Buying a franchise: what training and support are you entitled to?

‘Comprehensive training’ and ‘ongoing support’ sound reassuring when you are considering buying a franchise. But they do not tell you who will help you, for how long or at what cost. In franchising, the transfer of know-how is an essential part of the relationship. To assess a franchise opportunity in Greece, you need to turn general promises into services you can verify before making a contractual commitment.

1. Ask for a training programme, not statements of intent

Start with what you will need to be able to do independently on your first day of trading. The training programme should cover specific tasks: ordering, customer service, using software, stock management, quality control and staff management. Where necessary, it should cover health and safety procedures, without replacing legally required certifications or mandatory training.

Ask for written details of:

• Participants: will training cover only the franchisee, or also the store manager and the initial team?
• Duration and location: how much classroom and practical training is included, and where will it take place?
• Trainers: who delivers each module, and who confirms its completion?
• Assessment: what are the pass criteria, and what happens if training needs to be repeated?
• Materials: which manuals and tools will be available to you while running the business?

Pay particular attention to whether successful completion of training is a condition of opening. If it is, the agreement should clarify the assessment process, retraining options and the consequences of any delay. A vague reference to ‘the franchisor’s satisfaction’ leaves considerable uncertainty over your timetable.

2. Distinguish launch support from ongoing assistance

Having a representative present at the opening is not the same as structured support. Ask for the number of days the franchisor’s team will be on site before and after opening, their hours of availability and the tasks they will undertake to be specified. Also clarify who is responsible for ensuring the store is ready to open.

For ongoing support, distinguish routine visits from assistance with urgent issues. A practical support schedule attached to the agreement could set out:

• the frequency of visits and the scope of each review,
• the available communication channels and support hours,
• the initial response time according to the severity of the problem,
• the escalation procedure when a request remains unresolved,
• retraining for new services, procedures or employees.

Response time is not resolution time. If the ordering system goes down, an acknowledgement of your request will not get it running again. Ask who coordinates with the external IT provider and whether there is a temporary workaround.

Where possible, speak to existing franchisees about specific incidents: when they asked for help, how long they waited and what the outcome was. This helps you assess the actual capacity to provide support, rather than simply the quality of a presentation.

3. Record the charges and the rules for changes

The initial franchise fee does not automatically cover every training expense. Ask for a detailed breakdown distinguishing what is included, mandatory additional charges and optional services.

Check who pays for travel, accommodation, training materials and refresher courses. Also factor in staff wages during training and the possible need for cover. These are not necessarily charges imposed by the franchisor, but they remain real costs of putting the programme into practice.

Ask what happens when a trained manager leaves or the software changes. Is further training compulsory? Can it be delivered remotely? Is there an agreed price list or a clear method for calculating the charge?

Pay attention to references to the operations manual. Updating technical procedures is a different matter from imposing new financial obligations. Ask for clarity on what can change, how much notice must be given and how significant additional costs will be handled. The agreement should also make clear which document takes precedence if there is a conflict.

4. Relate the promises to the Greek legal framework

Greece has no specific law comprehensively governing franchise agreements, nor a dedicated statutory regime requiring pre-contractual disclosure for franchises. The general rules of the Greek Civil Code apply, alongside the relevant rules on commercial law, competition and intellectual property.

Articles 197 and 198 of the Greek Civil Code, concerning good faith and pre-contractual liability, are relevant to information provided during negotiations. During performance of the agreement, Article 288 is important: it requires obligations to be fulfilled in accordance with good faith. These provisions do not, however, prescribe a specific number of training hours or support visits.

The European Code of Ethics for Franchising provides for initial training and continuing commercial or technical assistance. It is a self-regulatory framework, not a Greek law that is universally binding. Check whether the franchisor is bound by it and whether it is incorporated into the agreement.

Before signing, ask a lawyer to review the services, exclusions and procedure for reporting shortcomings in writing. Ensure the agreement provides a reasonable period for remedying failures and clear consequences for breach, without assuming you automatically have the right to withhold fees.

Practical takeaway: create a table with four columns: service, responsible party, timing and cost. Anything that remains unclear needs to be agreed in the contract, not merely covered by a verbal assurance.