Support for
Franchisees
Helping Partners Grow
Continuation and expansion of the Company Group requires that action be taken to promote the profitability of franchise stores. Beyond sales promotions, which are a natural part of its relationship with franchisees and franchise stores, the Company places great emphasis on human resource development as an asset for helping our partners grow.
Helping to Enhance the Capabilities of Individuals Stores
Moving Forward with Management Reforms to Expand the Market Shares of Individual Stores
Strengthening Cooperation with Franchisees
Franchisees are indispensable partners for the growth of the Company Group. Through venues such as the FC Managers’ Committee and Business Direction Committee, we share retail chain management directions and product strategies with franchisees to strengthen cooperation with them.
Committees for Franchisee Affairs
| Committee | Purpose | Meeting Frequency |
Participants | Meeting Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FC Managers’ Committee | Share chain management direction, etc. | 2 times a year | Franchisees: Managers The Company: Region Headquarters Officer, Area General Manager, General Manager |
Tokyo |
| Business Direction Committee | Share business direction and product strategies, etc. | 3 times a year | Franchisees: Managers and executives The Company: Region Headquarters Officer, Area General Manager |
1 in East Japan, 1 in West Japan |
| Store Managers’ Committee | Share retail floor design tips, sales strategies, etc. | 3 times a year | Franchisees: Store managers The Company: Area General Manager, Store counselors |
12 locations nationwide |
| Area Committee | Sharing of views and information among area franchise manager representatives | 4 times a year | Franchisees: Franchisee area representatives The Company: Region Headquarters Officer, Area General Manager |
1 in East Japan, 1 in West Japan |
Support for Store Management
To make stores more attractive to customers, the Company is moving forward with sales space renovations for the entire chain, and pursuing initiatives to accurately respond to customer needs, which differ by geographic area. Working with our partner franchisees, we identify examples of success at individual stores, and advance their implementation as best practices. To ensure that best practices are implemented in ways that suit local markets, our supervisors, whom we call “store counselors,” disseminate them to individual stores, monitor implementation, and provide guidance for improvement. Through these efforts, we continuously enhance the market shares and profitability of individual stores. Store counselors participate in internal training and external seminars, so they are at their best in helping individual stores maximize their performance.
Developing Human Resources for Franchise Stores
Through the Chain Human Resources Department, which supports management improvement for franchise stores, the Company provides assistance for store strategy development by conducting strategy enhancement training for all store managers and assistant store managers. We teach the creation of PDCA cycles, so stores can improve their abilities to take action, get results, and strengthen their organizations. We also conduct training aimed at providing store employees with strong customer interaction skills and in-depth product knowledge, so they can better serve customer needs. Going forward, we will continue to provide such training to improve the skills of store managers and employees.
Franchisees and the Company Work as One to Develop
the AUTOBACS Chain.
Our company operates a total of 14 AUTOBACS and Super AUTOBACS stores in Toyama Prefecture. We manage our stores based on the direction established and reinforced for the AUTOBACS chain by the FC Managers’ Committee, and with various types of support we receive on a daily basis. As a franchisee, we do our best to actively share opinions and suggestions from the retail frontlines, and customer input and other types of information, with the Company. With business conditions only getting more difficult, we are committed to further strengthening the sense of common purpose with the Company, and continuing to be a business that local customers see as sharing their ideals.
Takumi Masukawa Representative Director,Puma Group
