Franchise Design: grow your brand with creativity, cohesion, & clarity

Think about the first time you visited your favorite franchise.  What was the first thing that you noticed? Before you purchased an item or received any service, your first impression was no doubt the design and overall environment.  As you went through your visit, you presumably continued to have a great experience and we're excited to return!

Creating an environment representative of your brand, and keeping it consistent across locations, is critical to a successful franchise concept. While certain unique features give each location its quirks, the consistent environment becomes your brand standard - giving your clients a reliable environment no matter which location they visit!  Read on for the top Franchise Design principles we follow at Spark, that you can apply to your next design adventure.

Want fewer words and more visual examples? I get it. Check out our Design Catalog! 

Conceptual Design

Starting from scratch? Want to reset and refresh your concept to better reflect your mission? Finding some of your materials may need a little updating? As you update your design on any level, keep in mind you will want to be able to deliver these design elements to multiple locations.  

• Creatively use common materials from trusted suppliers that are familiar with the needs of multi-unit concepts.  Give them a heads up you are specifying their product, and see if they can work with you to avoid supply chain issues.
• Have a backup in place to accommodate different area regulations to always be prepared.
• Have a fluid, modular design pallet with a few key design elements that can be applied to a variety of spaces you may encounter.  

Illustrative Renderings 

Have some awesome ideas, but can't quite visualize the outcome?  To ensure everything comes together as cohesively as you imagined, utilize an Illustrative Renderer. This will give you a photorealistic view without any construction - letting you make some final tweaks to your design at a small fraction of the cost of a change order!  You will then have these images to showcase your Design for new potential franchisees - bringing their Construction Documents to life!

• Accurate portrayal of materials - make sure everything comes together as you imagined! 
• Able to see a few options in your concept before deciding on the final material specification.

• Great for showing your ideal prototype, as you can get unique views that are not possible to get with pictures – giving a greater insight into the potential space.  

Design and Construction Manual

Happy with how everything is coming together? Time to properly document it in a Design and Construction Manual!  This gem of a document will house all of your design specifications, providing clarity to all stakeholders.  If you opt for a more digital layout, you can include helpful links to additional information or helpful tutorials for your contractors.