Running a Pilot Before Franchising a Business in Colombia

A business that works with its founder at the helm is not necessarily ready to be franchised. Before bringing someone else into your franchise network, you need to establish whether a different team can reproduce the customer experience and manage day-to-day operations. A pilot lets you do this without turning your first franchisee into a test case for the business model.

1. Define what the pilot must demonstrate

The aim is not simply to open another outlet, but to test whether the business can be transferred to another operator. You can use a new or existing company-owned unit, provided you define the scope of the trial and remove the founder from routine decision-making. An existing unit allows you to assess operational independence, but does not, on its own, demonstrate that the opening process can be replicated.

Start with a specific question: can a trained person, without the owner's accumulated experience, run this operation with the support you intend to provide to a franchisee?

Turn that question into observable criteria:

• The team delivers the product or service to the required quality standard.
• The manager organises shifts, stock and purchasing without constant intervention from the founder.
• Routine issues are resolved using established procedures.
• The central support team responds within the agreed timescales.
• The unit has staff, equipment and resources that would also be available to a franchisee.

Set the criteria before you start. Changing them afterwards to declare the trial a success defeats its purpose.

2. Reproduce conditions that can be replicated

Appoint an operational manager with clear authority and responsibilities. The founder can observe and handle agreed escalations, but should not quietly fix every problem. If they intervene, record why, how much time they spend and what would have happened without their help.

Avoid advantages that a future unit will not have: staff borrowed at no cost, urgent purchases made by the owner or special supplier terms unavailable to other outlets.

Prepare a trial brief covering:

• Scope: the processes, opening hours and customer service channels included.
• Resources: the staff, equipment, systems and budget available.
• Responsibilities: who runs the operation, who observes and who authorises changes.
• Evidence: records of incidents, time taken, work that has to be redone and requests for help.
• Schedule: the training, independent operation and review stages.

There is no single duration that suits every business. The trial should cover relevant cycles: restocking, shift scheduling, administrative closing procedures and periods of peak demand. A quiet week does not test the team's ability to respond under pressure.

3. Monitor independence, quality and the support workload

Keep a simple record of each departure from the expected process or standard: what happened, its consequences, who resolved it and what caused it. Distinguish between training gaps, ambiguous instructions, unsuitable tools and decisions that still depend on the founder.

For example, if only the owner knows how to adjust an order when a supplier fails to deliver as agreed, the issue is not just procurement: there is no transferable decision-making rule.

Measure the central team's workload too. Record how much time it spends on enquiries, visits, additional training and troubleshooting. A seemingly independent unit may be relying on hidden support that would later be impossible to provide across the network.

Test controlled scenarios, such as a staff absence or an ordering system failure. Do not compromise safety, customer care or employment obligations. Where a simulation could cause harm, use tabletop exercises: present the scenario and ask the team to explain how they would respond.

4. Keep the pilot within Colombia's legal framework

In Colombia, a franchise agreement is an atypical contract: there is no specific law governing it comprehensively. As LegalApp, a service provided by Colombia's Ministry of Justice, explains, it is governed by the agreed terms and the general rules applicable to commercial contracts, principally those in the Commercial Code and, where relevant, the Civil Code.

Running a pilot does not remove the outlet's legal compliance obligations. You must review employment and tax obligations, applicable health or safety requirements, and the Consumer Protection Statute, Law 1480 of 2011. If you collect personal data from customers or employees, consider the requirements of Law 1581 of 2012.

If an independent business owner takes part, do not assume that calling the agreement a ‘pilot’ removes its legal effects. Set out in writing who bears the costs, employs staff, handles complaints and may use the business's assets. Seek legal review before entering into that relationship.

5. Decide on the evidence and repeat where necessary

Conclude the trial with a documented decision: proceed, make improvements and repeat the trial, or postpone expansion. Link each initial criterion to its supporting evidence and assign responsibility for outstanding improvements.

Do not approve the model while it depends on frequent rescues by the founder or has unresolved critical failings. Once these have been addressed, retest the affected processes under comparable conditions.

Practical takeaway: before offering your franchise, demonstrate that someone else can run the business with resources that can be replicated and clearly defined support. The pilot ends when there is evidence of operational independence, not simply when the scheduled end date arrives.