ELITE FRANCHISE SUPPLIER OF THE YEAR AWARD
The top 10 franchise suppliers of 2026
Celebrating the unsung heroes behind franchise success stories. These brands showcase their incredible innovation, dedication, and impact on the franchising world. If you’re a top 100 franchise brand, you can vote for your favourite supplier to be awarded the No.1 spot. The results will be announced during the EF100 Celebratory & Awards evening in March.
You’ll have one vote per brand for Supplier of the Year, so make it count. Consider the suppliers who’ve backed you, helped your brand grow, solved problems, and consistently delivered for you.
At Ashtons Franchise Consulting, supporting the UK franchise community is at the heart of everything we do. We work alongside both new and experienced franchisors – helping them achieve success, raise standards, share knowledge, and strengthen the sector long term.
Active contributors to the British Franchise Association through membership, panels, industry leadership, and articles for their regular magazine
Deliver 14 free masterclasses and exhibition seminars each year, helping hundreds of founders understand franchising responsibly
Proud supporters of Encouraging Women into Franchising, with three clients winning the “New Woman Franchisor of the Year” award
Champions of ethical, transparent franchising aligned with the bfa’s Code of Ethics.
Supporting franchising means strengthening the whole ecosystem, as well as our individual clients. We champion ethical, transparent practices and provide practical guidance to help new franchisors succeed. Our personal, consultant-led approach ensures founders get hands-on mentoring and advice tailored to their business, long after launch.
We support clients from the very start – before they even become an Ashtons client – through to onboarding and training their first franchisees and beyond.
Free “Franchise Your Business” masterclasses, guides, and video resources for informed decision-making
Collaboration with the bfa, industry bodies, and exhibitions to share best practice
Thought leadership and articles, in print and online, that maintain trust in the UK franchise sector.
Innovation at Ashtons is about making franchising simpler, smarter, and more effective. We combine digital tools, interactive learning, and hands-on expertise to help franchisors build strong networks.
Modernised systems with CRM, project tools, and shared online workspaces for real time visibility
Interactive masterclasses with live Q&A and real case studies, driving record attendance
Expanded post-launch mentoring to strengthen networks and long-term performance
Video content, articles, and social media channels (Instagram/TikTok) for first-time franchisors
Ongoing consultant development ensures up-to-date guidance on trends, compliance, and best practice
Overall, we’re evolving to be more connected, transparent and forward-looking.
Our vision is growth with purpose: helping franchisors not just start, but thrive. Our goal isn’t to be the biggest consultancy – it’s to remain the most trusted, helping shape the future standards and success of UK franchising.
Expand “Clients for Life” mentoring, aiming for 75% of new clients to continue with our ongoing support programmes
Grow consultant team by 20-25%, adding specialists while maintaining hands-on expertise
Champion ethical franchising via bfa and EWIF, aiming for client recognition at awards
Invest in digital tools and interactive learning to reach early-stage businesses
Build Ashtons as the UK authority on franchise development while prioritising sustainable, trusted growth.
With decades of experience in franchising, we are proud to be a long-standing, trusted supporter of the sector. As members of both the BFA and IFA, we actively champion UK innovation, including representing British territory-mapping expertise at the IFA Annual Convention. We invest heavily in the community through event attendance, sponsorships, thought leadership, free resources and webinars for franchisors and franchisees. Our team contributes time, expertise and advocacy across key industry forums, awards and exhibitions, always prioritising collaboration, education and ethical engagement. Above all, we are committed to helping franchising grow stronger through data-led insight, innovation and genuine support.
Support is at the heart of everything we do, and we pride ourselves on never being beaten on it. Many clients have partnered with us for over 14 years, reflecting our commitment to long-term relationships rather than one-off software sales. We provide fast online and telephone support, free onboarding and training, and clear guidance around every data update. Beyond mapping, we offer practical franchise and business advice at every stage, from pre-franchise to exit. Using robust data and a tailored approach, we help franchisors avoid costly mistakes, unlock hidden territory potential and build stronger, more profitable networks.
We continually innovate to move the franchise industry forward. Our insights have shaped best practice, from challenging the fairness of “balanced” territories to advising on postcode and local authority boundary changes. We also created the Find Your Nearest API, ensuring customer enquiries reach the right franchisee. Our latest breakthrough, the Revenue Models dashboard in Vision, transforms how franchisors understand performance. By combining revenue potential, sales, customer data and market penetration on a single map, franchisors can assess performance relative to opportunity, not just turnover. This data-led approach enables fairer decisions, clearer conversations and stronger, more sustainable franchise growth.
