Everybody is looking at this from totally the wrong point of view. Of course no-one on here would consider buying a franchise, you're all successful, confident business people who have had the determination, talent and drive to achieve without any direct help (in most cases)
Take that line of thought a little further: If it's so easy to set up on your own, why would anyone want to be employed as a window cleaner? You go to work every day, produce a large amount of work and your employer gives you a pittance at the end of the week. WHAT A RIP OFF!!!
Obviously not true, as if it were then there would be no employees, everyone would be self employed, in all trades, not just window cleaning.
The truth is that people such as yourselves are very lucky. You have the personality and drive to know what you want, and to achieve it.
Not everyone is like you!
Most people would know what they want, very few would have the courage and self confidence to go it alone to achieve their goals.
One way people can achieve their goal is to buy a franchise. You dissenters who have made it on your own are effectively saying: "If you can't do what I've done on your own, you shouldn't be allowed to do it at all"
WHAT ARROGANCE!!
You assume that anyone who buys a franchise is incapable of deciding whether they are getting value for money, and that all franchisors are only interested in cheating their franchisees.
Jim Penman is an Australian millionaire who owns a worldwide franchised organisation called "Jim's Mowing". He has close on three thousand franchisees, all mowing grass.
MOWING GRASS??
WHAT A RIP-OFF!!!!
Any idiot can mow grass, therefore anyone who buys a "Jim's Mowing" franchise (or "Green thumb", or "Nice 'n' Stripy") is by definition an idiot.
If this were true, don't you think that by now someone would have called their bluff? Or reported them to Trading Standards or the Office of Fair Trading etc?
Exactly the same is true of window cleaning franchises. People who buy them are not naive idiots throwing their money away, they are aspiring business people who feel more comfortable operating within an organisation which can demonstrate success. Franchisors are not (for the most part) unscrupulous villains, they are successful business owners who are prepared to provide the benefit of their hard work, experience and expertise in exchange for a fair and MUTUALLY AGREED financial arrangement.
As you may have guessed (and Lewis Doubtfire mentioned) I am arguing from the point of view of a franchisor (albeit in a very modest way).
My first franchisee was an accountant. He reached his mid fifties and decided he hated his job, so packed it in and tried to make a living doing odd jobs, painting and decorating, gardening and a bit of window cleaing. A few weeks later he realised he'd made a mistake, and that he wasn't able to build a viable customer base - in other words he was on the point of failure.
This wasn't through any lack of commitment, or effort, just lack of self confidence.
He saw my advert for a franchisee, came to see me, considered everything I was offering and decided it was well worth it.
That was in September last year. By January he had a business with enough work to turn over £800 per week plus. Did I turn him over?
He doesn't think so!!
My second franchisee was already a window cleaner, working for a well known local company doing exactly what I do, cleaning windows in the domestic market.
He went out every day and cleaned windows for householders, exactly as 90% or so of you do, except that he was paid a wage for doing it, and the lion's share went to his employer. He decided he would be better off doing it for himself, but lacked the confidence to try to build his own business from scratch. He came to me knowing exactly what he was getting into and willingly paid my fee, and continues to pay weekly royalties.
He has just completed his first four week round and already has business worth over five hundred pounds a week.
He would never have been able to achieve that on his own - he isn't the type.
Neither is my first franchisee.
But who are you people to think you have the right to deny them the opportunity I have provided?
Cheers,
Ian