INSPIRATIONAL WINNERS - Franchise Awards 2025 Results

The 2025 Westpac New Zealand Franchise Awards highlighted three decades of celebrating excellence in the country’s $47 billion business franchise sector - and it was truly a night to remember. Two new Life Members and one new Hall of Fame member were inducted by the Franchise Association of New Zealand and the numbers in attendance were swelled by franchisees who received public acknowledgement of their long tenure in a range of franchise systems.

There were category winners by industry, awards for excellence in topics from marketing to sustainability, and recognition for the service providers and field managers who lie behind every great franchise and franchisee. Harrisons Flooring was named the Supreme Franchise System of the Year, with Kelly and Jess Bain of The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa crowned Supreme Franchisee of the Year.

The judging panel, headed again by Gillian Taylor, certainly had their work cut out for them in sorting through the many quality entries and selecting the winners. 

MC Wendy Petrie has been increasingly impressed with franchising over the years she has fronted the annual Gala Dinner. This year, she delighted the 440-strong audience at the Cordis Hotel in Auckland, by announcing that she and her husband Ross Peebles are the proud new owners of their own Speedy Signs franchise on the North Shore of Auckland.

And despite 2025 being a challenging year for the country’s overall business community, the clear message that came out of the Awards night is that New Zealand’s franchise sector is still performing strongly, with the outlook for 2026 already looking even more positive.

Westpac Supreme Franchise System of the Year
Winner: Harrisons Flooring 

Harrisons Group continues to go from strength to strength in New Zealand. The origins of the brand date back to 1962, when Des Harrison first began selling carpet and furniture from his store in Whangārei and the franchise system is still a family business today.

Fast forward to 2025 and Harrisons Flooring, one of the three divisions of the Harrisons Group, is now recognised with the Supreme title of the highest-performing franchise business in the country.

The judges agreed that the submission from Harrisons Flooring demonstrates outstanding results and long-term stability – fuelled by the continued development and launching of their own product brand, growing their hard-flooring sales and taking the bold step of entering the highly-competitive Australian market. 

“Harrisons Flooring’s strategic and thoughtful approach, strong franchisee support, excellent customer ratings and strong growth make them a standout,” commented the judging panel. 

Harrisons’ commitment also extends beyond flooring. The franchise invests in people, fosters community engagement, and actively supports the Breast Cancer Foundation NZ. Their collaborative approach with franchisees, suppliers, and customers, combined with a focus on innovation, sustainability, and growth, ensures the brand continues to prosper while making a positive impact.

“Winning the Supreme Franchise System of the Year is an incredible honour, but what makes me really proud is that it reflects our people – local business owners, hardworking teams, and loyal customers who trust us in their homes every day,” said Patrick Harrison, CEO of Harrisons Group.

“For over 60 years we’ve been a family business, and today we’re still driven by the same belief – if we look after our people and do right by our customers, success will follow.”

Westpac Supreme Franchisee of the Year
Winner: Jess & Kelly Bain, The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa

"Outstanding" was how the judges described The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa’s entry submission, adding that, “it provided strong evidence of a dynamic successful business, driven by robust systems and good relationships.” 

Kelly and Jess Bain were also praised for demonstrating a deep understanding of their business, with ambitious plans for future development of The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa, in order to continue its extraordinary run of success.

“For us, paradise is Ōmokoroa,” says Kelly. She remembers the day they were first introduced to the café. “It was the perfect place we had pictured in our minds; the café and where it is in The Village development is perfect." The couple have become very actively involved in their community since moving their family to the region two years ago and the business has played a big part in that, also collecting the Franchisee Excellence in Community Contribution award.

Weeks after the Awards night the couple were still in shock. Kelly said, “I still don’t know if it has sunk in yet – it has been pretty overwhelming to be honest. We are such a new business, but we thought we would throw our hat in the ring and try to measure our performance against the rest of the franchising world. We never expected to win one award, let alone three – it was a genuine shock.”

