At Signwave the minimum staffing structure is three staff in addition to the franchisee with a front-counter salesperson and a team of two in production. Production people are drawn from the signage industry with a production manager overseeing the work, maintaining the equipment and producing schedules.

Choosing the staff in the first instance might be daunting for a franchisee new to the industry so Signwave helps with this, running ads, sitting in on interviews and making recommendations in terms of skills and personality.

Most franchisees have not been in the position of employing staff before, although there is increasing interest in the brand from self-employed people or those involved in corporate management, Andrew McKay explains.

Franchisees receive a rounded training from the basics of signmaking, which helps them understand the price structure, through the point of sale system and a basic small business course on marketing and staff management. Brand awareness and creating opportunities for franchisees to use the brand remain a strong component of the business, confirming to customers that Signwave is a group and not just an individual business.

“We are one of the few that has a dedicated marketing fund that provides branding and buying power and continuity and conformity,” says McKay. “Repeat business is a huge part of the process. All our franchisees have a very high level of repeat business.”

Signwave has 19 outlets, most in New South Wales thanks to head office location. Now they are in Melbourne, Victoria is a new landscape, says McKay, and the Brisbane area is coming into its own.