Franchising news
Wednesday, 6 February 2008
Last Updated: Wednesday, 6 February 2008
WA franchise inquiry has kicked off
Wednesday, 6 February 2008
Jacqui Walker
Public hearings for the West Australian Government’s inquiry into franchising started on Monday in Perth. About 40 franchisors and franchisees attended the hearing but all but two of those who made an oral submission was a franchisee or former franchisee.
The inquiry, which is being chaired by franchisee Chris Bothams, manager of the South East Metro Small Business Centre, follows cries for help from Jack Cowin’s Competitive Foods following the company’s failure to renew its KFC franchise agreements in WA as they fall due.
But the inquiry has become a rallying point for all disgruntled franchisees and former franchisees across the country. Sue Brown and Frank Buemi, former Lenards poultry franchisees made submissions, as did Deanne De Leeuw, former Bakers Delight franchisee.
Richard Taylor, chief financial officer of franchisor Bakers Delight, appeared on behalf of the bakery chain that has been the target of recent negative publicity.
Competitive Foods was represented by barrister Tim Castle. Competitive Foods would like to see the law changed so that franchisees have more rights at the end of the franchise agreement.
But the terms of terms of the WA inquiry into franchising are much broader, and include reviewing the adequacy of existing legislative provisions, both state and federal, and identifying whether emerging trends in the franchising industry disclose patterns of unconscionable conduct that may not be covered under existing laws.
It has been criticised by the franchisor representative body the Franchise Council of Australia for interfering in matters covered by federal laws.
On Friday, public hearings will be held in Bunbury, two and half hours south of Perth.
None of the written submission to the inquiry will be made public before the inquiry chair Bothams reports to the Minister for Small Business in WA on 31 March.
Blogger ordered to lay off McDonald's
Thursday, 24 January 2008
In what is thought to be a legal precedent, a former New Zealand McDonald's employee has been ordered to refrain from blogging about the fast food giant or its staff.
McDonald's complained that Michael Davis, who blogged about his Kaitaia workplace, caused concern with the "menacing" tone of his blogs, a lawyer for the restaurant said.
Davis last week said he left McDonald's because it "just got too political". McDonald's said he was sacked.
Davis agreed to remove his blog shortly after the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) ruled that he refrain from making written statements or posting any information on digital media about McDonald's or its staff.
Kaitaia McDonald's owner Justin Stonelake had initially applied to the ERA for an ex-parte injunction to remove the blog.
McDonald's later said that the injunction was not simply an attempt to gag Davis. His blog had been threatening, demeaning and offensive to McDonald's and its staff, barrister Eska Hartdegen said.
"One page said on top: `War time, kill them all and let God sort them out’." Davis said his comments were quotes from a game and were taken out of context by McDonald's.
Inside Retailing
Entrepreneur Frank Cianciosi murdered
Monday, 7 January 2008
Amanda Gome
Entrepreneur Frank Cianciosi, the West Australian master franchisee of Lenard’s Chicken chain, has been found murdered in his East Perth Home. Police found the body of 51-year-old Cianciosi in his luxury penthouse on Friday.
His gay lover, Gerurdas Gerrit Heijne, 44, who was also his business partner, appeared in East Perth Magistrates Court charged with his murder. He was not required to enter a plea and was remanded in custody to appear in the Stirling Gardens Magistrates Court on 16 January.
Lenard’s, which was started in Brisbane in 1987, was estimated to have revenue of $145 million in the 2006 BRW fastest growing franchise list.
Yesterday Lenard’s issued a statement saying that Cianciosi had been a joint master franchisee for more than 10 years and would be sadly missed. It also said it would provide WA franchise owners and staff with all the support they need.
However the couple had spent last year defending themselves against allegations of bullying and mistreating franchisees. Disgruntled franchisees from Lenard's and other large chains, including Bakers Delight and Midas, turned the protection of franchisees into an election issue.
New chief for Franchise Council
Friday, 14 December 2007
Jacqui Walker
The new chief executive of the Franchise Council of Australia, media and communications professional Steve Wright, takes up the role on 8 January 2008.
He arrives at a tricky time for the franchising industry. Franchise inquiries are about to get underway in Western Australia and South Australia, following agitation by Jack Cowin’s Competitive Foods, the KFC franchisee in WA.
The inquiries have been welcomed by many franchisees in the industry who perceive a lack of justice for franchisees in many of the big, as well as small, franchise systems, but criticised by the Franchise Council of Australia for being an inappropriate response because franchising is currently regulated at a federal level.
The Franchise Council, previously led by former parliamentarian Richard Evans, has been criticised for its lack of representation of franchisees, given that the vast majority of its members are franchisors.
Wright, who is currently a director of Gavin Anderson & Company, a strategic communications firm, says it’s too early for him to talk about the outlook for 2008.
But, he says: “There are obviously some very important issues before the industry… the inquiries in WA and SA. And we are going through some change at the organisation aimed at making the body more representative of all the parties to franchising.”
He says that his appointment does not represent a shift in the FCA’s priorities. “The organisation is in a good strong position, although there could always be improvements. The industry is working well. But there are always ways to make sure the relationships work as best as they possibly can.”
Wright has no direct franchising experience, but he denies it’s a disadvantage in his new role. “There is an abundance of directly industry related experience on the board of the Franchise Council. That is where I will take my direction… and there is a skilled administration centre doing a good job of supporting members’ needs and requests.”
He says the breadth of his experience across industry representation and understanding of small business from his experience are his strengths.
Before joining Gavin Anderson & Co, Wright was director of stakeholder relations at Hutchison Telecoms, director of public affairs for Cable & Wireless Optus and spent more than eight years at Telstra in public relations and marketing communications roles.
He and his wife are directors of a small information technology and media consultancy. “I’m very familiar with challenges of small business. I am in involved in one myself. It’s not unfamiliar territory.”
US top 10 franchises for 2008
Tuesday, 8 January 2008
No surprises from the US, where Entrepreneur.com has named the top 10 franchises for 2008.
Of the top 10, only three do not involve junk food – although Subway may argue it is also an exception. Number 10 RE/MAX is a global network of 116,000 real estate agents who are all in charge of their own businesses but split office expenses.
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