The perfect place and now the perfect recognition. 2025 has been a rewarding year for The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa and Kelly and Jess’s Supreme Franchisee of the Year title is well deserved.

CATEGORY AWARDS AND FINALISTS

Awards were presented for Franchisee of the Year and Franchise System of the Year in each of three categories:

  - Retail & Hospitality
  - Home & Lifestyle
  - Business to Business

The Supreme Awards winners were selected from these categories, plus the Small Business Franchisee of the Year category.

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Small Business 

Small Business Franchisee of the Year 
Winner: Quin Wang, Aramex Mount Wellington and Panmure

When Quin Wang and his wife Michelle got behind the wheel of their Aramex courier business (then Fastway) back in 2012 they did it to build a better future for their two children.

What they’ve managed to achieve from their efforts and the support of the franchise behind them has more than lived up to their expectations. Quin says the key is to work on relationships with all the business owners that he meets through his deliveries. "You have to be patient, polite and friendly, and then one day they might become your customer."

The judges agreed that Quin is a franchisee who demonstrates a clear understanding of the business, and particularly the value of the relationships. 

“Quin’s impressive approach to building relationships and winning new clients is reflected in his success,” they said.

Taking out the 2025 Small Business Franchisee of the Year Award is the latest in a series of recognitions over the years for the couple, having been named Auckland Courier Franchise of the Year in 2015 and overall Aramex Franchisee of the Year in 2017.

Quin’s warmly received acceptance speech at the Westpac New Zealand Franchise Awards included a heartfelt recognition of how much his Aramex business has contributed to the wellbeing of his family, and how much they in turn have inspired him to succeed in the business.

Award sponsored by Geotech Information Services

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Retail & Hospitality

Retail & Hospitality Franchisee of the Year
Winner: Kelly & Jess Bain, The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa

New Zealand has one of the most competitive retail and hospitality sectors in the world, but it's a winning outcome when one of the country’s most recognized café brands is coupled with a franchisee that totally understands the power of customer and local community connection. 

The judges agreed that Kelly & Jess Bain have grown The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa to include strong staff and customer engagement, establishing a highly successful business with clear strategic plans for future development.

“Here is a business that gains insight from key metrics and uses this to continue improving their business,” the judges said.

The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa was recognised as the 2024 Store of the Year at The Coffee Club NZ awards. Kelly has high praise for New Zealand franchisor co-directors Brad Jacobs and Andy Lucas, saying they recognise and respect the diverse range of backgrounds prospective franchisees come from; whether they bring knowledge as an existing customer in their own area or are taking a leap into new territory.

Finalists

Nilupa Weerakon, Bakers Delight, Hamilton East
Michael Faulkner, Bakers Delight, Pukekohe
Rakesh Ishwarlal, LJ's Fish & Chips, Waitākere
Tere & Avelien Strickland, Quest Apartment Hotel, Mount Maunganui
Dave & Marcia Bragg, Flooring Design, Whakatāne
Richard & Tatiana Sharp, Robert Harris, Whakatāne

Retail & Hospitality Franchise System of the Year
Winner: The Coffee Club

Kelly and Jess Bain, winners of the Retail & Hospitality Franchisee of the Year award, can testify that New Zealand’s most recognised and awarded café franchise offers a supportive, proven pathway to success. 

In a repeat of its tandem awards two years ago, The Coffee Club franchise system has shown evidence of strong performance over the past 12 months, coming out on top in the Retail & Hospitality Franchise System of the Year award again in 2025. 

Founded in Australia, The Coffee Club was brought to New Zealand in 2003 by master franchisees Brad Jacobs and Andy Lucas, who still lead the dedicated and highly professional New Zealand support team. 

The judges noted that The Coffee Club is building on its impressive 20-year history to keep refining their systems and processes, “All while ensuring that they continue to provide outstanding franchisee support and service delivery.”

