The UK’s top franchisees will gather in Birmingham this week to battle it out for the first prize in the 2009 British Franchise Association’s (bfa)/HSBC Franchisee of the Year Awards, sponsored by HSBC Bank and Express Newspapers.

 

The 10 National Finalists, who include a mother providing football classes for children under seven and a father who runs a franchise specialising in humane pest control, are now hoping to scoop the top title and a cheque for £5,000, courtesy of HSBC.

 

The Winner will be announced at a black-tie dinner at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Birmingham on 1^st October. Cheques for £3,000 and £2,000 will also be presented to the Silver and Bronze Winners respectively. 

 

Battling it out to be named ‘Franchisee of the Year’ are:

 

Julia Levene (41) opened Little Kickers in 2004 after her two-year-old son became ball obsessed. The business provides weekly football classes for children under seven. Julia currently runs 30 classes per week across North and North West London.

 

Mike Smith has come a long way since he acquired his first McDonald’s franchise in Mitcham in May 2000. Since then he has opened three more restaurants in Sutton, Balham and Peckham.

 

Sandra Redmond opened the specialist cleaning company Molly Maid in 1995 and has held the Wimbledon franchise for over 14 years. She has driven the business to impressive heights in South West London.

 

Tim Lester (50) was one of NBC Bird and Pest Solution’s first franchisees, taking on the Portsmouth, Bournemouth and Southampton area in November 2004. Tim runs the franchise with his wife, Karen (43).

 

After ten years experience in the mobile phone business, husband and wife Surjit and Balvinder Dhillon, both 47, became franchisees of the well-known brand o2. They are now one of only two franchisees operating five stores in the network.

 

Sarah Skelton (39) first joined the Rosemary Conley organisation as a client. Having succeeded in losing over four stone, Sarah opened a franchise of her own in September 1998. Since then, she has built the Norwich franchise into one of the most successful in the network.  

 

Anne (49) and David Hitch (47) bought an existing Signs Express franchise in 2002. They now serve as the one-stop-shop for all forms of signs and graphics in the Peterborough area.

 

After being made redundant, Mark Fordham (46) opened a St. Albans based TaxAssist Accountants franchise. He has since developed one of the largest and most successful practices in the network.

 

Water Babies is the UK’s largest baby swimming organisation, running classes from birth to four years old. Tamsin Brewis (48) bought her franchise in 2004 and has steadily built up the business. They now teach over 1,000 babies per week.

 

Kieran Green and Beverley Watts opened Wiltshire Farm Foods in 2002. Now in their eighth year as franchisees, they have seen the challenges presented by the current economic climate as an opportunity to fine tune their business and confirm their position as market leader.

 

This year’s National Finalists impressed the judging panel, chaired by bfa President Sir Bernard Ingham, by demonstrating how they have achieved ‘Success in Challenging Times’ – the theme of this year’s Awards.

 

HSBC’s Head of Franchising, Cathryn Hayes, said: “The 2009 National Finalists are excellent examples of how the determination and hard work of the franchisee, combined with the franchisor’s supportive approach, generates success at both individual and network levels, even during a challenging economic climate.

 

“HSBC is proud of its role in supporting so many successful franchisees over the last 25 years and we are delighted to be in partnership with this dynamic and important market sector.  We are committed to helping new and existing franchisee customers in these challenging times and have recruited more relationship managers throughout the UK to allow us to spend more time with our customers.  We also provide a range of financial solutions to help them trade and have developed online support tools such as our Knowledge Centre and Business Network.”

 

Brian Smart, Director General of the bfa, added: “These prestigious Awards celebrate the UK’s best franchisees.

 

“This year it was harder than ever choosing 10 Finalists – all great examples of how focus and drive, when supplemented by the support of a franchisor, results in a successful business despite today’s economic downturn."

 

Express Newspapers’ Franchise and Business Opportunities Advertising Sales Manager, Geraldine Haenow, said: “The National Finalists are fantastic ambassadors for the franchising industry and an inspiration to all those thinking of starting up on their own.

 

“They should be proud of their achievements in being named a Finalist and we look forward to sharing their success story with our readers.”