Elevating Brand Perception: Revitalizing Franchise Locations for Market Relevance

Opportunity

A global food retail company recognized the need to remodel its franchise locations. Many of which were falling short of current design expectations. Outdated lobby and signage designs posed risks to customer brand perceptions. These locations threatened the company’s market relevance in an increasingly competitive environment.

In the past, the company had given autonomy to franchisees to remodel their lobbies at their own pace, yielding mixed results. Rising construction costs and the threat of eroding brand perception provided incentive for the company to develop a dependable and reasonably priced remodel service. The company realized the importance of incentivizing remodels through expense reimbursements, while also providing a dependable and reasonably priced remodel service to assist franchisees. The reimbursement program sought to incentivize Franchisee remodel participation.

Solution

To address these challenges, the company formed a partnership with a comprehensive national construction company, and they entrusted Pepper Foster with program management of the remodel program. Pepper Foster incorporated a combination of waterfall and agile project management techniques to align the interests of all three parties involved.

Franchisee enrollment in the program was tracked, processes were automated, and detailed financial forecasts were consolidated in a convenient dashboard for stakeholders and leadership teams. All of this was accomplished by leveraging Smartsheet, a collaborative project management platform. Additionally, Pepper Foster established strong relationships with franchisees, offering ongoing support and guidance throughout each franchise project.

The program objectives were to:

• Maximize franchise enrollment in the remodel program.
• Remodel 350+ locations across the nation.

Outcome 

The collaborative efforts of the team produced the following outcomes:

• Enrolled nearly 500 locations in the remodel program.
• Successfully completed and certified more than 170 projects within the first 12 months.
• Distributed $2M in reimbursement incentive payouts to participants.
• Developing a comprehensive strategy to address additional non-compliant locations in future initiatives, ensuring ongoing improvements to brand consistency.

By partnering with Pepper Foster and implementing effective project management practices, the global food retail company not only achieved its immediate goals but also laid the foundation for continued success in enhancing franchise locations, reinforcing brand perception, and maintaining a competitive edge in the market.