Leading greeting card publisher and franchisor, Card Connection has today announced that its senior franchise manager, Simon Hanna has been awarded the title of Qualified Franchise Professional (QFP) by the British Franchise Association. Hanna now joins one of only 57 people in the country who is a QFP – the only nationally recognised qualification specific to the franchising industry.

“The QFP is a formal recognition of professional knowledge and experience in franchising,” explains Michael Johnson, managing director, Card Connection. “It requires a high level of personal commitment, time and knowledge of the franchising sector and signifies a thorough understanding of its complexities, ethical standards and best practices. We are very proud that Simon Hanna has achieved this prestigious qualification and we are now encouraging other Card Connection staff to work towards the QFP status as a valuable training tool to further develop skill sets.”

“My qualification follows two years’ continuous professional development,” confirms Hanna. “As well as attending pre-qualified events, seminars and core learning events I completed a dissertation on franchisee profitability, all of which helps in my work, supporting Card Connection’s franchisees develop their own businesses. The process has been an valuable opportunity to capitalise on the synergy between extended learning and existing good business practice which I can now apply to my day-to-day role.”

Card Connection is part of UK Greetings, which is a subsidiary of one of the largest greeting card publishers in the world and has limited vacancies for franchisees that are keen to run an expanding business. Suitable candidates would ideally have some management experience as, once established, and depending on the size of the territory, they could be expected to employ a small team, operate a small warehouse and have several liveried vans on the road.

Since the franchise network in the UK is complete, the available opportunities now consist of acquiring an already established territory from an existing franchisee. These vary in price according to their level of development, but start at £7k + Stock + Card Connection fee with earnings potential in excess of £50k per annum.

Territories currently available include: Southend-on-Sea, Manchester, Cardiff, Southport/Wigan, Macclesfield/Buxton, Dundee/Kirkcaldy and Ayr/Kilmarnock.