Franchise Direct has released 2023’s Top 100 UK franchise report and guess what? After an in-depth analysis of hundreds of franchise brands, we have shot straight to 10th position!
And as we are the only travel franchise to have been included in the Top 100, that makes us the best travel franchise in the UK!
We’ve also beaten big prestigious brands like Vodafone (no.12) and are now hot on the heels of prestigious food and beverage brands like Burger King (no.8) and KFC (no.6)!
With the top 20 dominated by food & drink franchises (Franchise Direct awarded the top spot three spots to Costa Coffee, Subway and McDonalds) we are clearly making a mark in a highly competitive marketplace.
“Shooting straight to number 10 and beating big brands like Vodafone is testament that our franchise is truly innovative,” says co-founder Paul Harrison.
“A lot of things were taken into consideration including our business plan, innovation and a commitment to training and support which has all helped our franchisees make record holiday bookings and commission in 2023,” he adds.
This year, Not Just Travel’s holiday bookings have surpassed those made in 2022 every single month. Even in July and August, typically quiet months, home-based agents like Matt and Ash, who have only been operating their agency for 17 months are on course to take £250-£300k in bookings despite being abroad for four weeks travelling.
“We’ve already taken £1 million in bookings despite being out of the country 14 times this year. Last week we were on a river cruise and still took £50k on our laptop. That’s the beauty of this business – you can take bookings even while you travel the world and have fun.”
Says Paul: “We have disrupted the travel industry beating faceless websites and high street competitors on service and even though 98 per cent of our consultants have never worked in travel before, many take bookings after just five days training, testament to the high level of instruction and support our staff provide.”
Key innovations which have helped skyrocket bookings over the last year include the launch of our new Cruise Division which trains consultants to become ‘masters’ in selling cruise, one of the most profitable products in travel. Agents, like John, who have embraced training have seen remarkable results. In July alone he sold £100k-worth of cruises.
Another major innovation and investment is the launch of a new travel deals app to help agents deliver incredible offers to clients smartphones. Agents simply supply their customers with a code to download the app and even if they book a deal on their phone, the commission will go straight to the consultant.
While we have experienced rapid growth in 2023 we are still looking to recruit and train more franchisees before the start of Peaks, the January to March period when agents typically take four times more bookings than any other time of the year.