Kitchen Studio North Shore is a magnificent success story thanks to Paul and Karen Collins' focus on excellence. They take pride in the fact that everyone on their team, from the award-winning kitchen designers, to the craftsmen responsible for installing new kitchens, is also passionate about achieving excellence in everything they do. 

It’s an approach to franchising that has also gone down well with the judges of this year’s awards. “Kitchen Studio North Shore has demonstrated very impressive flexibility and resilience throughout the year,” they say. “Karen and Paul show outstanding attention to detail in every aspect of their business, and their approach is clearly delivering excellent results.”

And the couple are very appreciative of the chance that entering the Franchise Awards has given them to focus even more on the detail: “That whole process of investing in the health of your business and looking at it from different angles to see what’s working well and what’s not – that is so rewarding,” Karen says, “and the feedback from the judges has been invaluable.”

Finalists

Home & Lifestyle Franchise System of the Year
Winner: Harrisons Flooring

Harrisons were the pioneers of a mobile in-home carpet service in New Zealand, launching nationwide in 1992. With innovation and growth, to match customers’ needs and expectations, at the heart of the business, they have recently launched the Harrisons Flooring brand into Australia.

As well as taking out the overall Supreme award, Harrisons Flooring were awarded Home & Lifestyle Franchise System of the Year for 2025, unusually competing against two other divisions of the Harrisons Group amongst other finalists in the category.

The judges said Harrisons Flooring provided an impressive submission with evidence that they do the simple things well. “They start with people, support and strategy, engaged suppliers and customers, and work collaboratively.

“They also showed us that this approach has delivered exceptional service performance and business success.”

Finalists

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Business to Business 

Business to Business Franchisee of the Year 
Winner: Navjot Kaur – CrestClean Christchurch and South Canterbury

CrestClean Christchurch and South Canterbury franchisee Navjot "Navi" Kaur has successfully grown her CrestClean franchise into one of the largest in the country.

With a team of ten employees trained through the Master Cleaners Training Institute and strong customer relationships, she consistently delivers the highest-quality cleaning services.

“We are so proud of our journey,” said Navi. “It is overwhelming and exciting to be part of the awards.”

The judges said that CrestClean Christchurch and South Canterbury demonstrated excellence in their approach to applying the franchise system, showing "A commendable commitment to staff, performance and business growth. The success of this approach is evidenced in their financial success.”

Business to Business Franchise System of the Year 
Winner: CrestClean

CrestClean’s franchise network undertakes around three million hours of customer service each year. Co-founded by Grant McLauchlan and Rene Mangnus in Dunedin in 1996, CrestClean’s blue and green livery is a familiar sight throughout New Zealand, and it’s a franchise that has become a familiar sight on the stage at the annual Westpac New Zealand Franchise Awards.

This year CrestClean and its franchisees were named finalists in five categories and won three awards. In the special long tenure awards, the company also proudly recognised five of their inspirational franchisees who have been with the franchise system for between 19 and 23 years.

The judges commented that CrestClean presented a strong and robust franchise system. “Their focus on quality, training and long-term customer relationships stood out. They provide excellent franchisee support, and have shown impressive growth, especially in healthcare.”

Finalist

Jani-King

Category sponsored by Bunnings Trade

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SPECIAL AWARDS

Further Awards were made in a number of specialist categories, as follows:

Franchisees
Regional Master Franchisee of the Year
Excellence in Community Contribution
Excellence in Customer Service

Franchise System
Marketing Campaign of the Year
Excellence in Community Contribution
Excellence in Franchise System Innovation

Field Manager of the Year

Service Provider of the Year

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FRANCHISEE AWARDS

Regional Master Franchisee of the Year  
Winner: Tim O'Leary – CrestClean Hawke's Bay 

Tim has built a high-performing regional business through strong leadership, smart growth and a genuine care for his team. He has evidenced this in his hands-on approach, a focus on quality, and a commitment to franchisee success – all of which has helped make CrestClean Hawke’s Bay a standout performer.

