Piloting a Franchise Outlet in Belarus: How to Test Your Model

A successful company-owned outlet does not yet prove that a franchisee can replicate its results. The business may depend on favourable lease terms, the owner’s personal contacts or daily exceptions to the rules. Before entering the franchise market, it is worth running a pilot: testing an existing outlet under conditions as close as possible to those a future franchisee will face. The aim is not to produce impressive sales figures, but to uncover hidden dependencies in the model.

1. Define exactly what the pilot should demonstrate

A pilot outlet is an operating site where the owner tests whether the business model can be replicated. You do not necessarily need to open new premises for this test. You can use an existing outlet, provided you can separate routine processes from advantages that a future franchisee will not have.

Start by drawing up a test specification. Include the outlet format, product range or list of services, staffing per shift, opening hours and intended customer base. Record the starting position; otherwise, once changes have been made, it will be difficult to establish exactly which version of the model passed the test.

Rather than setting a broad goal such as ‘make sure the franchise works’, choose specific questions:

• can an order be fulfilled using the prescribed process, without undocumented steps;
• can the outlet cope with both normal and increased workloads;
• are the necessary supplies available on terms a franchisee could realistically obtain;
• is quality maintained when staff change;
• how much support is needed from the central team.

For each question, decide in advance what observable outcome you will assess. When testing order processing, for example, speed is not the only consideration: errors, rework, returns and requests for help also matter. Choose criteria that suit your particular business rather than borrowing them from another network.

2. Remove advantages that cannot be passed on to franchisees

The main mistake in a pilot is to test an exceptional outlet and present its results as typical. A flagship site with loyal customers, preferential rent and the best staff can conceal weaknesses in the model.

List all the outlet’s special arrangements. Against each one, note whether it will be available to a franchisee. If not, decide how to account for the difference: temporarily change the test conditions, recalculate the results separately or explicitly limit the conclusions drawn from the pilot.

You do not need to make the business perform worse artificially. You need to stop treating exceptions as the standard. For example, if a supplier delivers free of charge only because of a longstanding relationship with the owner, ask for the standard terms offered to a new customer. If a neighbouring business unit helps pack orders, account for that work separately.

Hidden support from the central team also affects the results. Record every intervention: who stepped in, what problem they resolved and how much time they spent. Otherwise, the future franchise will appear self-sufficient only because someone else’s work went unnoticed.

At the same time, do not suspend mandatory safety checks or allow breaches of the rules for the sake of the experiment. The pilot tests the resilience of a lawful operating model, not employees’ ability to work without necessary safeguards.

3. Test the full operating cycle and recurring problems

Set the test duration according to the business’s processes. A few successful shifts are no substitute for testing purchasing, goods receipt, sales, after-sales service and period-end procedures. If demand is seasonal, conclusions from a single quiet period must be limited to that period.

Include routine situations that regularly arise in day-to-day operations: a staff absence, a delayed delivery, a return, peak demand or the breakdown of non-critical equipment. There is no need to deliberately create dangerous situations: these can be explored through training scenarios without putting customers at risk.

Keep a single deviation log. Each entry only needs to record:

• what happened and at which stage;
• what action the current process required;
• what staff actually did;
• whether outside help was needed;
• what consequences the deviation had;
• what needs to change and who will retest it.

Distinguish between an isolated error and a systemic problem. If different employees misunderstand the same step in the same way, the process itself probably needs changing. If a procedure is clear but impossible to follow under a normal workload, further explanation will not resolve a shortage of resources.

After any significant correction, repeat the relevant part of the test. Do not consider a problem resolved simply because a new solution has been discussed at a meeting. The report should distinguish between shortcomings identified, measures proposed and fixes actually tested.

4. Record the decision and the pilot’s legal boundaries

At the end, prepare a brief conclusion stating which version of the model was tested, under what conditions, which criteria were met and what limitations remain. There are three possible management decisions: prepare an offer for prospective franchisees, repeat the test after making changes or hold off on replicating that particular format.

A pilot is not, in itself, government certification of a franchise and does not guarantee another entrepreneur’s results. When presenting it to prospective franchisees, distinguish factual observations from forecasts.

Belarus has no standalone franchising law, but specific provisions appear in Chapter 53 of the Civil Code, ‘Comprehensive Business Licence (Franchising)’. Article 910 defines this type of agreement, while Article 910¹ requires it to be in writing and registered with the patent authority. Failure to meet the registration requirement renders the agreement invalid.

This matters if, instead of using your own outlet, you involve an independent entrepreneur in a ‘test launch’ under your brand. Calling it a ‘pilot’ does not, by itself, rule out the application of franchising rules. Before granting a package of rights, review the legal structure of the relationship. Agreements are registered by the National Centre of Intellectual Property; the procedure is established by Resolution No. 346 of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus, dated 21 March 2009.

Practical takeaway: sell a tested model with clear limits on where and how it can be applied, rather than the success of a single outlet. Before offering a franchise, document the pilot conditions, resolve recurring problems and validate the fixes through retesting.