Franchising - Your Trans Canada Tax Service Office

"There are only two things certain in life; death and taxes"

a. PERSONAL COMMITMENT

You have chosen to become an entrepreneur. What does this mean?

The Buck Stops Here!

You are the final line of responsibility. Your success will largely depend on your dedication and commitment to the business. What will you do to market your business? How far will you go to provide customer service? Will you perform tasks yourself (is there enough hours in the day) or will you spend some resources on staff. Your personnel skills will be developed and honed.

You will be responsible for everything from opening the door in the morning to locking up at night. This doesn’t mean you will do this yourself (at least not in the long run). It means that you will be responsible for execution of all business functions.

In our business model, you will be responsible (with our assistance) for office site selection, office furnishings, security of premises and computer systems, acquisition of computer hardware and software, hiring staff and administering employee policies, marketing and customer relations as well as banking and establishing credit and debit card facilities. You will also assure that income tax preparation is completed within CRA guidelines and current income tax legislation. This is what entrepreneurship is about.

After all, it is the execution which will determine if you have achieved customer service. Failure to satisfy the customer will make it much more difficult to achieve success.

b. CUSTOMER SERVICE

What does it mean to be customer service oriented?

Customer service means the extent you commit to adjusting your schedule to satisfy the customers’ availability. It means responding to customers’ queries as quickly as possible. It means understanding your customers’ tax situation and making competent recommendations. It means executing on this advice for your customer. It means your full commitment to earning customer confidence and trust.

Customer service means extra effort in carrying out your business. Will you reduce your fees for those with less ability to pay? Will you make house calls? Are you going to research a tax problem even though it means giving up personal time you set aside for relaxation? Will you extend your office hours to satisfy customer needs? Will you study income tax legislation and attend regular tax training? What will you do to be customer service oriented?

Excellence in customer service results in word of mouth recommendations for your services; the least costly form of business development.

c. FINANCING

(i) Facilities

We have designed the Trans Canada Tax Service franchise to maximize profitability without sacrificing customer service. Our year round offices are designed to provide a professional environment which lends itself to our credibility. Year round office locations are usually selected in non typical retail sites while seasonal offices are located in high traffic retail locations. The logic is that we do not want to pay high retail rents through out the year when a large portion of our business is transacted during eight to ten weeks a year. Leasing costs will be a significant on-going expense which must be managed.

What will have to be done to the leased premised to make it conform to our business needs? Are we going to need funds to erect additional interior walls and install additional electrical service? Is the general condition suitable for a retail operation? Will the landlord complete these improvements or is it more financially prudent to complete this work ourselves?

These questions should be satisfied prior to signing any lease agreement. Costs should be determined and budgeted before assessing your total investment.

(ii) Equipment and Furnishings

Equipment (mostly comprised of computers, printers, copiers and fax) can be purchased or leased. We do recommend purchase of equipment and furniture rather than using the leasing route. In locations where seasonal offices represent a large portion of your investment, leasing of computer equipment may be more feasible. These situations should be evaluated on a site by site basis. Office furniture can often be purchased at large discounts by attending bankruptcy or closing out auctions. Today, the purchase of printers, faxes and copiers can be achieved at a marginal cost. Operating costs for this equipment should be taken into consideration when making your purchase.

(iii) Total Budgeted Costs

Financial obligations on opening a Trans Canada Tax business have been designed to limit investment and operating costs while maximizing business volume.

Our general estimate for start-up costs is as follows:

Working Capital	$5,000*
Franchise Fee	$4,000*
Supplies	$500 to $1,000
Training Costs	$0 to $2,000
Lease Deposit	$0 to $2,000
Equipment	$3,000 to $5,000
Furniture & Fixtures	$1,000 to $3,000
Leasehold Improvements	$0 to $1,000
Initial Marketing	$5,000

Working capital of approximately $5,000 should be available to cover rent, payroll, office utility and other operating costs which will be incurred before revenue will be generated.

We recommend a line of credit be obtained through an existing financial institution to cover funds required in excess of cash available for this investment.