Franchise Focus Business News…

If we could get our hands on all of our readers and franchisors, we would give you a big hug and smooch, mistletoe or no mistletoe.

But you might not like that, so we thought we’d wish you all a very Merry Christmas, and hope that you have a great time over the festive season and the new year.

Thank you for visiting us over the last year and we hope to see you again in January.

Love,

The Franchise Direct team

The parties, the present buying, the eating, when it all comes to an end on Christmas night and the following days, we’re left to think about how our lives have changed in the last year.

Getting to hear what our friends and families have been up to can often encourage us to think about where we are in our lives, and what we might like to change.

As the world’s largest franchise directory site, we often find more traffic at this time, as people begin to think how they might go about changing their lives.

Last year, we experienced nearly a 20pc boost in enquiries to franchisors over the Christmas and New Year period.

More free time- Unless you’re in cooking mode or off to splash around the Mediteranean, more people are off work, with free time to think about their hopes and dreams, and to browse the internet.

Comparing to family and friends- Getting to catch up with old friends and family can often lead us to question where we are in our own lives. Your school friends have all found themselves in wellpaid successful careers, when you are still slogging for someone else, just getting through life.

New Year Changes -The festive period has always lead up to a spate of New Years’ resolutions, after the indulgence orgy that is Christmas. Along with kicking the fags or binning the chocolate, many people may want to change their career, or lifestyle.

So if you’re bored for a few hours before dinner on boxing day, or plodding around the house trying to avoid rows, take some time to see what you could do to change your life, and career.

From business consultancy to beauty, handyman and tshirt franchise businesses, you might just find what you’re looking for.

Well, we wouldn’t if we didn’t have a good reason…For all you eager-beaver entrepreneurs out there, it’s time to consider cashing in on the spending extravaganza that is Christmas time!

Harrods and Selfridges have had their Christmas shops up and coughing up glitter since the end of July, selling over 2,000 baubles before the August evenings drew in. The brainboxes at these hugely successful chain stores are leading the way in cashing in on the ‘Peking Pound’, this is demand coming from China, spent by tourists in the UK. British decorations are viewed as perfect souvenirs.

It’s not just the marble staircases of department stores that can benefit from the spending mania that will carry us through to the end of the year.

According to a Christmas 2011 Spending Poll conducted by ICM for the Guardian newspaper last week, in the face of recession 52% of people intend on spending the same or more as last year (£414 on average). People aged 18-24 particularly intend to blow their budget and spend more to make it a great Christmas.

Although a surprising 4% of responders have already completed their shop (it’s not our place to judge how people spend their time, dear readers!) and 3% of Bah Humbuggers aren’t bothering to buy presents at all, 70% of shoppers won’t be filling stockings with presents until late November and December, so there’s still time to get your franchise business up and running in time for the year’s biggest splurge.

More and more of us seem to be seeking refuge from the ordeal that is the high street before Christmas, as around three quarters of us will be buying the same or more presents from the comfort of behind the computer screen.

25-34 year olds are stepping up their online presence and giving up the high street hunt for presents, with 45% intending to make more online purchases this year.

With all these new figures, we’re bringing you some hot tickets to get you thinking about being your own boss and kick-starting your own business with a Christmas boost!

Your Own Store

With Christmas shopping the largest expense at Christmas time and the internet market booming, think about opening a YourOwnStore affiliate marketing franchise. By choosing a particular niche, i.e. Mens’ Watches or Blu Ray Players, you can direct shoppers to what they want for their wife, dad or brother for the cheapest price. Thrift guru Martin Lewis recommends that consumers shop through these sites to save money in his 12 Saves of Christmas!

My Chocolate Explosion

It wouldn’t be Christmas without an Aunt or Sister regaling some family member with their woes of Christmas weight gain, but we all love to indulge with some choco-luxury under the mistletoe.A ‘My Chocolate Explosion‘ franchise offers the chance to run your own gift-giving business and help the country smile in a haze of chocolate-induced delirium.

They incorporate both high-end and everyone’s favourite chocolates, are delivered both locally and to lucky individuals across the UK. Created in various colours using a huge variety of wrapped sweets, chocolates and accessories, unlike a baked product or flowers; this product has the advantage of a long shelf life. It does do not go stale, wilt or die, (so it can be regifted the next year)…

The T Shirt Store

The Christmas spending stats point at the younger generation to push up their Christmas spending, both online and on the highstreet, so the T Shirt Store could be an ideal venture to cash in on the fashion conscious who are aware of choosing personalised gifts for family and friends and getting fed up up the standarised offerings available.

The Cash Generator

Christmas can leave more things red than we might like, including our bank accounts. A small minority of people in this survey will be cutting back on spending this festive season, so could do with some help from Cash Generators. Another of Thrift Guru Martin Lewis’s tips to consumers for Christmas is to sell gold if it’s a struggle to fund under the Christmas tree. With a Cash Generator franchise, you can help this small number of people get through with some festive cheer by buying unwanted gold or gifts. You can also sell second hand and new items, so Santa can deliver at a knock down price.