We have an ambitious and exciting future focused on delivering even greater value to the franchise industry. Our plans include international expansion to become the global mapping partner for franchise brands, supporting both head offices and master franchisees with a flexible, data-led approach. We are extending our services to marketing teams to help improve customer acquisition and ROI, with early results already driving measurable growth. Upcoming innovations include enhanced planning tools, more accessible pricing for early-stage franchisors, and advanced reporting for larger networks. Everything we build is designed to make data more accessible, actionable and impactful for our clients’ growth.
Partnering with around 40 brands (including 18 in the EF100), we provide support at every stage of the franchise lifecycle.
Through the Chantry Foundation, we have invested tens of thousands of pounds in providing qualifying emerging franchisors with 12 months of market-leading support and delivery, helping four young brands generate thousands of qualified enquiries and recruit multiple franchisees.
We regularly present at industry events, proudly judge prestigious awards (including EF100, the Best Franchise Awards and the GBFA), and actively seek opportunities to share best practice across the sector. Chantry invests heavily in team development, ensuring we lead the way in modern marketing, digital innovation and ethical franchising.
Every client benefits from structured onboarding, bespoke strategies, and regular data-driven reviews.
Clients view Chantry as an extension of their own business, a trusted partner committed to sustainable growth, not merely quick wins.
By working with Chantry, franchisors gain deep industry insight, carefully crafted messaging, focused recruitment plans and market leading prospect management support and systems. Franchisees gain thought through local marketing strategies and mentorship, while mature owners receive lender friendly valuations, value-improvement plans, and ethical, end-to-end resale support.
Innovation is part of our DNA. Weekly innovation “huddles” keep ideas flowing across the whole team.
Over the past year, we have embraced AI to sharpen marketing and recruitment, from profiling top-performing franchisees to fine-tuning campaigns, to using sentiment analysis and call-transcript tools to prioritise progressing the strongest candidates.
Securing exclusive UK franchise-sector rights to a leading AI powered intelligent automation partner has already delivered standout results, like cutting one client’s two-hour daily invoicing task down to six minutes, saving £10,700 a year.
Chantry’s tech-first mindset helps clients work smarter, faster, and more sustainably.
The future is all about deeper collaboration, growth and tech advancement.
We plan to strengthen our UK presence while also helping more international brands successfully enter the UK market. New AI-powered tools for valuations and recruitment will make insights faster and more accurate, enhancing human decision-making, not replacing it.
We will keep contributing to industry events and endeavour to stay ahead of trends so clients always benefit from the latest thinking. By combining great people with smart technology, Chantry aims to make franchise growth more achievable and efficient for all.
We’ve been a proud partner to the franchise industry for 25 years. As a full-service marketing agency, we support a cross-section of franchise sizes and sectors with creative, digital, software, events and data expertise. 90% of our client base are franchisees, including three clients who’ve been with us since day one.
We’re committed to supporting the entire franchise ecosystem – helping franchisors map out growth while giving individual franchisees local marketing that works. We champion community impact too, supporting BFA accreditation and award-winning campaigns, including Banana Moon’s ‘Bright futures’ initiative, which installed a defibrillator and anti-choking device at over 50 nurseries.
Our support goes far beyond marketing. We provide bespoke software, data solutions, training and strategic guidance on recruitment, financial considerations, property and legal compliance. We help franchises achieve longevity, refresh their onboarding journeys and attract high-quality multi-unit operators. Our Events team have orchestrated everything from large-scale events to smaller, high-end occasions – giving franchisees that all-important support and connection.
Our in-house SaaS tools solve real franchise pain-points – from streamlined social content to automotive web platforms – while our data expertise enables territory planning and evidence-based growth strategies. We turn challenges into scalable products, absorbing the risk to deliver sector-wide benefits.
Innovation at Denfield means creating solutions that transform how franchises operate. We develop franchise-specific SaaS tools that tackle daily operational challenges. Our award-winning digital showroom has now spun off into an entirely separate company. Open Closed Software (OCS) is a standalone platform serving 300+ German franchises, 46 UK franchises and key AM100 operators. This faster, scalable and future-proof platform was nominated for ‘Best New Product or Service’ at the AM Awards 2025 in its first year. Over the decades, we’ve embraced, understood and best utilised new technologies for our clients, meaning they always trust us with the next big thing.
