Set up annual meetings before taking on your first franchisee

If you are turning an existing business into a franchise, you need to learn to listen to an independent business owner operating under the same franchise system. A chat over coffee is not enough. A regular meeting structure helps you build a franchise community where concerns can be discussed and agreed actions are followed through. Put that structure in place before your first franchisee starts trading.

1. Understand the legal minimum and make it workable

The Dutch Franchise Act has been in force in the Netherlands since 1 January 2021. Its provisions are set out in Book 7, Title 16 of the Dutch Civil Code. Among other things, it requires the franchisor and franchisee to meet at least once a year. That minimum therefore applies even if your network has only one franchisee.

You must also provide information about how and how often the parties will meet before entering into the franchise agreement. Your meeting structure is therefore not something to devise after the business opens. Prospective franchisees need to understand in advance how their experiences and questions will be addressed.

Set out the basics in the franchise agreement: how often you will meet, who will attend and how topics can be put forward. Cover the practical details in a meeting calendar or a separate procedure. Make sure the two documents are consistent.

An annual meeting does not replace other obligations. Timely information about relevant developments, appropriate support and any consent that may be required must be dealt with separately. An issue that needs attention today must not be left until the annual meeting.

For a new franchise community, more frequent discussions are generally advisable. You could, for example, combine short progress meetings with one more detailed annual meeting. Make clear which meetings cover operational matters and when you will review the relationship as a whole.

2. Build an agenda around the working relationship

Do not let the annual meeting become solely an assessment of the franchisee. Both parties should be able to discuss what is going well, which commitments are not being met and what needs to improve. Your own organisation must therefore be on the agenda too.

Use a standard core agenda, with room for topics raised by the franchisee:

• Working relationship: are responsibilities clear, and are questions answered promptly?
• Practicality of the franchise system: which working methods cause problems in practice?
• Support: does the help provided meet the needs of the outlet?
• Entrepreneurship: what local opportunities and recurring obstacles does the franchisee see?
• Looking ahead: which developments require preparation or further investigation?
• Previous commitments: which actions have been completed, and which are behind schedule?

Ask for a concrete example of each concern. “You could be easier to get hold of” is difficult to act on. “My questions about delivery problems regularly go unanswered” provides a starting point for investigation and improvement.

Also distinguish between an issue at an individual outlet and a problem with the franchise system. Recurring confusion about a working process may indicate that your original business relied on unwritten knowledge. The meeting can then help make the system easier to replicate, rather than automatically treating the independent business owner as the source of the problem.

3. Organise preparation without unnecessary administration

A useful discussion starts before the meeting. Agree who will send the invitation, when both parties will submit topics and which documents are needed. Set realistic deadlines and present them as agreed working arrangements, not statutory requirements.

Preparation can be kept to three concise elements: the previous action list, a brief review from each party and any documents needed to understand specific agenda items. Do not routinely ask for extensive reports unless you know how you intend to use them.

Share relevant information early enough to allow a substantive discussion. If you only present a complex proposal during the meeting, you cannot expect the franchisee to give a considered response straight away.

Allow enough time and choose a setting where you can talk without interruptions. Sensitive subjects are difficult to discuss properly during a busy shift at the outlet. An online meeting can work equally well, provided both parties can prepare and speak freely.

As your franchise community grows, group meetings may become useful. Decide which topics can be discussed collectively and which must remain confidential. A group meeting is not automatically a substitute for attention to individual circumstances.

4. Record outcomes and monitor follow-up

After the meeting, prepare brief minutes recording the topics discussed, commitments made and any differences of opinion. Assign someone responsible for each action and a target completion date. Give both parties the opportunity to correct factual inaccuracies.

Be precise about the status of each outcome. Exploring an idea is different from making a decision. Discussing a proposal is not the same as consenting to it. Do not record that the franchisee has agreed if they have only undertaken to consider it.

If an issue requires a contract amendment or separate consent under the Dutch Franchise Act, follow the appropriate process. Do not use the meeting minutes as a back door to impose new obligations.

Keep the action list active by briefly reviewing progress the next time you speak. This makes meetings a reliable way to improve together, rather than an annual formality.

Practical conclusion: before entering into your first franchise agreement, establish the meeting frequency, core agenda and follow-up process. Then book the first meeting straight away: a strong franchise community starts with commitments that both parties take seriously.