BFA Franchisor Of The Year Awards 2009 Opens To Recognise Franchisors

BFA FRANCHISOR OF THE YEAR AWARDS 2009 OPENS TO RECOGNISE FRANCHISORS PROVIDING TODAY'S FOUNDATIONS FOR TOMMOROW'S SUCCESS

Franchising industry set to show others how they look to ensure a strong future


Official Government figures released this month have confirmed that the UK is now in recession for the first time since 1991, meaning it's going to prove a testing time for business in 2009. However, some UK businesses remain resilient across many industries and the franchising industry seems to be weathering the storm.

The British Franchise Association's (bfa) 'Franchisor of the Year Awards', sponsored by Express Newspapers and HSBC, announces that it is now open for entries. The awards aims to show that even during an economic downturn there are still success stories in business; with the franchising industry set to show others how they look to ensure a strong future.

These annual awards aim to recognise and promote the best in franchising, providing extensive opportunities to raise the profile of those that enter and reward them for leading the way in an industry already growing year on year.

Sir Bernard Ingham, president of the bfa and chairman of the judges for the awards said: "This year the awards are being conducted against a very difficult economic background and this year's theme "Today's Foundations for Tomorrow's Success" will underline the sound work done in the past and what is being done now in a recession to ensure future success. "

"Franchisors are under many pressures, which include ensuring the future of its entire network. They hold in their hands the livelihoods of many individual business owners and securing their future demands foresight, acumen and investment."

The Express Newspapers Brand Builder of the Year Award and the HSBC Award for Enterprise sit alongside the bfa awards to celebrate further how businesses today are still investing and working hard to improve business.



Geraldine Haenow, advertising group head at the Express Newspapers explains, "The Express Newspapers Brand Builder of the Year Award recognises franchisors that have found the most innovative and effective ways of building, developing, promoting, and adding value to their brands during the last 12 months in a way that has benefited the core business and everyone involved in the franchise network."

Cathryn Hayes, head of franchising at HSBC says, "The HSBC Award for Enterprise is specifically aimed at recognising those franchisors who have developed creative business strategies to overcome challenges that would otherwise hinder growth and development, or who have established more effective ways of running their business to ensure long term sustainability; inspiring all those working within the franchise network."

With entries being taken from bfa member franchisors until the 16th March the bfa is expecting to see some fantastic examples of how franchising continues to buck the trend of this weakened market. For more information contact the bfa via its website at www.thebfa.org.


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Notes to Editor

About bfa:

The British Franchise Association (bfa) is the voluntary self regulating governing body for franchising formed in 1977 by the major franchising organisations looking to accredit and promote those franchise systems that meet the strict ethical and business criteria of a good franchise.

The term 'franchising' has been used to describe many different forms of business relationships, including licensing, distributor and agency arrangements. The more popular use of the term has arisen from the development of what is called 'business format franchising.'

Business format franchising is the granting of a license by one person (the franchisor) to another (the franchisee), which entitles the franchisee to trade under the trade mark/trade name of the franchisor and to make use of an entire package, comprising all the elements necessary to establish a previously untrained person in the business and to run it with continual assistance on a predetermined basis.

The bfa hold a full list of all of its members and the code of ethics to which these members subscribe to on its website: www.thebfa.org

For any media enquiries please contact Tom Endean, Marketing Manager, on 01865 379 892 or naednemot[at]gro.afbeht



About HSBC Bank plc:



HSBC serves 15.6 million customers in the UK and employs approximately 58,000 people. HSBC Bank plc is a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc, and a member of the HSBC Group. It serves over 128 million customers worldwide through around 10,000 offices in 85 countries and territories across the world. With assets of some US$2,345 billion at 31st December 2007, HSBC is one of the world's largest banking and financial organisations.

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