Franchise Expo 2013

Last Friday, my friend and I went to the Franchise Expo held in the ground floor of the SMX in Mall of Asia.

If you will attend the next expo, you will either pay 100 pesos for the entrance fee or get a free pass by just presenting your BPI card. It's sometimes easier to go there around lunch or after lunch because when you try to be there early, you might have to go through the long lines of the registration. Just like the past years, when you walk in, you will quickly see the booths for 7-Eleven, Max's and Goldilocks. They are often placed in the entrance area of the expo. But unlike last year, there are more bigger booths than those mini stalls. One more thing I noticed is that, there are more known brands or companies in the expo than those that are just starting to franchise. I was personally expecting to see more of the latter because as we all know, known companies or brands oftentimes have bigger investments needed than those that are small and just starting. So I dragged my friend around the corners of the expo where I know those small companies or brands are mostly located. And btw, unlike last year, I got like two bags of brochures, now I only have a few. I just chose which ones to get so we could focus more on affordable investments first.
As we were walking around the expo, we came across a kind of like a  training school where they teach kids how to compute fast. They are called the CMA Mental Arithmetic. As stated in their brochure...

CMA Mental Arithmetic is a pioneering educational center specializing in two-hand, four finger method of teach abacus mental arithmetic. With a proven teaching system and curriculum spanning two decades, CMA focuses on "Total Brain Development" that unleashes a child's maximum mental potential.

My friend and I were really amazed at how well those kids in the video were able to compute numbers that even has decimals on them. I will talk about them more on another post.
Back to the expo, I was happy to find my two favorite brands - Cobo and the Famous Belgian Waffle. My friend saw this man eating a waffle and asked me if I know where to buy that. I quickly dragged her to their stall and made her buy one. As expected, SHE LOVED IT. I also brought them to Cobo's booth. We stayed there to have my lunch. I bought the usual Orange Grapefruit Bubble Burst Tea. Then my friend tried the Iced Jelly. I asked her to give the bubble burst a try and she refused at first. But after I explained to her what the bubble burst was, she finally tried it and LOVED IT TOO. Oh yes! Achievement. This could be considered my mini market research. Hihi. Oh my, if I only have enough money to franchise and bring these brands to Batangas or Bauan, I'm sure, it would be profitable because their retail prices are affordable.

There are other brands I got interested in and they are as follows:
Burgers and Steaks

Kambal Pandesal

Cerealicious

JC Franchising

Farronccino Cafe

Cyberya

Hero Sausages

There are a lot more to chose from actually but if you're like us who doesn't have large savings, then these are just some of those brands or companies you will focus on.
I remember, when I was waiting for my order in the RBX booth, this lady was asking questions regarding the products etc of RBX to the person in charge. They stood next to me and this guy who was also waiting for his order. Then she started asking questions to the guy whether the one box meal is enough for him. Then the lady started asking about the target market, etc. She reminded me that in franchising, we shouldn't just look at the price of the franchise, the creative looks of the stalls or which products we prefer to have. We should also be looking deeper than that. Several researches must be done before one can actually decided to go or not to go with the franchise. We shouldn't only focus on earning but how well the products or services could satisfy the needs and wants of the customers. In other words, we must also focus on the value for money.
If you're someone looking for a franchise too, I suggest you buy books or magazines that discuss topics and the process of franchising first before going to the expo. This way, you will be able to come up and ask the right questions to those in charge in the expo. There lots of lots of mini mag-book that Entrepreneur produce that could really help you understand franchising more.

Looking for a business and starting one of your own is quite a hassle. That's probably why franchising became a trend to entrepreneurs... entrepreneurs like me.
It was my first time to attend the expo with someone. I have been attending Franchise Expo alone for years now and it does feel good to have someone with you.

For that, I would like to thank my friend Ms. Yanille Dalangin and... yeah, for attending the Franchise Expo with me. Hehe.