Home Instead Senior Care takes the Gold award as bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year

Home Instead Senior Care, home care provider to elderly people, was awarded Gold at the 2013 bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year Awards ceremony on 4th July. Following a hugely successful year, the company has gone from strength to strength, developing its brand, focusing on quality franchising and campaigning for better standards in its industry. A combination of year-on-year phenomenal growth, impressive recruitment processes, innovative training and quality care practices all contributed to the business achieving the accolade.

This year’s awards, held at the Honourable Artillery Company in London, celebrated the outstanding practice and achievements of the country’s leading franchisors. Following a thorough judging process of the 13 shortlisted companies, the panel selected winners that illustrate the thriving industry of franchising in the UK. They are:

bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year Award

• Gold: Home Instead Senior Care
• Silver: Water Babies
• Bronze: Agency Express

HSBC Franchisee Support Award

• Barking Mad

Express Newspapers Brand Builder Award

• Revive!

Trevor Brocklebank, co-founder and CEO of Home Instead Senior Care, said: “Being awarded Gold in the Franchisor of the Year category is a testament to all the hard work we’ve put into creating quality franchises and jobs, whilst continually improving standards in the care industry. Our practising standards are very high and we thrive in focusing on the quality of care delivered to our clients across our franchises, whilst continuing to build on the efficiency of our business model.”

Brian Smart, director general of the bfa, said: “I would like to extend huge congratulations to all of our winners. The relentless drive and continued success of these franchisors has contributed to yet another exceptional and inspirational year. Seeing franchisors from a variety of sectors, sizes and geographies achieving outstanding results is commendable. The judging panel was challenged with reviewing some of the best entries for franchisors in innovation, brand development and franchisee support they have seen.”

Cathryn Hayes, head of franchising, HSBC, added: “Providing strategic and developmental support to franchisees is a critical part of being a good franchisor. Franchisors and franchisees have to contend with continued economic challenges, so the need to innovate and build their support systems is an increasingly vital part of franchisors overall business strategy. It has been highly encouraging to see the extent to which our franchisor finalists go the extra mile to help their franchisees progress and grow their businesses.”

Further details on the award winners:

bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year Award

Gold - Home Instead Senior Care
Home Instead Senior Care offers a range of one-to-one tailored services and home visits for older people, allowing clients to stay at home for as long as possible. It has had another hugely successful year, with revenues growing by more than 40% for the sixth year in a row and its CEO being listed in the Top Ten Most Influential People in the UK Care Sector.

After being awarded Silver in the bfa HSBC Franchisor of the Year Awards last year, Home Instead Senior Care has channelled its energy into spending time developing a new City and Guilds course in Alzheimers, one of two approved providers in the UK. By rolling out a Family Member version of this course, the business has proved itself worthy among Britain’s franchising elite.

Silver - Water Babies
Water Babies is the one of the world’s largest baby swim schools, teaching the core life skill to 34,000 babies and toddlers every week. In 10 years the business has evolved to a network of 52 franchises and derives 80% of its revenue from lessons. The rest of its revenue is from underwater portrait photography, highlighting innovativeness in diversifying. It has never advertised for franchisees in the UK, growing its network organically through word of mouth, employees and clients.

Bronze - Agency Express
Agency Express is the UK’s largest nationwide company selling ‘for sale’ boards, owning 40% of all estate agent boards in the UK. They provide daily board erection and management services to estate agents across the UK and Ireland. Its bespoke online estate agent board management system allows fuel saving and stock control and its head offices manage all invoicing and credit control, taking pressure off its franchisees. The business has seen a turnover increase of 34% in the year to April on the back of strong innovation- including the creation of the influential Property Activity Index which is widely used as one of the earliest indicators of the state of the housing market in the UK.

HSBC Franchisee Support Award – Barking Mad
Barking Mad offers a ‘home from home’ holiday for dogs, providing an alternative to dog boarding kennels. With the service including round-the-clock care for dogs of all ages and sizes, Barking Mad provides a kennel service with a personal touch.

It is an impressive example of a franchisor that goes above and beyond to ensure its franchisees are fully equipped to deliver excellent services. With dedicated IT support for franchisees, its Franchisee Intranet Data Operator (FIDO) system allows professionals to control every aspect of their business. Its customer contact centre also supports franchisees with cost queries when they are away from their phone. All of these support systems showcase Barking Mad’s passion in delivering both quality services and franchisee support

Express Newspapers Brand Builder – Revive!
Revive! offers high quality paint services to cars, repairing minor damage such as scuffs and scrapes. Having established its brand in 2004, the business has experienced 150% revenue growth in five years. Its growth, combined with the development of a tight partnership with its franchise network, has taken its credibility from strength to strength.

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