Business Franchise Australia

Learn from leaders and legends at the Sydney Franchising Expo

“Seriously successful and highly charismatic” is how Exhibition Manager Fiona Stacey describes the businesspeople headlining the seminar series at the Sydney Franchising and Business Opportunities Expo this month.

“I’m very excited about the list of successful franchisors speaking in Sydney this year,” she says. “It’s an incredible opportunity to hear from people at the top of their game, to learn from them and to see what drives them.”

Prominent businesspeople presenting this year include Pippa Hallas, CEO of Ella Baché; Sara Pantaleo, CEO of La Porchetta; Dr Sam Prince, founder and director of Zambrero; Lee Moore, General Manager of Poolwerx, and Elaine Jobson General Manager of Jetts 24 Hour Fitness Australia

The seminar program also includes specialist industry consultants such as Brian Keen from How to Franchise Simply, The Franchise Shop’s Grant Garraway, Elizabeth Gillam from Franchisee Success, Suzanne Jarzabkowska from DC Strategy, and Darryn McAuliffe from FRANdata.


In addition the Franchise Council of Australia (FCA) will be presenting daily panel sessions featuring a range of fascinating and diverse franchisees.

Great speakers do more than just share information – they can be motivating and inspiring, or even life-changing,” says Stacey. “I encourage all visitors to take advantage of these free sessions at the show.”

A former Franchise Woman of the Year, Sara Pantaleo’s keynote session will take attendees on a journey of the past and future for La Porchetta, and share her story as a businesswoman. Pantaleo is a passionate advocate for franchising as a business model and she has served on the FCA Board at a state and national level and as a member of the FCA CEO Group. She is also a member of the Family Business Association Victorian Committee.

Pippa Hallas is the dynamic CEO of the company started by her grandmother Edith Hallas and her great aunt Ella Baché 60 years ago. Now she is taking it from strength to strength, with rebranding and renewed focus on education and product innovation. Visitors will learn about her franchising philosophy and growth strategy at her unmissable keynote presentation.

Sam Prince is a doctor and philanthropist who also happens to run one of Australia’s fastest-growing franchises, Zambrero. His keynote presentation “My Entrepreneurial Story” will explain how he grew Zambrero from one to 75 stores in Australia and five overseas, all while studying then practising as a medical doctor and working on humanitarian aid projects.

Elaine Jobson’s seminar topic is ‘Building great brands through culture and people’ where she will share how great brands recruit and retain the right people for their business. Recently appointed General Manager at Jett’s 24 Hour Fitness, Jobson has extensive experience in the fitness industry with international brands such as Virgin Active and Fitness First.

FRANdata’s CEO Darryn McAuliffe believes having the most up to date information is crucial when entering the franchising industry. His company established the Australian Franchise Registry™ and provides business intelligence to franchisees and franchisors. “My presentation will discuss how to find a franchise-friendly bank, and also how to find a franchise that is lender-friendly, ” he says.

Fiona Stacey says one thing all the experts have in common is the emphasis they place on thorough research before investing in a franchise, or franchising an existing concept.

“Attending the Expo means you can investigate all the ins and outs and meet all the right people under one roof,” she says. “It really is a one-stop-shop, wherever you are in your franchising journey.”

A full seminar program is available at www.franchisingexpo.com.au. The Sydney Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo will be on at the Royal Hall of Industries at Moore Park, 27-29 March 2015.

Entry at the door is $20, or pre-register before the show to save $5 at www.franchisingexpo.com.au.

The next Franchising & Business Opportunities Expos are:

Brisbane 18-19 July 2015 at Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre

Melbourne 21-23 August 2015 at Melbourne Exhibition Centre

Speaker Details:

Grant Garraway is The Franchise Shop’s senior consultant, with over 25 years experience within the franchise industry both as an employee of major franchisors and as a consultant to the franchise sector. Garraway is a post-graduate qualified accountant and has held senior management positions with several multi-national and Australian and International Franchisors, including Midas and Kleins. He has assisted more than 30 clients to become successful franchisors including Keen to Clean, which has made BRW’s fastest growing list for the past two years, and has sold master franchises in South Africa, Malaysia, New Zealand and China.

Pippa Hallas, CEO of Ella Baché, joined her family’s beauty business 10 years ago following a successful career in advertising and marketing in Australia and the UK. The granddaughter and great-niece of founders Edith Hallas and Ella Bache, Hallas worked as Marketing Manager and General Manager before being appointed CEO in 2010. With 170 Ella Bache salons in Australia and New Zealand including 110 franchised salons, plus David Jones outlets around Australia, Hallas emphasises the importance of education, brand integrity and product innovation as keys to success.

