Outdoor blind business Aussie Outdoor is looking for enthusiastic franchisees to take charge of their own exclusive territory on Australia’s east coast.
The business has grown to 13 outlets since it was established in 2004, three of which are company owned and the remaining 10 are run by franchisees.
“We offer a solution to people that have a problem with the heat, wind and insects including flies and mosquitoes.
“For as little as $2000 we can enclose someone’s outdoor area and give them another room,” says Aussie Outdoor’s Lloyd Gaunt.
He explains the blinds can be used in both domestic and commercial settings. “We appeal to quite a big market. The blinds can be installed in homes as well as cafes and restaurants.
“We deal in textiles, and because they are not considered a building product we don’t need council approval to install the blinds.”
Gaunt says there are a number of aspects of the business that set it apart from its competitors, the benefits of which flow on to franchisees. “We have exclusive patents, such as a unique locking system that is really attractive to a lot of people.
“When you buy into a franchise we do a full turnkey operation, so we start from the beginning and work right through to the point that franchisees are fully coherent with their business,” he says.
Franchisees will undergo between six and 12 weeks of initial training, and Aussie Outdoor prefers they do not have any prior experience in the industry.
“There is no experience necessary, if anything we prefer they don’t have any because then they don’t bring their bad habits with them,” says Gaunt.
“We teach franchisees how to sell, manufacture and install the product so they are fully self sufficient. Franchisees might not do all of these things but it is important they understand them all so they can pass the training onto staff.
“We do in store and onsite training – once the franchisee secures a site one of our training managers will go and work with them for a minimum of six weeks.”
An Aussie Outdoor franchisee costs between $220,000 and $240,000 and Gaunt says the franchise typically increases in value over time.
“You are setting something up that you can sell down the track. It might cost you $240,000 to set up but over a once you have built the business up over, say, a three year period, it could be worth between $400,000 and $600,000.
“You are not just earning money on the way through, you actually have something to sell at the end of it,” adds Gaunt.
The initial franchise term is five years, and franchisees can opt to renew for another two five year periods.
Gaunt says the renewal fee is quite minimal compared to the entry free, which is $55,000.
While Aussie Outdoor charges an ongoing franchise fee, Gaunt explains the fee actually has a number of associated benefits.
“I believe a franchise should be a co-op so I set up group purchasing power, but franchisees deal direct with the suppliers so we don’t take any commissions or royalties off them.
“We can actually show on paper that we will save them more in discounts than they will ever pay us in franchise fees, so the idea is they should never begrudge having to pay their fees, they would want to pay them to be part of the group because it is worth more money to them.”
Additionally, franchisees are rewarded for their hard work with a discounted franchise fee. “The average store would do anywhere between $45,000 and $60,000 a month, and if franchisees earn over $45,000 the franchisee fee drops down to three-and-a-half percent, so they don’t feel like they are being penalised if they want to work hard on their business.
“We charge four percent of the franchisee’s turnover so it is in our interest to work with them really hard to keep their turnover nice and high,” Gaunt explains.
Aussie Outdoor has three managers whose job it is to provide franchisees with ongoing support, and the business facilitates a sense of community amongst franchisees.
“We have a sales, production and installation manager and all three of them are on call to support franchisees in any way they need.
“Each franchisee gets an exclusive territory, and our franchisees help each other out. If one franchisee is a bit quiet and one is incredibly busy the less busy one will, for example, manufacture blinds for the other,” says Gaunt.
Gaunt is looking to expand the business to 40 outlets; however he doesn’t want to grow too fast. “If we did four per year I would be very happy.
“We are really keen to grow the business on the east coast. We can’t sell anymore in Western Australia because all the territories have been sold.”
Gaunt explains Aussie Outdoor franchises are not designed to operate around the clock. “We have set it up to be a Monday to Friday business – franchisees can go in at 8am and are always home by 5pm.
“Franchisees might have to do the odd Saturday if a client wants to see them because they work during the week, but they are not cleaning out chip fryers at 10 at night.”
Images: aussieoutdoor.com.au