English-speaking French chartered accounting firm specializing in retail distribution and franchise networks: margin steering, shrinkage, TASCOM, NF525 POS compliance, DIP, entry fee, royalties, multi-site, holding, statutory audit and acquisition due diligence.
Hayot Expertise supports retail distribution networks, brick-and-mortar shops, e-commerce pure players, omnichannel retailers, single-unit franchisees, multi-unit franchisees and franchisors with their accounting, statutory audit, taxation and management reporting. Our firm is registered with the French Order of Chartered Accountants (OEC Paris-Île-de-France) and authorised as a statutory auditor (CNCC). We work in French and in English with international brands and foreign-owned subsidiaries.
Margin protection, inventory shrinkage, promotional ROI, franchisor relationship, sector-specific collective agreements, TASCOM (commercial surface tax), NF525-certified cash registers, multi-rate VAT, OSS for EU sales, commercial leases: we handle the topics that actually drive a store's profitability — not just the year-end close.
Retail operators face structural margin compression: pressure on purchase prices, rising fixed costs (rent, energy, payroll), fast-changing consumer behaviour and the omnichannel shift between physical stores, e-commerce and marketplaces. Steering the business requires fine-grained financial information — cost-of-goods composition, margin by product family or department, average basket monitoring, inventory turnover — produced monthly, not annually.
For franchise networks, additional constraints apply: turnover-based royalties, franchisor-mandated reporting, DIP compliance, capitalised entry fee, and operational standards (POS software, ERP, supply chain) often imposed by the network. The accounting, tax and legal technicality goes beyond a typical independent retailer.
As your chartered accountant, our bookkeeping or review engagement supports you to:
If your French entity is a subsidiary of a foreign group or a venture-backed company, we produce bilingual periodic reporting (FR/EN) for parent companies and investors, with US GAAP / IFRS reconciliation against French PCG when required.
As statutory auditor, we adopt a constructive and pragmatic approach combining substantive testing with a process review (purchasing, inventory, cash collection, payroll), in close cooperation with your teams. The goal: build trust and provide actionable internal control recommendations — particularly valuable for multi-site franchise holdings and foreign-owned subsidiaries.
We handle recurring and ad-hoc tax filings — VAT (real normal or simplified), CFE, CVAE, TASCOM (form n°3350), corporate income tax, tax bundle (liasse) — review eligibility for R&D and innovation tax credits (CIR/CII), defend you during tax audits (URSSAF, vérification de comptabilité, ESFP), and monitor each Finance Act affecting retail and franchise operators.
Hayot Expertise masters the main collective agreements (conventions collectives) applicable to retail and franchise: non-food retail (IDCC 1517), food retail (IDCC 2216), fast food (IDCC 1501), ready-to-wear apparel (IDCC 1483), DIY/home improvement (IDCC 1606), footwear and personal equipment (IDCC 733). We run payroll, file DSN monthly, manage provident scheme affiliations, defend you during URSSAF inspections, and connect you with employment lawyers for any tribunal litigation.
Our in-house legal team handles annual corporate housekeeping (AGM minutes, accounts filing), deed drafting (share transfers, by-law amendments, capital increases), commercial registry filings, and corporate restructuring (contributions, mergers, spin-offs, holding creation above multiple franchises).
Whenever a growth opportunity arises — buyout of a competing store, takeover of an existing franchise, acquisition of an independent retailer — we run a full financial due diligence before you commit: EBITDA normalisation, margin-by-family analysis, inventory and shrinkage audit, lease review, social and tax compliance check. For franchise targets we add the DIP and franchise contract analysis.
The entry fee (initial fee) is an intangible fixed asset on the balance sheet, not an expense. It is amortised over the franchise contract term, typically 5–10 years. Treating it as an immediate expense is incorrect under French PCG and creates both an accounting error and an overstated tax deduction — a guaranteed audit finding.
Example: €30,000 entry fee on a 7-year contract → €4,286/year deductible amortisation → €643/year IS saving at the 15% reduced rate.
Periodic operating royalties (3% to 8% of net revenue depending on the network) are fully deductible operating expenses. Franchisees must monthly reconcile the rate billed against the contract — undetected drift over 12 months can represent thousands of euros in unjustified charges.
Franchisors must deliver the DIP at least 20 days before signing. It contains network financials, existing franchisee results and operating projections. We review it before signature to test the realism of revenue assumptions and the margin viability after royalties.
Franchise is a popular entry route for foreign entrepreneurs — it offers a proven brand and system while you build French operational experience.
