Cover Story

Profit from franchises
Easier than starting a business and more rewarding than a job. Here's if and why you should consider franchising and how to go about it.Franchisee must-havesCan you be a franchisee?Easy but not most fulfillingSynergy is key to success

What to check before you sign
Checklist before you take any steps towards being your own boss.

2008-05-15

Digital

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Your Wallet

Bargain buy: Multi-functional devices

Price is not the same as value.The most expensive product isn’t always the best value for your money. This section highlights the least expensive model in a product category.

Expert View

Windfall from windmills

Driven by a combination of tax and energy incentives around the globe, wind power is now the clear leader in alternative power generation technology.

Synergy is key to success

Many franchisee partners have shared ideas that have benefitted them and Archies.

Easy but not most fulfilling

Potential employees, customers, vendors, all view you as a dependable establishment and are keen to join hands with you.

Franchisee must-haves

Many think being your own boss means challenging each step in the process. This is not true for franchising. If someone has proven a system works, a smart franchisee will pay attention and follow that system.

Green pickings

At 80% of the company’s 40 MW capacity–expected to be fully commissioned by December 2008–the company can potentially generate more than Rs 500 crore in annual revenues.

Real Estate

Rajkot: Industrial hub

Rajkot always had a strong industrial base and good connectivity with other urban centres in Gujarat. Improvement in infrastructure over the past few years has added to the demand for real estate.

Financial Rights

'Pay dues 5 years after cancelling card?'

Priya Kapoor finds how Jitendra Nair forced a credit card company to reverse his dues.

Mutual Fund

SBI AMC performs well

SBI AMC has two funds in the top five equity diversified schemes. Magnum Tax Gain is an outperformer, earning close to 70% returns over the past five years, way ahead of the best performing equity diversified fund.

Add glitter to your portfolio

Investors who want to benefit from the global demand for gold by investing in the precious metal and in companies involved in its production.

Betting on mathematics

With the emergence of quant funds, the fund manager could soon lose his job to a computer. Well, almost. But what does that mean to you?

'Cut losses in time'

They compare apples with oranges. Investors should realise that risk profile differs for products and the one with the higher return always comes with a higher degree of risk.

My Idea

Booked for kids

Bengaluru-based Umesh Malhotra set up Hippocampus to lure children away from TV and computer games to a world of books and outdoors.

BASICS

Can you be a franchisee?

If you’re tempted to be a part of the growing ranks of franchisees, take this little test first.

Portfolio Doctor

Uncommon zeal common mistakes

Ghaziabad-based Seema and Praveen Lamba must streamline investments and increase equity exposure to meet all financial goals.  

Banking

Protect your identity

Financial frauds committed by stealing identity are getting more innovative and widespread by the day. Here’s a snapshot and how to prevent it.

Investment

Riding volatility

The market seems to be up one day and down the next. Should you wait for things to stabilise before buying or selling?

Query Corner

Should I pay higher downpayment for my flat or should I invest in funds?

There are several factors that should be taken into account before you take a decision. The most important is your ability and inclination to take risk.

Tax

How do I calculate income tax on rental income?

Rental income is taxable under the head “income from house property”. The net income under this head is clubbed with your other income and is taxable at the rates applicable to an individual.

Stocks

Mindtree among top-rated IT stocks

The least expensive stocks are the ones with the lowest PE ratios and the most wanted stocks are the ones most actively traded in the past 15 days.

Opting for a gradual exit

With both global and domestic cues far from encouraging, our fund manager Dipen Sheth decides to cash out to reduce volatility shocks.

Global markets local reactions

How much does the performance of global markets affect Indian stocks? Money Today looked at select global indices over the past 15 months to get some answers.

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