Franchising is one of those things that can work really well or it can go completely pear-shaped very quickly. McDonald's is probably the über-franchise in the food business, but the printing industry doesn't really have an equivalent. The closest we have would perhaps be something like Sir Speedy or Kall Kwik, but neither has the ubiquity or really the clout of McDonald's.

To make a franchise work really well takes the kind of resource it takes for any business: money, patience, hard work, an understanding of your market, and of course an excellent product. The thing it doesn't need is an idea, since that is what you get when you enter into a franchise agreement. In that respect it seems like the ideal way to get into a business if you have an interest in the sector, but don't want to go to the trouble of developing your own brand or market presence. Companies such as Countrywide Signs for instance, which supplies signs to the property industry, will help you set up your own business for less than €9,000 (￡7,900). XPress Art wants around €13,000 (￡11,300) to help you set up your own retail large-format business. They sell on the basis of profit margins and the ease with which you can build up the business.

It is all well and good, but some of these operations can have small print that makes the whole thing a little less savoury. Slaver as you might at the high levels of profit you might expect, be sure to understand what your franchise agreement entails. It might for instance require you to make a regular contribution to additional marketing services, or pay a royalty back to the franchise owner.

Franchising is a great idea and one that can help jumpstart the commercial career of many small business people. But making sure that the fit is right is the most important part of the process. At the end of the day when you set up in business as a franchisee you are essentially becoming a customer of the franchise owner. As is the case with any type of purchase, the concept of buyer beware should apply. If it seems to good to be true, it probably isn't. Then again McDonald's recorded a turnover last year of $6.1bn and revenue growth is running at 16.4 percent, despite the cheesy economic climate and efforts to discourage people from eating junk food. Franchisees are probably quite content to have a slice of that pie.