James Trimble, New Franchising Manager at Winkworth, gives an insight into setting up a Winkworth franchise:

How long has the Winkworth franchise has been operational?

Although Winkworth dates back to 1835, we were the first to create an estate agency franchise structure with the first franchises starting in 1981. Originally, the managers purchased the offices thus enabling Winkworth to grow from its traditional roots in central London. From there we have expanded to 57 offices in London alone (the largest single brand in London) and also have grown significantly in both the Countryside and abroad, with offices reaching as far as Devon, Somerset, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, France and Portugal.

How many franchises do you expect to launch this year?
We hope to launch a further 8-10 franchises this year, both at home and abroad and we have a number already in advance discussions. So far this year we have opened 5 offices; In the first week of February we added added Newbury to the network with the conversion of the independent agency Haines Residential to Winkworth, and in May the four Mitchells estate agencies in Bournemouth became Winkworth. Winkworth Devizes also opens in mid June as a cold start which will compliment those nearby offices in Bath and Newbury.

Who are the best franchisees? Does it help, or hinder to have an agency background?
Typically the majority of our franchisees come from an estate agency background – those that have been immersed in the day to day life of an agency will no doubt have a desire to reach the top and in many cases own or run their own agency.

Naturally those that have an estate agency background will have an advantage, but running your own estate agency is also about understanding  ‘business’. In a few cases this is the biggest knowledge gap and it has major consequences. A good number of larger ‘corporate’ agencies now involve their managers with branch profit which essentially and inadvertently prepares them for owning their own office! In some cases we have looked outside of agency for a franchisee who is business minded, and in a property related field. In these cases we have worked closely with them to recruit a suitable manager with good experience to work alongside.

What should people NOT expect from a franchise?
People should realise that the brand is only part of the equation. People cannot expect to sit back and let the name above the door do all the work but it should be treated as a platform to help the entrepreneurial estate agent reach further into their market place.

People should also realise that although it is their own business, they are not alone; We have in excess of 60 experienced franchisees across circa 90 offices, and a strong back office support network of Marketing, PR, IT, Accounts, Compliance and Academy to draw from. In many cases when people have gone it alone, with their own name above the door – it can be lonely and also quite frustrating dealing with the other tasks all the time rather than dealing with buyers and sellers, which is what got them excited and motivated to go it alone in the first place!

What is your USP?
The majority of local agencies are looking for the London connection – an area that we have the biggest presence out of our network and the largest single brand agency in London. Winkworth’s history over the last 175 years in amongst the market place means that we have built up a significant amount of goodwill that we have been able to transfer into our new offices across the country and countries. Owning a Winkworth office means that you can benefit from this goodwill and draw from a very highly regarded brand name whilst also fulfilling a dream of being you own boss.