Tim recalls that joining CrestClean as its Hawke’s Bay Regional Manager in 2020 was a complete change of direction for him and his wife Kelly, saying how he thoroughly enjoys helping people to help themselves.

This attitude applies more than ever today. “Not only from a professional point of view but from a personal point of view as well. I enjoy seeing people succeed, that’s what really spins my wheels,” says Tim.

Finalist

Award sponsored by Franchise New Zealand media

Excellence in Community Contribution - Franchisee
Winner: Kelly & Jess Bain, The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa

This Awards night really was a night to remember for The Coffee Club Ōmokoroa and their crew. The judges said the business takes a measured, thoughtful and well-considered approach to contributing to the local community. “Their multi-pronged and innovative approach has led to the business providing clear measurable value to the community.”

Kelly was thrilled to be recognised for her business’s contribution to the community they fell in love with the minute they arrived, telling Franchise New Zealand, “We look upon our business as not just a financial concern, but as a community project. Our ethos is that we are not just running a café, it’s a community hub with its own distinct culture and a huge variety of customer experiences that take place within it. So, being at the hub, we also feed back to our community in as many different ways as we can.

“Our children are growing up here and we want to be a part of how well this community fares in the future. And luckily for us, although that is definitely not our primary aim, community engagement at the level we practice also turns out to be a very powerful marketing strategy.”

Finalists

Laura Parke, Freedom Drivers, Northern Bays
Michael Faulkner, Bakers Delight, Pukekohe

Award sponsored by Waipuna Hotel & Conference Centre

Excellence in Customer Service - Franchisee
Winner: Tere & Avelien Strickland, Quest Apartment Hotel, Mount Maunganui 

This award is as much about consistency of service as it is about excellence of service – together, these are the cornerstone of every highly successful business.

The judges agreed that the Quest Mount Maunganui franchise owners, Tere (Tez) and Avelien Strickland, presented a very robust submission.

“The evidence showed that their success and high performance is founded on their commitment to sound processes and team training – both of which ensure a consistent delivery of an excellent customer service experience.”

Avelien was no stranger to Quest having previously worked in the franchise’s corporate office for a number of years before re-locating to the Bay of Plenty to take up this franchise opportunity. The couple were excited to continue providing exceptional service to guests while also utilising Avelien’s business skills to ensure the success of the property.

On the night, Tez was profuse in his gratitude for all those who had helped the couple to achieve this award, especially the incredible team of staff who work in their business. And he promised that we hadn’t seen the last of the powerhouse team behind the Quest Apartment Hotel Mount Maunganui.

Finalists

Laura Parke, Freedom Drivers, Northern Bays
Amber & Malcolm Carr, Simon's Flooring Design, Tauranga
Manpreet Singh and Jas Kaur, The Coffee Club, Fitzroy New Plymouth

Award sponsored by Tranxactor

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FRANCHISE SYSTEM AWARDS

Marketing Campaign of the Year  
Winner: Laser Plumbing & Electrical

Laser Plumbing & Electrical started life in 1983 when entrepreneurial electricians Peter Bassett and David Clemmett decided to set up their own electrical contracting company, and the franchised business opportunity has grown in leaps and bounds ever since.

For this year’s awards the judges agreed that Laser Plumbing & Electrical delivered “an aspirational marketing campaign which was well planned and executed, with very strong franchisee involvement”.

They also saw evidence that the campaign was highly successful in achieving all its objectives for the franchise owners.

Finalists

CrestClean
Harrisons Solar
MTF Finance
Red LBP
Rodney Wayne

Award sponsored by Mighty

Excellence in Community Contribution – Franchise System 
Winner: Aramex 

This was a highly contested award category, and one that cuts to the heart of the relationship that exists between franchise businesses and their local communities.

The judges say Aramex demonstrated exceptional commitment to the charities their franchise owners support. They also believe the company demonstrated value for the business owners as well as for the charities they serve.

