How to Make a Career Change With a Finance Franchise

If you’re on the lookout for a new career and you have a passion for numbers, you could thrive as a franchisee with a finance business. A franchise investment in this sector would be lucrative, incredibly viable and full of flexibility and opportunity. Here’s everything you need to know to successfully make a career change with a finance franchise.

Want to be your own boss and start a business in a way that doesn’t open you up to substantial risk? Why not consider franchising? As a franchisee, you’ll receive extensive training and support, both initially and on an ongoing basis. With this article as your guide, your career change will be simple, and you’ll be on your way to building a profitable franchise business in no time.

Business acumen, relationship-building skills and the ability to lead teams are all skills that lead to successful franchise ownership. In my experience, the best part of investing in a franchise is that the risks are often mitigated by a franchisor's proven system and support. 
– Don Daszkowski, Forbes 

Why start a finance franchise?

Investing in the finance sector is a sound choice in 2021. Right now, financial services employees account for 7.3% of the UK workforce, or about 2.2 million people [TheCityUK]. Demand is high for franchisees in finance, as many people across the UK are looking for help with financial planning. The biggest advantages to hiring a financial planner, and the reasons that demand is so high, are:

• Financial planners can help customers to meet and achieve their financial goals 
• Financial planners reduce liability and risk
• Financial planners can help with estate and succession planning

How to make a career change with a finance franchise 

Entrepreneurs in [finance] can set their own hours, arrange finance for businesses in every industry, work from home, and make as much money as they desire. However, starting a financing business does involve laying a bit of groundwork before setting off down the road to success and financial independence.
– Commercial Capital Training

With the following three steps, you’ll be able to lay that crucial groundwork and make your career change as smoothly as possible...

1. Choose a specialism and assess your skills

In a broad sector like finance, plenty of different opportunities are available, and it’s important to make your first step assessing your options and figuring out the specialism that’s right for you. You could, for example, become:

• An accountant
• A bookkeeper
• A banker
• An insurance adjuster 
• An investment manager
• An actuary

The specialism you choose to focus on will dictate the kinds of skills and qualifications that you’ll need to succeed. Though many franchise investment opportunities in finance won’t require you to have any pre-existing qualifications or experience in the industry, you could still consider certain qualifications to help you get ahead of the game, such as financial planning certificates, tax qualifications and wealth management courses. 

In terms of your transferable skills, you’ll benefit from possessing the following abilities:

• Communication
• Customer rapport
• Organisation and time management
• Problem-solving
• Leadership
• Digital proficiency
• Analytical ability
• Commercial acumen

2. Find a franchise opportunity that meets your practical needs

When you’ve decided on a specialism and you know what kind of sub-sector you’d like to be working in, it’ll be time to think about more practical considerations, like available franchise locations and associated costs. A clear understanding of how much you’ll be paying, not just in an initial lump sum but on an ongoing basis, is crucial for your success as a franchisee. The worst thing you could do would be to overinvest, having failed to do your research correctly.

Securing funding for a franchise is very possible, and most UK banks will be willing to cover 50-70% of start-up costs if the franchise is proven to be reputable and your credit history is good. That said, it will be up to you to assess whether or not you’d like to take on the responsibility of a loan, which must of course be paid back over time, on a certain payment plan.

The cost of investing in a finance franchise will vary dependent on the brand name, the amount of responsibility you’ll be taking on, and the location that you’ll be operating in, but to give you a general idea, the average cost of starting a franchise unit was £42,200 in 2018 [British Franchise Association], and these are some sector-specific examples:

• Brokerplan - To become a Brokerplan franchisee, you’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £6,995.
• Accountants247 - To become an Accountants247 franchisee, you’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £9,999, with a total investment cost of £15,000.
• TaxAssist Accountants - To become a TaxAssist Accountants franchisee, you’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £39,950.
• Rosemary - To become a Rosemary franchisee, you’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £18,370.

When you’ve narrowed it down, take the time to do your due diligence

Once you’ve found the perfect franchise opportunity and you’re preparing to sign the franchise agreement, be sure that you’ve covered every base and done your due diligence. If you’re satisfied you have all the answers, you’ll be ready to make your move. Ask yourself, before getting into a legally binding contract with your franchisor:

• Do I know everything I need to about this business (finances, success rates, etc)?
• Do I know everything I need to about what will be expected of me as a franchisee?
• Will I receive all the training and support that I need to thrive?
• How will I be supported if something goes wrong?
• Will I be supported during site selection and franchise launch, and if so, how?
• What happens if I want to sell my business?

Start running a franchise in the finance industry today

If this article has given you the boost you needed to take the next step and start your brand new career journey, stay on Point Franchise and browse the range of incredible franchise investment opportunities available right now in the finance sector.