British Franchise brands swept the board at the European Franchise Awards in Belgium last week and the UK had standout success, being the only country to have finalists in all categories at the awards, with each one receiving a podium finish on the night.
At the awards, countries submit applications from the winners of their own domestic award competitions, and after the first European Franchise Awards took place in 2022, this year has attracted a sell out crowd for the ceremony, where entrants were nominated by 18 national franchise associations who are members of the European Franchise Federation (EFF).
EFF Chair, Mathias Lehner, said: “The European Franchise Awards are a unique opportunity to bring the franchise community together, to celebrate the best in class in franchising. It is a privilege for us to meet with and celebrate some of the best concepts and individuals in our sector.”
The full list of winners was:
Franchisor of the Year
- Gold – Right at Home (UK)
- Silver – Hizi Hair
- Bronze – Isotec
- Excellence Award – Guy Hoquet
Franchisee of the Year
- Gold – Sari Körkkö
- Silver – Alessio Piccardi
- Bronze – Jon Radford (Football Fun Factory) (UK)
- Bronze – Karen Pollet
International Brand of the Year
- Gold – Mercure
- Silver – ERA Group (UK)
- Bronze – Fortidia
Emerging Franchise Brand
- Gold – X’pert Impact
- Silver – Zorgmaatje aan Huis
- Bronze – Canopy Nurseries (UK)
Emerging Franchisee
- Eugen Johannes
Emerging International Brand
- Tinker Labs
Services to Franchising
- Gold – Stevens & Bolton (UK)
- Silver – MCR Retailminds
- Bronze – Mobilosoft
European Hall of Fame
- Manfred Maus
The latest British Franchise Association (BFA) survey showed that the UK has over 1,000 franchise systems with more than 50,000 franchise units, and contributes £19.1 billion to the UK economy. It also showed that it’s ‘forced commercial failure rate’ has been less than 6% for over 20 years.
Pip Wilkins QFP, CEO of the BFA who travelled to Brussels for the awards said: “What a proud, proud night for British franchising. We send our hugest congratulations to Right at Home, Stevens & Bolton, Canopy Nurseries, ERA Group and to Jon Radford from Football Fun Factory on their magnificent triumphs. They have all worked extraordinarily hard to get here and deserve every bit of the applause they received from their European colleagues on the night, displaying, as they have, the very best of British franchising.”
She continued: “However, I don’t just see this as a win for the five individual brands; as an unregulated franchising sector, we have proven tonight that we do not need laws to be successful. The UK is widely respected abroad, and I believe our success proves that our franchisors don’t need tick boxes to ensure they are doing the right thing; they choose to do the right thing anyway, through their commitment to their BFA membership and our Code of Ethical Conduct.”
Some of the best-known brands in franchising such as Mercure, Midas, Fortidia and Carrefour are taking part in 2025, along with some entirely new names in the Emerging Brand category.
With the European Franchise Federation having members in Germany, Finland, Spain, UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Croatia, Hungary, Sweden, Norway, Slovakia, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Greece, Serbia, and North Macedonia, these awards can showcase franchised businesses across the continent who deserve to be recognised.
