The global business community haven’t had it easy recently with the effects of Brexit and then the pandemic compounding uncertainty. But there’s been a powerful movement of consultancy-based and B2B franchises helping businesses cope with the challenges of the last 18 months. Tim Barber-Lomax, Business Development Manager at Expense Reduction Analysts (ERA) looks at how this group of franchise brands have come into their own, providing the wider business community with the advice and support to future proof themselves during and emerging from the pandemic.
The end of the furlough scheme in September hailed a significant deadline for businesses who needed support during the pandemic. Whilst economic forecasting for the UK’s economy is positive, recent Government statistics point to businesses’ continued reliance on the support the Government has supplied throughout the pandemic. A GOV UK review from June suggests that 1.9 million jobs remained on partial or full furlough at the time. As furlough ends and the Government’s Bounce Back Loans become due for repayment, companies are experiencing a renewed impetus to manage budgets and streamline operations to avoid large-scale job losses. Recent ONS data backs this up, with 53% of companies still reporting that their turnover is being impacted by the pandemic. Fundamentally, companies who have survived thanks to Government funding will have to explore new avenues to protect their business and their workforce.
The common challenges for businesses
Many businesses haven’t waited until now to protect themselves though and have been turning to consultancy and B2B experts at well-known franchises like ERA. Sectors such as automotive, hospitality, manufacturing and education all struggled significantly. We saw some clients look for solutions when lockdowns restricted their ability to operate at all. In these cases, the businesses may have been affected by suppliers closing and therefore having a knock-on effect to their day-to-day ability to deliver their product or service. Some also found furlough as the only option as their services were temporarily deemed as non-essential and forced to closed. We then had clients at the other end of the spectrum, experiencing a huge increase in demand that they found difficult to fulfil. They were looking for solutions to work with additional suppliers or new systems to improve efficiency.
B2B franchises making a difference
It’s been fantastic to see the news coming from British franchises in the B2B sector. We’ve had business coaching franchisees offering gifted coaching sessions to business owners, resulting in some companies having their best trading months ever during the pandemic. App and website development franchises quickly reacted to offer e-commerce platforms for businesses to trade online, resulting in a secondary route to market post-pandemic as a long-term result. Digital marketing franchises were then able to step in to boost the number of customers visiting those online platforms to increase sales that may have only previously converted in a face-to-face environment. Consultancy franchises were also called upon to drive efficiencies – delivering recommendations and implementation of suppliers that companies may not have engaged with before.
Wycliffe College, a prestigious independent school founded in 1882, turned to ERA to create meaningful and long-lasting savings resulting in a 22% reduction in energy costs. Tom Wood, Director of Finance and Operations at Wycliffe College, said, “Despite their name, the benefits that ERA bring to the business are far more than ‘expense reduction’. It’s much more about improving value and service from suppliers and ensuring transparency and accountability. Their involvement has helped Wycliffe to rationalise and consolidate our supply chain, thereby strengthening relationships with our core trading partners. It has also allowed us to focus on supporting local businesses and reduce the impact our activities have on the environment.”
Jonathan Jackson, is our ERA franchise partner who worked with Wycliffe College. Like many franchisees part of B2B brand networks, he’s felt privileged to be offering solutions to businesses in these challenging times. “Many people think of us as consultants who just look at systems and suppliers to save a business money but the work I do with my clients is more wide reaching than that. It’s gives me so much satisfaction to make a difference to the people who are part of those businesses. My services have been pivotal to the stability of the companies I have worked with during this uncertain time.”
The continued benefits we provide through our services at ERA, along with those of so many B2B franchises in the UK, will now support British businesses to continued growth as we emerge from the pandemic and beyond. If you hadn’t considered investing in a B2B franchise before, why not take a look at what’s on offer?