French Disclosure Obligation (DIP): France's Loi Doubin (since 1989) requires franchisors to provide a full disclosure document (Document d'Information Précontractuel) at least 20 days before signing. Franchisees who receive the DIP late or have fewer than 20 days to review it can have the contract voided in court. This 20-day window is mandatory and non-negotiable — it applies equally to French franchisors and international networks operating in France.
Accounting for the entry fee (droit d'entrée): the one-time franchise entry fee is an intangible asset (immobilisation incorporelle) amortised over the franchise contract term — typically 5–10 years. Treating it as an immediate expense is incorrect under French PCG.
Cross-border royalties — transfer pricing: when royalties flow to a foreign master franchisor, we document arm's length pricing using CMS or TNMM methodology and prepare the contemporaneous documentation expected in case of a French tax audit.
TASCOM applies to retail stores with a sales area exceeding 400 m² and revenue above €460,000. The taxable area covers customer circulation, product display, payment areas and staff circulation for selling — but excludes production, storage and zones closed to the public. The rate depends on revenue per m²; some categories (furniture, vehicles, building materials, garden centres, pet stores) benefit from a 30% reduction. We compute the base, file form n°3350 and secure the accounting treatment.
The fonds de commerce is the bundle of all tangible (inventory, equipment, fixtures) and intangible (customer base, lease right, sign, trade name) elements operating the business. The fonds commercial is only the residual intangible component — customer base, sign, trade name, market share — which cannot be allocated elsewhere on the balance sheet.
Under the French ANC standards, commercial goodwill is presumed to have an indefinite useful life and is therefore not amortised, but is subject to an annual impairment test. The presumption can be rebutted when the operating period is objectively limited (fixed-term franchise contract). Small entities may opt for a flat-rate 10-year amortisation (PCG art. 214-3) without impairment test. For tax purposes, amortisation is generally not deductible, except for an objectively limited useful life and outside the temporary regime under article 23 of the 2022 Finance Act (acquisitions between 01/01/2022 and 31/12/2025).
| Sector | Main VAT rate | Watch-out |
|---|---|---|
| Fast food | 10% on-site, 5.5% takeaway | Mixed rates per order format |
| Food retail | 5.5% or 20% by aisle | Product-by-product classification |
| Personal services | 20% | Check potential exemptions |
| Real estate (agencies) | 20% on commission | Base exemption below €37,500 |
| EU B2C e-commerce | Destination country rate | OSS once EU revenue > €10,000/year |
Incorrect VAT setup in a NF525-certified POS or in the franchisor's ERP is the leading cause of tax reassessment among retailers and franchisees. We audit the configuration at opening and at every annual review.
Since 2018, every VAT-liable retailer using POS software to record payments must use NF525-certified software (or an editor's attestation), guaranteeing inalterability, security, retention and archiving of data — under penalty of a €7,500 fine per non-compliant software, per company. We verify your POS software (often imposed by the franchisor) and keep the editor's attestation in your permanent file.
Inventory shrinkage (theft, breakage, register errors, fraud) averages 1% to 2% of revenue in food retail and up to 3% in personal equipment. On €1m of revenue, reducing shrinkage from 1.5% to 0.8% recovers €7,000 of gross margin per year, with no price change.
We implement: rolling quarterly inventories by product family, monthly reconciliation between theoretical (POS) and physical stock, random till checks, and a formalised internal control plan (segregation of duties between cashing, receiving and inventory).
| Indicator | Formula | Alert threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Royalties / revenue | (Royalties + ad fund) / net revenue | > 10% |
| Margin after royalties | (Revenue − COGS − Royalties) / Revenue | < 50% in fast food |
| Shrinkage / revenue | Recorded shrinkage / net revenue | > 1.5% food / 3% apparel |
| Payroll / revenue | Personnel costs / net revenue | > 35% |
| EBITDA per site | Earnings before D&A and interest | < 8% of revenue |
| Inventory turnover | Revenue / Average inventory | < 6 = dormant stock |
📞 Request a discovery meeting — 58 rue de Monceau, 75008 Paris.
Wherever you are in France, we deploy a 100% digital interface to deliver fast, highly-structured accounting and financial steering.
Samuel Hayot is a French chartered accountant and statutory auditor registered with the Paris professional bodies.
The firm is based in Paris 8 and operates with a delivery model designed for businesses located across France.
Pennylane, Dext, Silae and an automation-first setup built for visibility and speed.
Visible phone number, simple contact path, fast engagement letter and tighter qualification of the mandate.
30 complimentary minutes with Samuel Hayot to challenge your reporting and surface your priority levers.
Chartered Accountant, registered with the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
Regulated French accounting and audit firm based in Paris 8, built to support companies across France with a digital and decision-oriented approach.