Rating Scale:

***** (5-Star): "Excellent Opportunity"
**** (4-Star): "Good Opportunity"
*** (3-Star): "Average Opportunity"
** (2-Star): "Below Average Opportunity"
* (1-Star): "Poor Opportunity"

Company:

Brad Sugars Action International Inc.

Centercourt Rating:

***** (5-Star)

Business Type:

Territory Master Franchise

Description:

Business Sales and Marketing Consulting.

Mailing Address:

Brad Sugars ACTION International Inc.
1501 El Camino Real, Suite E
Belmont CA 94002

Telephone:

650-610-9260

Fax:

650-610-9270

Email:

bradsugars@aol.com

Web Site:

www.action-international.com

Direct Link Topics:

Program Summary
Program History
Master Franchise Components
Franchise Components
Rating Summary

Program Summary:

ACTION International is a Business consulting company that offers sales, marketing and business development coaching to small to medium enterprises. Whilst your average small business owner is great at what their business does (and this includes the franchisees of most companies) where they lack both the skill and knowledge in building their business. Clients seek out ACTION International for one of two reasons, they need to make more money in their business or, they're making enough money but working far too many hours running the business. Each ACTION Franchisee is a Business Coach and uses ACTION's proprietary coaching techniques, sales and marketing methods and business management systems to over a 12 month period, coach each client to business success…

At present Brad Sugars ACTION International Inc. is appointing territory Master Franchisors who will either buy a territory outright or, with a smaller up-front investment work a territory and share in the ongoing franchise revenues. This gives you as a potential franchise buyer the chance to become a franchisor rather than just a franchisee. However, with just 58 of the 71 Master Territories still available in USA and Canada after just 4 months of them being offered to the market place very few people will ever get to participate at this exclusive level.

Program History:

ACTION International was started in Australia in 1992 by entrepreneur and businessman Brad Sugars. Well known through-out Asia/Pacific for his ability to take distressed companies and make them fly, Sugars turned his skills to teaching others how he'd achieved his own success. Primarily a training company to start with, Sugars soon realized that for long term success business owners needed a Mentoring approach to their learning.

"It's great to have our clients reading books, listening to tapes and going to seminars, but only when we help them put things into place in their particular business can you see true learning going on", Sugars said. After 4 years employing consultants in-house Sugars listened to what his team wanted and gave them the freedom to run their own business as franchisees.

So successful was the new model of franchising that since 1996 ACTION's growth throughout Asia and the Pacific has been amazing. Now trading across Asia from Indonesia to India and Hong Kong to Sydney, ACTION International has firmly stamped its mark on the Asian and Pacific markets. Today more than 12 new franchisees join the ACTION International business every month in the Asia Pacific region alone.

In late 1997 a team was sent to the USA to complete market research and overhaul the systems so they suited a US market. The completion of these systems in January 1999 saw the allowance for a Master Franchisor to give more regionalised company ownership and control. Plans show more than 1, 700 franchisees across America inside the next 3 to 5 years. Master Franchise applications are also presently being taken for South America, Africa and Europe with plans to open these continents in mid 2000.

Master Franchise Components:

The Master Franchisor is almost like ACTION's regional partner in this business. Some Master Franchisors choose to buy the territory outright and therefore keep the majority share of ongoing revenues, and others choose a smaller up front investment to more evenly share ongoing revenues. In some very special cases applicants will be allowed to enter into a no money down deal when taking on a Master Franchise. However, as Sugars said, 'You'd probably need to be a blood relative before I seriously entertain that possibility'.

Master Franchisors will invest a minimum of $100,000 in up front capital and need at least $50,000 in working capital. A Master Franchisor is primarily responsible for two roles, the marketing, promotion, application, screening and sale of franchises within the territory. And, the ongoing support, guidance and business development of the franchisees within the territory. Thus it's generally a two-person business with one focused on selling and, the other on support of franchisees.

Master Franchisors will attend the franchisees 10-day initial training program as well as having their own 5-day program so they understand how to run the business on two levels. Ongoing training takes the form of fortnightly conference calls and weekly one on one's with their allocated Business Development Manager. Full marketing and operations manuals as well as a tailored computer database and management program are provided to assist in running the business. The franchisor also allocates 10% of all up front Master Franchise fees to a marketing fund that will help promote franchises nationally.

The Master franchisor will make money in two ways. Assuming the territory is purchased outright, the full $30,000 franchise fee is kept from each franchise sale as well as $1,000 per month from each franchisee as ongoing royalties. In other words the sale of 20 franchises will yield a gross revenue of $600,000 in franchise fees and leave an ongoing revenue stream of $20,000 per month. As this business is generally home based it will run with very low overheads and usually high profit margins. Thus a Master Franchisor who buys the territory outright can look at having return of all up front capital in a relatively short period of time.

Franchise Components:

The Franchisee/Business Coach will work with on average 12 to 20 clients taking $1,000 a month fee from each client. As clients are contracted for 12 months the average franchisee can, by using the ACTION sales and marketing systems, build for themselves a very healthy revenue stream. The total Franchise investment for each franchise is $45,000 and each franchisee will need about $10,000 in working capital to get themselves started. Of that $30,000 is their franchise fee, $10,000 is the training fee and $5,000 goes into the marketing fund to get their business started.

The Franchisee also pays an ongoing royalty of $1,500 a month starting at month 6. A levy of 5% of gross revenues is also taken and applied to marketing the business. 3% is used locally and 2% nationally.

Being a white collar, work from home, low overhead, no stock to carry and use your past business knowledge, business consulting franchise gives us a head start in marketing these franchises. There are really two things over and above this that make this franchise a big seller. The possible dollar returns and, the fact that they get to help other business people by passing on both theirs and ACTION's knowledge.

Every week a franchisee will at least call each of their clients and be their sounding board, mentor, sales manager, marketing manager, training coordinator and so much more. In fact, each franchisee soon learns that they're working with a person and not a business. It's in this area that the ACTION systems excel and our franchisees outperform any market place competition. You see consulting has traditionally been about working on the business and fixing the problems. At ACTION we work with the people and by growing the people we in turn grow the business for the long term.

Traditional consultants borrow your watch and then tell you the time, and then end up being resented for it. An ACTION Coach works with their client's long term and therefore ends up becoming a client's most trusted advisor. That's why an ACTION Franchisee ends up with more than 50% of their business coming from referrals alone. That's not to say the franchisees won't use the 12 other tested and proven marketing programs for lead generation, the full sales system and the ongoing marketing methods. These alone are worth their weight in gold to any potential franchisee.

Rating Summary:

Brad Sugars Action International Inc. has been rated as a 5-Star (*****) franchise offering by InterAct Concept Development Corp., a franchise and business opportunity management and marketing firm with 12 years of experience in the franchising industry.

The factors that led InterAct to assign its highest franchise program rating include high scores involving the following components:

1. Business is based on filling the needs of many small businesses.

2. Excellent concept for the business-to-business professional.

3. Limited competitor base.

4. Extensive initial training offered to the Franchisee, as well as strong ongoing training and support.

5. Excellent franchisor track record maintained since company first began offering franchises to the public.