Franchises in Spain: check the time and involvement required

Buying a franchise does not necessarily mean you can put someone else in charge. Some brands want owners who work on the premises every day; others allow an employed manager, but impose conditions. Before joining a franchise network, check whether the involvement required fits the time you can realistically commit. An attractive opportunity may be unsuitable if it depends on you being there more often than you can manage.

1. Distinguish between investing, managing and working in the business

One person may perform all three roles, but they are not interchangeable. The investor provides funds and takes on risk; the manager organises the team and oversees the business; those working in day-to-day operations serve customers, provide services or supervise shifts.

Ask the franchisor to identify which roles you must perform personally. Do not settle for phrases such as ‘full involvement’ or ‘a business you can run alongside other activities’. Ask for specific answers:

• Must you regularly work on the premises, or is supervision enough?
• Who recruits staff, organises shifts and resolves problems?
• Which meetings, visits or training sessions must you attend?
• Are the requirements different during the opening period and afterwards?
• Can you keep another job or be involved in other businesses?

Also distinguish between trading hours and the owner's working hours. Preparing orders, reviewing accounts or covering an absence may require work outside the hours when the business is open to customers. An authorised day spent observing a comparable outlet can reveal tasks that do not feature in the sales presentation.

2. Find the obligations in the contract and its annexes

Look for references to exclusive commitment, direct management, personal presence, company directors, approved managers and key individuals. If you sign through a company, check whether the contract requires a particular shareholder to retain specific duties or a particular shareholding. Contracting through a company does not automatically remove personal obligations that you expressly accept.

Spain has specific franchise legislation: Article 62 of Law 7/1996 on Retail Trade and Royal Decree 201/2010, as currently amended. The latter requires written pre-contractual information to be provided at least twenty working days before the contract or preliminary agreement is signed, or any payment is made to the franchisor. The essential elements of the agreement that must be disclosed include the parties' rights and obligations.

Use that period to compare the advertised level of involvement with the contractual documentation. The general rules on obligations and contracts in the Spanish Civil Code are also relevant. Buying a franchise to run a business does not, in itself, make you a consumer entitled to the rights associated with a consumer purchase.

If the required involvement is set out in an operations manual, ask to see the relevant provisions and find out how they can be changed. Do not accept a general power to update procedures without understanding its potential impact on your obligations. Seek legal review of any discrepancies between the contract, its annexes and promises made during the sales process.

3. Check whether delegation is a genuine option

A brand's willingness to let you employ a manager does not mean you can step away from management altogether. Ask which decisions that person can make and which will still require your involvement.

Clarify in writing the requirements for the manager's experience, training and approval. It is worth agreeing an approval process with objective criteria, a list of required documents and a response deadline, as well as an interim arrangement if the person you employ resigns.

Prepare three scenarios before deciding:

• Normal operations: who manages and who supervises each task.
• Planned absence: how holidays or personal commitments are covered.
• Unexpected absence: who steps in if you become ill or the person in charge is off work.

For each scenario, identify the replacement, the approvals needed and the cost of cover. Do not assume a family member can take over without preparation or appropriate employment arrangements. The brand's requirements do not replace your employment law obligations as an employer.

Include the manager's pay and the cost of cover in your budget. If the proposal only works because you perform all management tasks without paying yourself, you are not assessing the same model as an investment managed by someone else.

4. Check what happens in practice and negotiate clear limits

Speak to franchisees whose businesses are organised in a similar way to the arrangement you want. An owner who works in their own business provides a different point of comparison from someone who runs several outlets through employed managers.

Ask which tasks they cannot delegate, when they have to attend outside normal hours and how head office handles changes of manager. Look for specific examples, not just general opinions.

Before signing, try to define how much you must be present, what cover arrangements are permitted and the consequences of failing to meet your obligations. Check whether you have an opportunity to put a problem right before contractual remedies are applied. Do not confuse an operational recommendation with an obligation whose breach could have serious consequences.

Practical conclusion: map out a realistic working week, add a cover plan and compare both with the contract. If you need to delegate, that option must be documented: it cannot depend solely on a sales conversation.