Packaging for franchises and networks: how to organise it

Why a network does not operate like an independent

An independent orders for one outlet, occasionally. A network has to supply dozens of outlets with the same identity, without stockouts and without making each one carry the stock, storage space and handling. It is both a logistics and a brand issue.

Brand consistency above all

Nothing is worse than a network where each outlet orders on its own: colours drift, logos differ, quality is uneven. Centralising guarantees the same packaging everywhere.

Rolling replenishment

Instead of forcing a large stock on each outlet, we deliver as consumption goes. Less stock to hold on site, no stockouts, no overstock.

One contact, one invoice

The network deals with a single contact who runs everything and receives centralised invoicing. Head office stays in control, outlets get delivered.

Our offer for networks

We become your outsourced purchasing and packaging department: sourcing, storage, replenishment, managed design, a single point of contact. That is what a central buying and break-bulk operation does.

The four packaging problems every network faces

A growing network always runs into the same four difficulties, in this order.

Purchasing scatters. Each outlet orders wherever it likes, often from the local wholesaler, and the network loses all negotiating power.

The brand gets diluted. Two restaurants of the same brand serve the same burger in two different boxes, and the customer notices.

Stockouts arrive without warning. Nobody tracks stock outlet by outlet, and the shortage is discovered on a Friday night.

Cash gets tied up. To get a good price, you have to order big, which means paying and storing months in advance.

Three ways to organise a network's packaging

The third model is the one Publifood operates under the name Pack On Demand.

Who pays for packaging in a franchise

This question comes up in every negotiation, and there is no single answer. Three setups coexist.

The franchisee buys and pays directly. This is the simplest and most common setup. Head office approves the supplier and enforces the brand guidelines, without ever touching an invoice.

The franchisor buys and re-invoices. They get better prices but carry the cash flow for the whole network, and must handle re-invoicing outlet by outlet.

The franchisee is billed directly by the supplier, and head office earns a commission on those purchases. The franchisor carries neither cash flow nor admin, and their packaging line becomes a revenue stream.

The third setup is the one we put in place as part of Pack On Demand.

What the franchise agreement should say about packaging

Four points deserve to be written down in black and white, to avoid discussions two years later: the approved supplier and whether that approval is mandatory or recommended, the brand guidelines applying to packaging and who approves the mockups, who covers the launch costs of a new reference, and what happens to personalised stock when an outlet leaves the network. These are negotiation topics, not universal rules, and they should be handled with your legal adviser.