesses make, and see if we can do something differently! 1. ’I’m not very good at marketing’ Small business owners often try a bit of marketing - perhaps a flyer or brochure at busy traffic lights, a small ad in the Yell...

Scooters Pizza Knynsa recently treated 60 students at Knysna Primary School to a slice of the good life, by delivering 66 mouth-watering medium pizzas to the school. The select students recently took part in a school raffle programme, and by selling the second highest tally of tickets, they were rewarded with pizza for their remarkable achievement. Alan Williams, Scooters Pizza Knysna owner says that the delivery of these pizzas was greatly appreciated by the students. “The students were delighted to be treated to a variety of delectable pizzas, and eagerly tucked into them with a relish that can only be found in the unbridled and wide-eyed enthusiasm of a child. “Our franchise is proud to have played a role in recognising the achievement of these students not only through the provision of a delicious meal that satisfied their hunger, but suitably rewarding them for the hard work they put into making a difference in their community through the raffle.” Williams adds that Scoot...

The ‘Rock and Roll’ McDonald’s franchise, strategically situated at one of Joburg’s busiest intersections, beckons passing motorists with its 50’s ‘rock and roll’ memorabilia. Judging from the lunch-time queue at the drive-through, it obviously works. For many, this McDonald’s franchise on the corner of Grayston Drive and Rivonia Road, Johannesburg, is a living example of what a successful franchise should be. Its success, however, was far from being a simple case of being in the right place in the franchise line at the right time. In reality, it was driven by a mixture of determination to succeed and forming the correct partnerships. The story began in the mid-90s when Susan Rawoteea, holding down both an HR job in a corporation and waitressing to accumulate funds to buy her own business, found herself at a crossroads in her life. She was unexpectedly retrenched and decided that the time had come to put her plans for business independence into action. She decided that the fra...

Scooters Pizza recently ensured that hungry cyclists and crew members in the Cape Pioneer Trek had a slice of the good life, by providing them with mouth-watering, carbo-loading lunches, which were consumed at various schools along the route, at the conclusion of each day’s stage. About 440 people, including 265 riders and 174 crew members, were served around 1 500 scrumptious pizzas and over 1 000 portions of mouth-watering pasta over the course of this six day mountain bike race. Scooters Pizza also sponsored a crew of vivacious ladies, who were on hand to provide liquid refreshment and encouragement to riders at the various water points. This is the fourth year in a row that Scooters Pizza has been a headline sponsor for the Cape Pioneer Trek. Scooters Pizza brand manager Riaan van den Berg notes that the brand’s consistent support of the race is linked to its core philosophy of innovative business sense. “Scooters Pizza believes wholeheartedly that our reach and impact as ...

Sandwich Baron Secunda has been operating under the new ownership of local community member, Rodene Mostert for over a month. While the quality of freshly made meals and quick service delivery has remained impeccable, the new manager has big plans for the store. By utilising the experience and knowledge gained from the many years that she spent in the catering business, Rodene intends to create a store environment characterised by honesty, warmth, and top-class service. Most importantly, she is planning to ensure that Sandwich Baron Secunda delivers the freshest and most delectable sandwiches, wraps, pitas and platters to the local and surrounding communities. While Rodene was an event co-ordinator in her previous employment, she notes that owning her own franchise is the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. “Having worked for so long in the catering business, I always envisioned owning my own business as I love working and interacting with people, and delivering a service to the com...

As a nation we know that through music and sport we unite. A magnificent goal or a brilliant save can unite the nation; a moving song can bring together the world’s inhabitants. This was proven again when Sport stars; Siphiwe Tshabalala with Itumeleng Khune and platinum selling musician Brickz Mabrigado (Sipho Ndlovu) joined hands for the greater good lending their skills to the underprivileged. They were invited to the camp by the Food Group, Taste Holdings, who not only sponsor this camp financially but they also supplied the campers and volunteers with some delicious Maxi’s burgers and Fish and Chip Co. Hot Dogs.  Each kid also received a goodie bag and a NWJ gift.  The team from Maxi’s and Fish and Chip Co also spent the day with the campers and enjoyed a day out of the office enjoying sport and music. The three idols took time off their hectic schedules Thursday afternoon and travelled to Hammaskraal (50 ks North of Pretoria) to spend time with over 80 disadvantaged...

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. By following these five simple but highly effective steps for generating leads and converting them into paying customers, you can double your client base in just a few weeks. 1. Build a Loyalty Ladder to create ‘Raving Fans’ Loyal customers are the ideal and those loyalists who refer others to your business are even more valuable because they are active advocates. However, the most prized clients are the ‘raving fans’ who are so energised about the level of service they receive, that they cannot stop telling others about it. ‘Raving fans’ are a tremendous source of new customers and a sacred asset in any business. If a business identifies its loyal customers and then treats them to a very high level of service, these loyal customers will become ‘cheerleaders’ for the business and the...

We provide some guidelines on how to get your business sale-ready. By Kobus Oosthuizen Any item presented for sale, whether new or used, is normally ‘dressed up’. It is a fact that polished and neatly packaged goods attract more attention from potential buyers. This is especially true of used merchandise; the way an item is presented is seen as an indication of how it was looked after by the previous owners. Selling a business is much the same and although the real value of a business is in the numbers rather than its physical experience, it is still important that the assets of a business appear to be looked after when presented to potential buyers. There are, however, a number of other issues to consider and attend to prior to putting your business up for sale. Profile your business Make the effort of writing up no more than a single page on the history of the business, detailing how and why it is the concern it is today. Provide information on when it was e...