The company is aiming to recruit at least a further 80 franchisees to consolidate its market-leading position.

It has identified the South Midlands, the south of England, Wales and Ireland as areas for potential growth, although there are still territories up for grabs in its strongholds of Scotland and the north of England.

Apollo Blinds, owned by Hunter Douglas, a Dutch-based group which is the world's largest manufacturer of window blinds, believes its proposition has broad appeal because it can generate a healthy return on investment given the high gross margins and high net returns that the window blinds industry generates.This, combined with the relatively low entry cost level compared to other franchises, is something that recently appointed General Manager Patrick Harrison predicts will help the company attract people who want to build up their own successful business.

'Apollo Blinds has always been a very good proposition for potential franchisees, but it just got better,' he reflects. 'We have a five-year plan in place to increase the number of franchises and also improve our infrastructure to deliver a greater level of help and support at every stage of a franchisee's development.

'While all these things are important, the key influence for any potential franchisee considering Apollo Blinds is the growth of the industry, and that speaks for itself.'

Published: 13 September 2005

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