If you are looking to buy a business, the Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo in Sydney was the place to be last weekend with more than 100 brands on show.
The expo line-up included household names and regular exhibitors such as The Coffee Club, Brumby’s Bakery, Lenards, Donut King, Crust Gourmet Pizza and New York Slice as well as high profile retail chains such as Amber Tiles, Poolwerx, Midas and WH Smith.
The beauty sector was well represented with Ella Bache, endota Spa and Essential Beauty looking for new franchisees.
For visitors wanting to buy a franchise with the flexibility of working from home or as a mobile service, there was plenty of choice: the well-established domestic businesses VIP Home Services and James Home Services; home improvement networks Dream Doors, Luxaflex and Refresh Renovations; car servicing opportunities with Car Care; on the road businesses such as Xpresso Mobile Caf_, The Coffee Guy, Goop Guys and mobile hose repair business Enzed.
There were niche franchises with a focus on education – Tutor Doctor and Brian Tracy International – and fitness – UFC Gym, while The National Drones stand brought a new concept to the franchising market.
Australia’s ageing demographics sparked interest among visitors for the Senior Helpers franchise.
New to the food arena – from the Phillipines the chicken and chips brand Potato Corner; Skinnys Grill – a homegrown franchise with a focus on a healthy low carb burger menu; and the US based Johnny Rockets burger business.
The president of operations and development at Johnny Rockets, James Walker, was one of several overseas figures to attend the expo and meet with potential franchisees.
Fellow American Ray Titus, CEO of the United Franchise Group which includes Signarama, Embroidme and new business Experimac (an upgrade and repair service for Apple products), joined the local UFG team for the expo.
And from the UK, Tax Assist’s David Paulson, the senior manager for international development, was on the company’s expo stand supporting the Australian master franchisees.
The next Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo is in Perth on Sunday 15 May.