Service providers

“FFW is '...a key adviser to our business and it is reasonable to say has played an important part in our global development'.”

Steve Mills, former CEO, MRI Worldwide Network Limited

Our advice to service providers covers a wide range of business offerings from management recruitment to air conditioning, from hairdressers to ladies only gyms and from car rental to car scratch repairs.

We have pioneered the concept of Master Franchisee Buy Outs (MFBOs) in this sector. Most franchise advisers have hardly heard of such a concept, but we have advised on two such deals in the course of 12 months. Deals such as this are cutting-edge, and illustrate our fresh approach to international issues. This was not a case of printing off a precedent agreement, the deals involved innovative thought and a real understanding of the issues that our clients are facing in this sector.

"We have worked with FFW for many years and they are our valued advisors in franchising."

Roger Wild, ChipsAway International

Our experience in the Services sector

			We have advised the Halifax Estate Agencies Equity Partnership regarding strategic and business structuring issues for its UK franchise operation. In addition to drafting the franchise documentation for the Halifax's UK roll out, we continue to advise Halifax on its franchise expansion.
			We have since also advised ChipsAway International Limited on its purchase, by way of an MFBO, of the global intellectual property rights of ChipsAway outside of USA and Canada from ChipsAway Inc.
			We have advised The Dwyer Group Inc subsidiaries, Air Serv and Mr Electric, on their European roll outs, involving strategic advice on structuring, development targets and market penetration.
			We were legal advisers to Myhome International plc on its admission to AIM from PLUS with a market capitalisation of approximately £30 million. In addition to advising this international franchisor on corporate issues, we also advised extensively on its franchise structure and documentation. We have also advised Myhome on its 2007 purchase of the ChipsAway franchise for £20 million.
			We advised Curves, the ladies only gym concept and one time fastest growing franchise in the world, on its European and Middle East roll out.
			We represented MRI Networks, a NYSE quoted corporation, on its sale of the global intellectual property rights of MRI outside of the USA. This deal involved the sale of the international business to UK corporations and the transfer of all of the world wide master agreements. This involved detailed and complex negotiations and disclosure and registration programmes in some 22 countries around the globe from Australia, China, South America to Europe. This was, we believe, the first example of an MFBO on an international scale – a pioneering transaction which we developed.

“FFW's work product is excellent and they are very responsive to me whenever I call on them. In addition to being very capable lawyers, they are good businesspersons and are very accommodating and easy to work with in every instance.”

Steve LaCroix, Assistant General Counsel, The Dwyer Group, Inc