Choosing Franchise Advisers for an Australian Business

Before franchising an existing Australian business, you need advisers who can test your plans as well as prepare documents. A lawyer cannot establish commercial viability simply by drafting an agreement, and an accountant cannot resolve contractual risks through a spreadsheet. The practical task is to appoint the right specialists, give them a shared brief and make sure their recommendations fit together.

Match each adviser to a defined job

Start with the decisions you need help making, rather than buying a package labelled ‘franchise ready’. Australian Government guidance recommends advice from a lawyer, accountant and business adviser with franchising expertise.

Give each specialist a clear role:

• Franchising lawyer: assess the proposed structure, explain legal obligations, prepare or review agreements and disclosure documents, and identify issues requiring specialist advice.
• Accountant: examine the financial assumptions for both the franchisor and a representative franchisee, including working capital, tax treatment and the cost of meeting promised obligations.
• Business adviser: challenge whether the existing business can be replicated, identify operational dependencies and organise the work needed before expansion.

These roles can overlap, but overlap should produce scrutiny rather than duplicated invoices. Ask who will lead each task and who will review its implications elsewhere.

You may also need a trade mark attorney, leasing lawyer or employment specialist. Ask your lead advisers to identify these needs early rather than assuming their engagement covers every issue.

Check Australian franchising experience

Australia specifically regulates franchising through the Franchising Code of Conduct, a mandatory code prescribed under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. The Australian Consumer Law, employment legislation and contract law also matter. Your advisers should understand how these requirements interact in the Australian franchising community.

A general commercial background is useful, but it does not replace current franchising experience. Ask prospective advisers:

• Have you helped an existing business become a franchisor, rather than only advised franchise buyers?
• Who will actually perform and supervise the work?
• How do you keep advice and templates aligned with changes to the Code?
• What would make you recommend delaying a franchise launch?
• Can you provide relevant references, subject to client confidentiality?

Look for explanations tied to your business, not assurances that a standard template will cover everything. For example, an adviser should distinguish the requirement to maintain a profile on the Franchise Disclosure Register from government approval of your business model. A register presence is not an endorsement of commercial viability.

Check relevant professional credentials and ask about professional indemnity insurance. Also ask whether the adviser receives referral payments from any recommended service providers. Those arrangements do not automatically disqualify someone, but you should understand them before appointing your team.

Give the team one factual brief

Separate advisers can produce inconsistent recommendations if they work from different assumptions. Prepare a shared briefing pack before substantive work begins.

Include your business structure, ownership details, financial statements, existing operating locations, brand ownership, key contracts and proposed division of responsibilities. Explain which activities currently depend on the founder and which can be performed by another operator.

Identify uncertainties openly. Perhaps customer demand varies significantly between locations, or your software contract does not clearly permit use by independently owned businesses. These are questions to investigate, not gaps to conceal with optimistic assumptions.

Ask advisers to distinguish three things in their responses: legal requirements, commercial recommendations and unresolved questions. This helps you understand which actions are mandatory and which involve a business judgement.

Arrange a joint review where recommendations intersect. If an operational proposal requires franchisees to buy equipment, for example, the accountant should assess its financial implications while the lawyer considers the contractual and disclosure treatment. Neither review should happen in isolation.

Agree deliverables and a launch decision process

Before signing an engagement letter, agree the scope, exclusions, fees, payment stages and expected deliverables. Clarify whether the price includes meetings between advisers, revisions following financial review and explanations of the final documents.

Ask what happens if the business model changes midway through the project. A revised operating structure may require additional financial work and legal drafting; establish how those costs will be authorised.

Finish with a coordinated review of outstanding issues. Each adviser should identify what they have assessed, what remains outside their scope and which assumptions still need verification. Receiving a completed agreement is not, by itself, evidence that the business is ready to franchise.

Practical takeaway: appoint advisers against a written brief, give them the same facts and require a joined-up review before launch. The goal is a workable franchise model, not simply a folder of completed documents.