At present, the Company owns three master licenses (USA, Canada, and the UK) and is operating two Master Licenses (United States, and Canada).

There are up to 50 additional Master Licenses available worldwide.

There are 90 Area Licenses available in the United States, with another 6 Area Licenses available in Canada and 21 in the UK.

Based on current demographic information there are 3000 Center Franchise territories available in the US, 275 in Canada and  400 in the UK.

One of the advantages of joining an emerging brand is the availability of territories, not just the quantity but the quality too, as many prime markets for a brand like ours are awaiting the Franchisee who will open there.

Ask us about:

• Our strategy for territory development
• How our model works in smaller markets
• How does the internet affect this business
• There seems to be a lot of competitors, how will I survive?

How we define a territory: population + business count:

A franchise system can be negatively impacted by awarding too many franchises in one area – or too few.  Although a franchise system does not want franchises completing directly with one another, franchises need to be close enough to dominate the local market, take advantage of the inherent marketing benefits and synergy created and keep the competition out.  Thus, a non-exclusive Franchise territory is granted to the franchisee which in our opinion is sufficient to provide a customer base for the operation of the franchise.

The size of the franchise territory is generally based upon the business count, complemented by the population density around the proposed Instant Imprints Store.  The Territory will be defined by postal and zip codes or street boundaries to include a minimum of 1000-1500 businesses and 40,000-75,000 people. The exact size will be based upon the location of your Center, and the demographic and competitive makeup of the area. You will be provided with a map and a physical description defining the Designated Territory for your Center which will be described in Summary Pages of your Franchise Agreement.

Strategy for territory development:

History demonstrates that in the retail world the strength of a brand comes from its locations.  The more people see and interact with the locations the more aware of the brand they become.  It is not any different in our brand.  Our centers boast very high client repeat rates and very high referral rates because of the uncommonly good customer service delivered through our franchisees and our center’s image experts.

At Instant Imprints, we want our centers to be close enough together to contribute to brand awareness and customer familiarity. With enough density to keep competitors out, yet far enough away from each other to have room to grow their business organically.

How does our model work in small markets:

Frankly speaking we believe it works well.  Smaller markets certainly have different attributes than larger markets, but they have plenty of similarities as well. Smaller markets tend to have more of a community feel to them, with more people knowing each other, and a higher rate of referral business.  Because most businesses transact locally, where they can, our franchise partners need to have a community focused approach to the business.  Strong relationships within the community will drive the business, particularly in the beginning.

Trust plays such a huge factor in our business and that seems to be magnified in smaller markets.  All the schools and teams still need uniforms, spirit wear and signage.   Businesses still need signs, apparel, promotional items and print services. When an Instant Imprints is well run in a smaller market they drive fierce customer loyalty and a high share of wallet of the customer spend because of the trust and relationships they have built in their community with the brand.

How does the internet affect the business?

The internet is a great equalizer but at the end of the day it is simply another channel to access.  The internet can make any small company seem larger then they really are and that simply cuts both ways.

We market and promote a lot online to create the initial customer dialogue so we can build a relationship.

We don’t lead with a website chalked full of product, because that doesn’t create dialogue. We have access to over 1.1 million items that we could put online. But what purpose does it serve, other than to confuse the customer and make them do lots of work while diminishing our ability to add value.

The Instant Imprints business sells all sorts of customized products, and by its very nature customized products are not always very simple. In the world of customized product the challenge is that customers don’t know what questions to ask to get the right solution for them. Only when we have dialogue with the customer can we best recommend the right solution for them to help them achieve their visual communications needs.

There is often a big difference between ordering online and buying online. All customers like to order online until they need to determine what is the best product for them first.  So we work with our customers to get the “what” defined. Then we can offer customized online stores, to our regular customers, so they can order online with ease once they know what they want to buy.

Lots of competition:

It’s a big industry, name a business that isn’t competitive. Then again so is pizza. I bet you can name 10 pizza brands off the top of your head. We challenge you to name 4 national brands in our space. Our business is a large fragmented industry. Most of our competitors are independent businesses, often hidden in industrial parks and people’s basements. They don’t have nice showrooms, in house production, strong websites, eCommerce programs, social media marketing, regular advertising, or operational support. All components that are key to survival to building a strong business with equity and goodwill. The competition that exists demonstrates 2 things:

1. The market exists and there are lots of customers
2. The extent of competition proves that the market is not served well

At the end of the day, market share is taken not given. You will have all the tools you need to be able to take as much market share as you like as you will be better equipped to drive more customer loyalty than your competitors when you join Instant Imprints.

Site Selection and Lease Negotiation:

When you join Instant Imprints, you are not expected to have to find your own space and negotiate your own lease. Your lease and real estate decisions are some of the most important decisions you have to make both for start up and long term.

Instant Imprints is with you each step of the process to help you find the right location, and negotiate the best lease for you. You are absolutely active in the process as a key part of a strong small business is pride of ownership, and as they owner you have to like your space, community and lease, because you will spend significant time there. So we want to get it right for you, right from the start.