Over 350 delegates from across the UK’s property sector gathered together for the Property Franchise Group’s annual conference where a number of key announcements were made for 2017 and beyond.
These include a long-term network-wide marketing and software agreement with Zoopla, as well as the group’s decision to withdraw fees currently charged to its franchisees for subsequent territories with immediate effect.
Franchisees from across the group’s six estate agent and lettings brands – which encompass Martin & Co, Ellis & Co, CJ Hole, Whitegates, Parkers and EweMove – attended the second annual event since the group began trading on AIM.
The group is now the largest property franchise group in the UK and currently operates 377 offices across the length and breadth of the country, serving 48,000 tenanted managed properties.
Ian Wilson, chief executive, said: “The property industry is currently facing a number of challenges, with the sector growing by over 5,000 agents in the past six years alone, coupled with increasingly lower fees and fewer transactions – resulting in what many would say is a real crisis within the sector.
“On the flip side, the property market has never been so diverse – a natural representation of the wider UK community – which poses a number of opportunities and which we as a group are committed to acting on to ensure that we represent every distinct need, both now and in the future.”
Last Thursday, the group reported a rise in revenues for last year to £8.2m, up 15%.
It said that lettings account for about three-quarters of fees earned from its franchisees.
Giving away free terratories .. sounds like they do not have much confidence in recruiting new franchises.
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“Subsequent territories” must mean they are allowing existing franchisees to expand into new territories without charge, rather than making it free to new franchisees.
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Yep that’s my point.
To give away subsequent territory to existing franchisees they have no confidence in selling the territories to new franchises.
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Shaun77….. ewe move next.
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Sounds like common sense as I would have thought it is better and cheaper to get an existing proven franchisee to open up than someone new to the business.
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