sqwyz.

Footwear / International Franchise · 2008–2012

International footwear brand

Two pairs of formal shoes side by side on a wooden step
60 → 300+stores across four regions
£3m → £22mchannel profit growth

The brand is a global footwear brand with a turnover in excess of £1bn. In 2007, its international franchise channel was newly launched but had no operating model or capability behind it, across strategic growth markets including China, Japan, Europe and the Middle East.

The situation

The brand wanted to grow its international franchise estate quickly across very different markets, but the business had never run a franchise channel at scale before. There was no established way to set up a new franchisee, no consistent store design, no shared retail management approach and no supply chain or EDI integration between the brand and its franchise partners. Without an operating model, growth in one market could not be repeated reliably in the next.

The challenge

Scaling a brand-new channel across four very different regions meant building the basics from a standing start.

  • No Global Franchise Model or standard way of bringing a new franchisee online.
  • No consistent approach to store design concept, retail management or merchandising across markets.
  • No supply chain or EDI integration between the brand and its international franchise partners.
  • A channel generating only £3m of profit from 60 stores, with no growth playbook to scale it.

What we did

We built and led a team of six project managers, working directly with global offices and franchisees in each market to establish the operating model from the ground up.

  • Established the Global Franchise Model, covering store design concept, international retail management, store merchandising, marketing, supply chain and EDI.
  • Worked directly with global offices and franchisees to deliver projects across every one of those areas in China, Japan, Europe and the Middle East.
  • Standardised how the channel operated in each new market as it opened, rather than reinventing the approach market by market.
  • Took a seconded role as Global Planning Manager, managing the organisation's transition from country structures into three regions: UK, Europe and Asia Pacific.

Results

The estate and its profitability grew together.

  • The franchise estate grew from 60 stores in 2007 to more than 300 by the end of 2011.
  • Channel profitability grew from £3m to £22m over the same period.
  • The brand was named winner of an international retail industry award in 2012.
  • The brand won a gold industry award in 2012 for its intranet.

What made the difference

Building one Global Franchise Model, rather than negotiating a bespoke approach with every new franchisee, is what let the estate scale from 60 stores to 300 across four very different regions. The same model and team structure that worked in Europe could be applied in China, Japan and the Middle East without starting again each time.

Role

International Franchise Programme Manager

Sector

Footwear / International Franchise