Since franchising began to spread across the UK in 1995, there has been a consistently strong presence in London, the South East, the West Midlands, the North West and the South West. However, in more recent years, the historically under-represented areas of Scotland and Northern Ireland have begun to catch up*.

In the run up to Scottish Franchise Week (29th May to 4th June), the Glasgow Franchise Exhibition (2nd - 3rd June) and the Belfast Franchise Exhibition (12th - 13th May), Dominos have been talking to franchisees who have witnessed their local franchise market maturing.

Pizza People

Lisa Taylor, 25, is a franchisee of two stores in Scotland.

Lisa will be speaking about her experiences as a young franchisee at the Scottish Franchise Awards breakfast briefing on 2nd June.

Lisa comments: "When I started at Domino's there were very few other franchises around and I think there was a lack of awareness about the opportunities the industry can offer. Since then, as big brands such as Domino's have grown, people have seen national TV advertising, noticed their local store doing well and thought to themselves, I want a piece of that!"

Lisa began her career working part time in store at Domino's whilst still at school. Six months into studying for a degree she realised her true passion was for the hands-on work she had enjoyed at Domino's. She left university and returned to the firm, becoming a manager at just 19 years old. Now at just 25, she is franchisee of two stores in Kilmarnock and Ayr.

Lisa continues: "Some of my friends questioned my choice to leave university but I knew I had chosen an employer who would reward hard work and enthusiasm regardless of age or background. I was managing fifty people when I was nineteen which was a fantastic challenge and only possible through the support and experience of my franchisor. The systems and processes in place allowed me to go through a steep learning curve extremely quickly rather than struggling to start the business from scratch. I'm often asked if it was difficult to assert authority being very young and only four feet eleven tall but I laid down the ground rules early on!"

Mark Weiniger, 29, is a franchisee in Derry, Northern Ireland

Mark says: "It's an exciting time for franchising. The economy in Northern Ireland is rocketing at the moment and the industry continues to go from strength to strength. Back in 1999 I don't think people trying to set up their own businesses immediately considered franchising but today there are new franchises popping up all over Northern Ireland."

"I don't think it's difficult to explain the recent growth in franchising. It was only a matter of time before people realised what they were missing out on! With a good franchisor, there are user friendly systems in place for everything from pizza-making to marketing.

Mark began his career at Domino's whilst studying biomedical sciences at University.

After six years working as a Domino's manager, Mark saw the real potential of franchising and became a franchisee in February 2005. He plans to expand in the future and own more stores.

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