Franchising Success Isn’t About Shortcuts; It’s Built on Resilience, Customer Focus, and the Willingness to Adapt.
Episode Timeline
- 0:00 – Introduction
- 0:37 – Raman’s upbringing in Calcutta and New Delhi, multilingual background, and education in Commerce and IT
- 2:22 – Transcribing interviews and joining Kapil Dev’s sports media team
- 4:44 – Historic cricket tour to post-apartheid South Africa and meeting Nelson Mandela
- 6:26 – Raman’s role at the Canadian High Commission and Dutch Embassy after leaving the media
- 9:50 – Moving to Australia in 2004, securing permanent residency, and his early career at IBM
- 15:10 – Raman and his partners explore franchising, and attend expos
- 19:14 – Discovering Pack & Send on the website
- 20:50 – Challenges of the first store launching at a greenfield location in North Sydney
- 25:47 – Tough decision to acquire a second store in Crows Nest
- 27:23 – How Raman and his team stabilized their franchises by focusing on customer relationships
- 28:02 – Expanding to a third location at the Castle Hill store
- 31:10 – The keys to franchise success: customer service, personalized interactions, and growth from small clients
- 35:54 – Wrap Up
Raman Swaminathan’s journey proves that even when starting from scratch, smart strategies and genuine relationships can turn struggles into thriving businesses.
From his early days in India, where he worked as a journalist covering major political events and even rubbed shoulders with Nelson Mandela during a historic cricket tour, to his career in IT and diplomacy, Raman’s story is full of unexpected twists.
When he moved to Australia, he took a big leap into franchising with PACK & SEND North Sydney, starting with one location and eventually becoming a multi-site franchise owner.
Along the way, he faced financial struggles, tough decisions, and the challenge of making it all work. But what really stands out is his approach to business: putting customers first, building genuine relationships, and staying adaptable.
This article is an eye opener! Thank you Gemma.