Denfield turns 25 in 2026. We remain focused on setting new standards for franchise support – advancing our technology to serve diverse franchise models and continuing to nurture the long-term relationships that have been foundational to our success. We pride ourselves on being a trusted source of expertise for our clients – we distil complex topics into actionable insights for our clients through one-pagers and The Last Orders Podcast.
Our services don’t just fit one supplier category – we deliver them all. This unique approach means our clients trust us to guide them through every era of change, helping them adapt – and thrive!
Franchise Fame empowers franchisors with the strategic support they need to scale sustainably through our data-driven approach to franchise marketing. Our rich analytics and insights enable us to create actionable strategies to improve targeting, messaging, funnels and overall brand positioning for clients. We help franchisors spend smarter, convert more effectively and scale. Our full-spectrum of digital marketing services help franchisors build authority, produce high-converting recruitment digital assets and manage paid campaigns across multiple channels to align to the franchisor’s long-term growth goals. Beyond client-specific work, we also see it as our responsibility to support the entire franchising ecosystem, which is why we invest heavily in education and knowledge-sharing.
Franchise Fame’s work with The Travel Franchise on a national level involved identifying several key objectives for SEO. During the campaign, we achieved measurable and consistent improvements across key performance indicators. The total number of users increased from 2024 to 2025 by 85.72%, event count increased by 47.18%, and the total number of new users to the website increased by 82.54%. Other success metrics included 10/10 keywords on page 1 of Google’s SERP, 5/10 number one ranked keywords and 70.6% increase in traffic. The number of keywords ranking in the top 10 increased by nearly 185%. Performance for organic traffic in the UK saw a 70.6% increase.
We combine technology, data intelligence and franchise-specific expertise to change how franchisors attract, nurture and convert. Our use of AI and AI automations as well as generative engine optimisation empower our data-driven approaches. This allows us to build hyper-precise, high-performing campaigns that improve lead quality and reduce cost per acquisition. Our franchise recruitment ecosystem unifies SEO, paid media, content marketing, CRO, automation and analytics into a single engine. Plus, our local marketing systems are being expanded to help networks achieve greater consistency across franchise territories. We equip franchisors with the knowledge to understand campaigns through reports and strategic consultations.
Our long-term vision is to become the most trusted, results-driven marketing partner for franchisors in the UK. A key pillar of our strategy is expanding our data and AI capabilities. We will develop deeper behavioural models built specifically around UK franchise buyers, capturing patterns in intent, search behaviour and investment readiness. Sophisticated AI tools will give franchisors more clarity, control and visibility over their recruitment pipelines. We also plan to introduce UK-specific local SEO frameworks and industry-tailored content systems that give franchisees consistent, high-quality marketing support. Another priority is expanding our educational footprint through more in-depth research reports, hosting sector-wide webinars and collaborating with British franchise associations and events.
Coconut loves franchising. Almost 25 years’ experience in franchise marketing, means we add value to clients at both Head Office & network levels, and to the wider sector.
We’re highly collaborative, actively partnering and supporting key organisations like the BFA, WorkBuzz, and Elite. You’ll find one, or more, of us speaking, writing, creating, judging awards, mentoring, exhibiting, photographing, or filming; just you try and escape us!
As EWiF Chair, we’re committed to empowering women in franchising. Giving back time and finances, we ensure women benefit from regional meetings, mentoring programmes, and – highlight of the year – annual awards.
We’re a lovely bunch! We build strong, lasting partnerships with franchisors and franchisees, fast becoming trusted members of Head Office Support teams. Where we are needed, we are always there!
No, two franchises are the same. Our tailored approach delivers you a strategy for successful, impactful marketing. Whether working with franchisors on marketing strategies to recruit franchisees, or with franchisees to maximise their local marketing, we’re always adding the Coconut extra 1% for our clients benefit.
Technology waits for no one, and nor do we! Over the last two decades, Coconut stays ahead of changing demands within the franchise industry, the UK’s business landscape, and digital advancements. This enables us to empower the franchise industry, by sharing our knowledge and insights wherever anyone will listen.
When it comes to innovation, we’re passionate about adding value to clients and the franchise sector. Even as you read this, we’re researching, testing and deploying new ideas around adtech, AI and systems to improve efficiency, and marketing success for our clients.
We’re following the Coconut North Star: Targeted digital strategy to scale-up our growth over the next five years, ready to support hundreds more franchisees with our everyday expertise. Using new tech innovations, we’re boosting marketing performance for clients.
For two decades, we’ve been innovating, and we’re excited how utilising new tech will support the growth of franchising, in 2026 and beyond.
