Franchising in Russia is still relatively young – only some 20 years old - but it has already penetrated almost all areas of business. Having bought a franchise you can quickly and relatively easily enter any segment. The main thing is to determine the scope of activity and investments and monitor the new products appearing on the market.

We found out which concepts had made their great debut at BUYBRAND Expo (26-28 September) and assessed why it’s good idea to know more about these brands.

Retail: blankets, pillows and lots of sweets

After the mass withdrawal of Western brands the Russian market has become especially attractive for concepts from friendly countries. The Turkish company Yataş presented franchises in an extremely interesting niche - sleep and bedroom goods, which became vacant after the closure of Ikea, Zara Home and H&M Home. The company presented two brands at the exhibition at once: Yataş Bedding and Enza home. The volume of investments in Yataş Bedding is about 2-3 million, to open Enza home it will take much more – from 20 million rubles. The assortment includes home textiles, mattresses, blankets, pillows and, of course, beds.

Parle Market franchise – this is a concept with a minimarket format that is relevant today, combined with a coffee shop. The product content consists of what everyone needs who is "on the run" - to work or to a meeting: snacks, drinks, stationery, etc. The franchise is available in several formats – corner, island, pavilion and stand-alone store.

Restaurant industry
STARS COFFEE was definitely the main debut of Buybrand EXPO. The company openly announced its franchise offer at the expo. The brand replaced STARBUCKS, which recently left the Russian market, and it turned out quite successfully. STARS COFFEE chain is a modern interpretation of a classic coffee shop with elite coffee and restaurant–level dishes.

The brand SYROVARNYA from Novikov Group was another newcomer to BuyBrand. Investments in the opening of the "Cheese Factory" starts from 60 million rubles. SYROVARNYA is a restaurant with its own production of cheeses and dishes from a wood-burning oven. The project was launched in 2015, and since then the number of restaurants opened in Russia and abroad has reached 40. Investments in this franchise amount from 60 million rubles, and the payback period is from 18 months.

B2b and manufacturing: everything for business and lots of cheese

For the first time the event was attended by such giants of theit industries as Rostelecom and HH.ru VKontakte showed a service for finding the optimal location for business.

The largest Russian manufacturer of professional equipment for catering and retail Polair also was presented at BuyBrand.

Before, after or simultaneously with the purchase of a franchise, it makes sense to talk with experts in the field of insurance. Insurance House of VSK has a franchise insurance program that covers all risks, taking into account the field of activity.

The debutant was the franchise for the production of cottage cheese "KITCHN!". It is the highest investment threshold among the franchises presented (from 190 million rubles). The company is based in Altai and traces its history back to 1927. It was decided to launch the franchise in 2023, with the ambitious goal of becoming the No. 1 brand of cottage cheese in the Russian Federation.

Services: tourism and recreation

Another franchise with high investments and a long-term strategy is an offer from the OTO Hotels chain. At one time, the project manager presented it to Russian President Vladimir Putin and promised that in 2023 there would be at least 100 hotels in the network. In 3 years - 1000, and in 10 years it will overtake Hilton and Marriott. At the same time, this is not a classic hotel business, but an IT company that gives the hotel an "integrated approach" to increase profits based on big data, artificial intelligence and integrated marketing.

Another new participant from the hospitality industry, showed a franchise born at the junction of tourism and agribusiness. This Alpaca Farm is the first and only federal network of picnic parks, which is still present in such popular tourist cities as Sevastopol, Krasnodar, Kislovodsk and Arkhyz. Investments are also quite big – from 10 to 35 million rubles.

If there are no such funds, as an alternative, you can look at entertainment franchises that allow you to open within the urban environment. For example, swimming pools and water parks are becoming more and more popular now. Kinderpool presented a franchise of children's pools with sea water – the concept is ideal for an audience that does not have enough time or money for a trip to the sea. Investments in the opening – 4.5 million rubles.