Suzanne Jarzabkowska, CEO of DC Strategy, has 30 years experience both as an entrepreneur in the private sector and in the international NGO sector. Drawing on her extensive background in the social sciences and public health, she delivered crisis management services and sustainable aid programs in South-East Asia prior to joining DC Strategy. She also has hands on experience as the major shareholder and Managing Director setting up and operating her own successful cruise ship business in the south Pacific.

Elaine Jobson, Country General Manager at Jetts 24 Hour Fitness, has been in the fitness Industry for the past 20 years and she has personally sold over 20,000 memberships in clubs. Her experience with brands such as Fitness First, where she was National Sales Manager and European Sales Director, and Virgin Active in South Africa, where she was Chief Operating Officer, meant she was well placed to join the young Queensland-based company as COO in 2013. Now as General Manager, Jobson is excited for the opportunity to take what she has learnt and apply it in this new era of selling memberships in the increasingly competitive 24/7 market within Australia. She always retained a passion for selling health club memberships and over her career has sought out the knowledge of the best in the industry, having being trained by the likes of Casey Conrad, Zig Ziegler, Tony Robins and Stephen Covey.

Brian Keen has 40 years experience nationally and overseas as a business owner and company director. Born in Uxbridge on the outskirts of London, Keen lived in Malawi before moving to Perth, Australia in 1975. In the early 1980s, he joined the franchising sector as a franchisee with the then new Bedshed group, opening and operating seven stores in five years. Next he established a national franchise consultancy and sales group, the Franchise Alliance, developing franchise business systems and sales strategies for over 40 businesses including household names such as Ultratune, Jim’s Mowing and Donut King. Within the first five years, Keen also built six franchise groups with over 120 outlets. Today he has a new business, ‘How To Franchise Simply,’ which delivers a step-by-step franchising system.

Darryn McAuliffe, CEO of FRANdata Australia, oversees the provision of independent reviews, accreditations and information reporting on franchise systems to assist various stakeholders with their key strategic decision-making. With over thirty years experience in the banking and finance sector, McAuliffe is a CPA and experienced former bank executive across business banking, risk management and industry specialisation. The four years prior to joining FRANdata he ran the NAB’s franchising strategy, which included the accreditation and portfolio management of major Australian franchise brands.

Lee Moore is the General Manager and Chief Operations Officer at pool and spa care franchise Poolwerx, a world-leading swimming pool and spa service company and Australia’s largest franchised pool retail group. A specialist in retail marketing and operations, Moore has brought Poolwerx into the digital age, having used the power of the Poolwerx Franchise Network to tackle the world of e-commerce. He has also spearheaded significant change projects over the past few years including the launch of a new brand image and cause-related marketing partner. Prior to joining the Poolwerx group five years ago, Moore was a driving force behind the Fone Zone brand’s growth to 187 stores and the General Manager of Apple retailer Next Byte.

Sara Pantaleo is CEO of La Porchetta, Australasia’s largest, franchised, licensed, à-la-carte restaurant group. Pantaleo was instrumental in driving La Porchetta’s growth from 12 restaurants when she joined in 1996, to more than 70 across Australia and New Zealand today. She achieved this by building corporate systems and process that enabled the company to expand without compromising its core family values and culture. A passionate advocate for franchising as a business model, Pantaleo has served on the FCA Board at a state and national level and as a member of the FCA CEO Group, and she is also a member of the Family Business Association Victorian Committee. She was national Franchise Woman of the Year in 2010 and this year was among the first group of Australian franchise executives to be awarded the prestigious Certified Franchise Executive (CFE) accreditation.

Dr Sam Prince, Founder & Director of Zambrero, was born in Dundee, Scotland to Sri Lankan immigrants. He moved with this family to Australia in 1986, and began his tertiary education at Australian National University aged just 16. While still studying for his medical degree he established Zambrero Fresh Mex Grill in Canberra, built upon the key principles of happiness, healthy food, and humanitarianism. In the following years, Prince practiced as a doctor and grew Zambrero to over 68 stores and counting, with 650 staff and over $30 million in revenue. The business was recognised as the fastest growing franchise in Australia in 2010 by BRW. In 2014 Zambrero expanded internationally, with one store opening in Thailand and four in New Zealand. Since 2011, Zambrero has been working with Action Against Hunger in a program known as ‘Plate 4 Plate’, to provide meals for people suffering from malnutrition in Africa.