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3 Surprising New Ways the Franchise Industry Is Changing

3 Surprising New Ways the Franchise Industry Is Changing 1
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In many circles, the franchising opportunity is seen as a way for corporations to get even wealthier without having to run their own businesses. Franchisees can be viewed as the underserviced working men in the business who have to answer to cruel corporate bosses. While some companies have treated their franchisees this way in the past, recent changes are giving some of the power back to the little guy.

A franchise essentially works when an individual opens a branch of a bigger corporation. For example, all McDonald’s restaurants are franchised, meaning they are owned by individual parties, not by the McDonald’s corporation as a whole. Those owners, called franchisees, are able to use the established brand name and product in exchange for paying royalty fees to the corporation. Included here are a few ways the franchise situation has begun to change in recent years.

Multi-Talented Franchisees

In the past, many companies that sought franchisees would look for business operators who had no previous experience franchising, this would mean they could be molded to that corporations ideal business model. Fortunately, many corporations are now beginning to realize the invaluable talents many franchisees have from other opportunities.

For example, you may have already run a UPS franchise or Jiffy Lube but now you are ready to get into the big leagues with McDonald’s or Domino’s. Those larger corporations are now more likely to give you franchise access because you have previous experience across multiple industries. Franchisees are growing their portfolios and could end up owning 20 different businesses or more!

FDA Calorie-Counting

All restaurants who operate over 20 locations will now be required to have nutritional information on their menus, including calories. How does this affect franchisees? Many owner-operators who have been thriving in the fast food industry may see a downturn in customers or see a huge alteration in product sales. It can be hard to predict how the availability of nutritional information will affect revenue, but it is certain to cause some change.

Franchisors

In the past, many of the people who could afford to buy into a franchise were middle-aged and had a significant nest egg. Today, franchisors are pitching to a younger market, hoping to get younger, more progressive franchisees on board. This alternatively targeted market could cause a big change in the way franchises are owned and operated, as well as marketed to the general public.
The key to success in a franchise is in good business sense. Some argue that young franchisees lack the experience to successfully operate and market a business, while others believe the youthful outlook could keep them on the cutting edge of trends and technology. Only time will tell when looking at the changes in this business dynamic.

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