As proud BFA Supplier Members, Tim and Nikki, founders of Franchise HQ, advance ethical, human-centred franchising. Through the flagship programme The Bridge, we’ve helped franchisors strengthen franchisee trust, resilience, and performance. This year, we’ve contributed to conferences including EWIB, Hotpod Yoga, the National Tutors’ Conference, House of Colour, The Reading Doctors, Tappy Toes and others, sharing practical insights on confidence, adaptability, and growth. We’ve also made The Bridge more accessible for emerging brands. Whether supporting franchisors behind the scenes or championing inclusivity and innovation in the sector, our mission remains: empower people, elevate performance, and grow the whole franchise ecosystem.
In 2025, Franchise HQ’s commitment to ethical franchising, human-centred support, and sector collaboration remained at the heart of everything we do. Nikki Senior provided pro-bono coaching to franchisors facing burnout, while Tim Morris co-led the Franchise Innovation Think Tank, creating trusted, spaces for open discussion. We contributed thought leadership through Elite Franchise, the BFA, and the Franchat Podcast, and shared insights via The Franchise Show. From mentoring founders to educating franchisees, we’ve supported growth at every stage. Our work is grounded in generosity, trust, and impact: helping build a stronger, healthier, more resilient franchise sector for the future.
Innovation at Franchise HQ is never theoretical, it’s practical, psychological, and always evolving. In 2025, we launched The Bridge, a new 12-month development programme blending franchise support expertise with mindset psychology. Every module includes real-world application and live feedback, as well as employer reviews Our Skills Audit and bespoke Client Dashboard track measurable delegate change. We run the business using EOS, holding quarterly innovation reviews and adapting each module based on cohort feedback. From our ‘Parking Lot’ of ideas to continual programme refinement, innovation at Franchise HQ is structured, client-informed, and designed to transform culture and performance across franchise networks.
The future of Franchise HQ is rooted in relevance, quality, and impact. Over the next five years, we’re scaling The Bridge across the UK and internationally, with new cohorts launching in Europe and North America in 2026. We’re expanding our offer with new programmes, including the Franchisee 90-Day Accelerator, Financial Literacy for Franchisees and advanced learning for Bridge alumni. CPD accreditation is underway, and we’re building a robust resource library to support both franchisees and support teams. Plans are afoot to launch brand-specific workshops, our focus is simple: help franchise networks thrive, at scale, with heart.
At Franchise Resales Ltd, we’re passionate about helping the UK franchising sector thrive. We introduce people to franchising, bringing fresh talent into networks while guiding franchisees and franchisors through smooth, rewarding transitions. Our free seminars and workshops share essential knowledge on exit strategies and network growth, empowering franchisors to make smart decisions. By focusing on seamless sales, protecting brand integrity, and championing ethical practices, we create a supportive, collaborative franchising community. Whether advising, educating, or connecting the right people, we’re dedicated to making franchising better for everyone involved.
Franchise Resales Ltd is dedicated to supporting the franchise sector with end-to-end services tailored to franchisors, franchisees, and buyers. We facilitate seamless resales by managing valuations, marketing, buyer vetting, and sale completion. We speak to several new sellers and franchisors weekly and are always on hand to offer free, impartial guidance and support, even if you’re not listing with us. Our personalised approach ensures smooth transitions, reinforces franchise networks, and maintains high standards, helping businesses thrive. Through strong partnerships and industry expertise, we strengthen the franchise community and foster long-term success.
Franchise Resales Ltd are continuously evolving to meet the needs of the franchising sector. Our exclusive, NDA-protected buyers’ portal provides pre-qualified buyers with secure access to businesses, financial details, and franchise-specific solicitors and lenders. We’ve embraced seller financing as a powerful tool, incorporating it into our processes to help buyers, sellers, and franchisors achieve successful sales. With a rebrand and a new website launching next year, we’re introducing additional portals for advice, accounts, and industry blogs. These advancements, paired with our comprehensive, tailored approach, showcase our commitment to driving growth and innovation within the franchise community.
The future of Franchise Resales is focused on growth, innovation, and delivering exceptional service. With a rebrand and new website launching next year, we’re introducing advanced features like advice and accounts portals to enhance user experience. We aim to collaborate with emerging brands, support struggling franchisees, and assist established networks in finding motivated franchisees. Rejoining the British Franchise Association and incorporating seller financing into our services are key priorities. Most importantly, we are committed to maintaining our standard of excellence, striving to receive 5-star Trustpilot reviews from every single person we work with.
