As much as I think there is some merit in this franchise model, this franchise model has failed to gain any real traction, in fact I believe it to be shrinking. Franchisees report that sales are dissapointing and mediocre at best.
The biggest critisism, is that Stufflers leverages so much from Jumping J-Jays. The intranet, the marketing, the call centre, are all the same. While you could argue that this is actually good business, i.e. getting economies of scale, I'd actually argue that Jumping J-Jays is subsidising Stufflers, or at least disproportionatly reaping the rewards from the hard work of Jumping J-Jays franchisees.
Delivery
Bookings are taken though the same call centre as Jumping J-Jays Castle bookings are done. Your job is to deliver a stuffing machine along with the bear skins and other accessories to the customer.(there is also a pickup option). I've not personally handled one of these machines before, i'm sure its not as heavy as a Fun Factory but they don't look light.
Update 06/01/2016 There seems to be a mail order option now. I don't know how long this has been available but it seems fairly recent. So a few points here. First, the fluff is delivered to you without a stuffing machine. I wonder how much harder that makes stuffing the skins. Second, Why mail order at all? Is the system dying? If it is it would make sense just to ship everything centrally from their QLD office. Are the stuffing machines too much of a hassle to deliver? I always thought this was part of the overall stuffing experience. Or maybe the stuffing machines can't be used anymore (like, for safety reasons).
The Bears
There is a wide range of bears (or animals) available, and new designs are introduced every so often. As a franchisee you order the skins though the franchisee portal, typically at a few bucks each. John makes a (small) profit on each skin sold (as well as your usual fees, royalties, etc). Unfotunatly, quality leaves a lot to be desired and i've seen numerous complaints regarding the skins including on Facebook, with the hair falling out, breaking apart at the seams, etc.
Marketing
The LAMP (Local Area Marketing Plan) shares many simmilarities with Jumping J-Jays. Effectively it is based on visiting childcare centres, kindergartens etc and building enough rapport so that you can leave behind your marketing marterial and eventually convence them to have a bear stuffing event. For the event parents will need to fill out permission forms so that they are collected onto a database for future direct marketing. Unlike Jumping J-Jays, convincing childcare centres on your offer is more difficult than with Jumping J-Jays since there is a cost associated with it (for the skins etc).
It is interesting to note that certain marketing material that you deliver also has advertising within it for Jumping J-Jays. Likewise material for Jumping J-Jays has stufflers material in it too. It is argued that doing it this way helps each franchise system but this is very unbalanced - Jumping J-Jays do much higher volumes and has higher penetration on a per customer basis therefore Stufflers gets a lot more exposure than Jumping J-Jays does from Stufflers.
The Machines
There are two types of machines needed in this franchise. The first and obvious one is the stuffing machine. The second is a fibre puller, used in the manufacture of the copious ammounts of fluff needed in this business.
The stuffing machine looks alot like those giant gumball machines you see in shopping centres only that it is orage and full of fluff. They are imported directly from China and it is questionable that they meet Australian standards - some franchisees have had concerns regarding electrical safety and reliability.
The fibre pulling machine is an industrial machine in which you feed it plastic and it will pull it into very fine strands of fluff. Why is this needed? Well it is far more economical to manufacture your own fluf than it is to bring in already made fluff... think about it, you would be shipping 99% air. This lends very well to John Newtons need for thrift, this is a very simmilar concept to selling fairy floss (which he has done), taking something worth a few cents and selling it for dollars. Basically you are selling a bunch of air. But anyway I digress. This machine is also a direct import from China and is definitly the most concerning part of this franchise system, as you will see below.
I am not kidding when I say this thing is extremely dangerous. Their adherence to any Australian standards is dubious at best. The machines were shipped without any hand guards and are extremely loud, to the point where you'd need to wear ear protection. Given this business is aimed at having it in your home/garage it is entirely possible to have someone sneak up on you/give you a fright while you are working on the machine, because you can't hear anything, and therefore injure yourself. Worse still, the chutes on this thing are quite low off the ground so it would be possible for your toddler to crawl up in there. Such an industrial machine has no place being at a home.
I believe there was a franchise in QLD that was shutdown by the local workplace safety bureau due to this machine. what did John Newton do to remedy this situation? Very little. I believe that franchisee has now left the system (or perhaps, was forced to quit)
It gets worse. James Rizzato, Operations Manager, lost some fingers on this machine in 2011. This information is not disclosed to any Jumping J-Jays or Stufflers franchisee, and it is only through background sleuthing that this information was discovered. So not only did John Newton fail in his duty of care as an employer, he also sold these things to mums and dads to use in their homes. Also, how such a youngster came to be the Operations Manager in the first place is interesting... I don't suppose it was due to the accident in the first place?
Other Criticism
You pay a booking fee when a customer makes a booking, apparently these costs are directly attributable to the running of the call centre. To my knowledge the Stufflers booking fee is around $20 versus about $35 from Jumping J-Jays. Remember, this is the same call centre with the same staff taking the calls. Why the difference?