One thing that stood out in the submission was the depth and longevity of the relationships, they say, “and how they leverage these relationships and collaborate to benefit multiple groups.”

Finalists

Bakers Delight
CrestClean
Harrisons
Jani-King
Laser Plumbing & Electrical
Red LBP
The Coffee Club

Award sponsored by Waipuna Hotel & Conference Centre

Excellence in Franchise System Innovation
Winner: Red LBP

This important award recognises innovation and forward-thinking ideas, products, services or processes that enhance franchise operations, customer experience, or business performance.

Red LBP is New Zealand’s largest network of licensed building inspectors and professes to be one of the country’s fastest growing franchise business opportunities. Its team of qualified builders-turned-inspectors is a tight-knit group who believe in continuous training and supporting each other.

The judges said Red LBP presented a compelling innovation story, evidencing a pragmatic, scalable solution which is delivering high impact.

“They demonstrated innovation at the heart of their business, supporting all aspects of their business success, and setting a new standard in their industry.”

Finalists

Aramex
Clean Planet
Columbus Coffee
Harrisons
Jani-King
Landmark Homes
Laser Plumbing & Electrical

Award sponsored by CDM Limited

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FIELD MANAGER OF THE YEAR AWARD

Field Manager of the Year    
Winner: Bailee Mills - Harrisons Curtains & Blinds

Field Managers can be described as the unsung heroes of the franchise sector, maintaining that vital first point of contact for franchisees, helping them to set goals and grow their businesses, all while remaining faithful to the franchise’s brand standards. It’s a major responsibility.

“Bailee’s exceptional and thorough submission provided evidence of an impressive Field Manager,” said the judging panel.

“Her strong franchisee relationships, built on trust, combined with her open approach to seeking improvements, are the foundation of her success.”

Finalists

Tina Bolton, Green Acres
Tracy Stafford, Hire A Hubby
Lyle Hargreaves, LJ's Fish & Chips
Damian Kaukau, MTF Finance

Award sponsored by Franchise New Zealand media

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SERVICE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR AWARD

Service Provider of the Year 
Winner: Franchise Accountants 

The fact that Franchise Accountants were up on stage again, this time to receive the Service Provider of the Year award for 2025 came as no surprise to many of those assembled.

This is the seventh time Franchise Accountants has won this award – which now makes them the most awarded service provider across the history of the event.

The judges acknowledged that this exceptional service provider demonstrates a significant and strong commitment to franchising.

Indeed, Franchise Accountants, as their name suggests, is the only chartered accounting practice in New Zealand focused almost exclusively on serving the franchise industry.

The judges described this company’s significant investment in franchise-specific software, and the value it provides, as truly impressive.

Finalists

BDO New Zealand
Stewart Germann Law Office
Wynn Williams

Award sponsored by Paramount Services

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LONG TENURE FRANCHISEE RECOGNITION

A number of the country's longest tenure franchisees were specially recognised at the Westpac New Zealand Franchise Awards this year. Franchising provides long term business stability and success to many business owners and The Franchise Association of New Zealand invited members to publicly acknowledge those of their franchisees who were able to be present on the night with a certificate of recognition for 15+ years in their respective businesses.

See the full list of recipients here.

Category sponsored by Dream Franchising Group

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About the Awards

The 2025 Westpac New Zealand Franchise Awards were organised by the Franchise Association of New Zealand. 2025 marked the 30th edition of the Awards, which have been held annually since 1995 (except for 2020). This year's Awards Ceremony took place at the Cordis Hotel, Auckland, on 1 November.

Awards entrants go through a rigorous assessment by a panel of independent judges, including a detailed submission and video interviews. Entry is open to all members of the Franchise Association of New Zealand.

Reuben Tucker, Managing Director, Institutional and Business Banking and Daviel Cloete, National Franchise Manager for 25 years, represented the event's principal sponsors Westpac New Zealand.