Platinum Wave exists to help franchise brands succeed – it’s the reason we were founded in 2008 and it’s the reason we strive to be better every year. The health and strength of the entire industry impacts everyone, which is why we have always placed such importance on playing our part in supporting the industry as a whole. CEO Suzie McCafferty QFP is the bfa’s current Advisor & Supplier Forum Chair and former Chair of EWIF Scotland. This year we sponsored The Elite Franchise Top 100, the bfa’s wellness campaign and hosted 8 free Franchise your Business seminars with HSBC. We spoke at EWIB and judged both the Elite and WorkBuzz awards.
Our support spans the entire franchise lifecycle from feasibility and system development to franchisee recruitment, mentoring and international expansion. We work side-by-side with franchisors to strengthen profitability, improve engagement and implement real change, not just diagnose issues. Our mentoring and leadership programmes transform performance at franchisor and franchisee level, while our recruitment expertise ensures brands attract high-calibre partners who fit culturally and commercially. We provide marketing services from franchise recruitment lead generation to a complete review and overhaul of clients marketing strategy and collateral. We also provide a senior staff recruitment service to brands from every sector.
Now more than ever, innovation is deeply embedded in how we work. We’ve developed modular Learning & Development programmes, data- and AI-enhanced franchisee recruitment solutions, and new mentoring and leadership frameworks that elevate capability across networks. Our collaborative webinars with leading suppliers keep franchisors ahead of emerging trends, while our international strategy expertise supports brands entering complex international markets. We continually refine our systems, tools and educational content to help franchisors find an edge. From technology-driven recruitment to Suzie’s forthcoming book on franchising, we constantly push boundaries to raise standards and deliver practical, future-ready solutions to the sector.
Our future vision is focused on growth, innovation and sector-wide impact. Over the next five years we will expand our consultancy, mentoring and recruitment divisions, strengthen our international partnerships, and invest in technology and AI to transform franchisee recruitment and performance insights. That said, for us, franchising will always be a people focused business model. With a target of £1m turnover and a growing team of expert associates, we’ll continue championing education, responsible franchising and community collaboration, ensuring Platinum Wave remains the trusted partner shaping the next generation of successful franchise brands.
Rev PR has contributed to franchising for over a decade as the UK sector’s only specialist PR agency and a long-standing BFA member. Actively involved in BFA and EWIF events, forums and conferences, the team freely shares expansive franchising expertise to support franchisors beyond client work. Rev has helped modernise how PR is understood and measured, educating the sector on integrated PR strategy and outcome-led reporting. In 2025 alone, Rev secured 1,325 positive media features with a reach of over 1.13 billion. Through training, thought leadership, charitable partnerships and sponsorship, Rev consistently strengthens the reputation, professionalism and impact of UK franchising.
Rev PR supports franchisors and franchisees at every stage of their journey, offering a full suite of PR, content, digital and events services designed for long-term growth. Clients span multiple industries and typically work with us for many years, reflecting the strength of our relationships and results. In 2025, we launched our Emerging Brands package to support early-stage franchisors often overlooked by traditional agencies. Designed for brands with 0–5 franchisees, the low-cost, no-tie-in package guarantees results and removes barriers to entry. This initiative reflects our commitment to nurturing success at all levels and ensuring both established and emerging brands have access to credible, professional PR support.
Our innovation is driven by a refusal to work like a traditional PR agency. Team Rev combines deep franchising expertise, long-term staff retention and mandatory CPD with a highly relationship-led media strategy. Rev has also been an early adopter of technology, integrating AI and advanced systems to enhance insight, reporting and performance, while maintaining human-led content creation. Crucially, Rev has innovated in demonstrating PR’s commercial impact, evidencing lead generation and improved conversion for franchisors. In 2025, this evolution culminated in a rebrand and the launch of new services, including consultancy-led support and a fast-growing events management offering that removes operational burden from franchisors
Rev’s future is centred on people, progress, and meaningful growth. We’re committed to remaining an exceptional employer, building on initiatives such as a four-day working week, flexible working and wellbeing support to attract and retain top talent. Innovation will continue through new services, including the recent launch of Rev Rapid, an on-demand content solution designed to increase accessibility across the sector. Looking ahead, we plan to embed our expanded service offering, strengthen international collaboration with our US sister agency, and grow sustainably through long-term client partnerships. Ongoing investment in team development, enhanced reporting and client experience underpin Rev’s ambition to lead, evolve and positively influence UK franchising!