After looking around on the net for opinions about the future of franchising I can only come to the conclusion that Franchising is the future of doing business. According to many of the articles I found the reason for this is that it gives "new business owners the best possible chance of succeeding with the least risk." (www.zeromillion.com) Most people seem to agree that within 1 or 2 decades 50% of the retail economy will comprise franchises. That the growth of franchising is inevitable should be clear. According to www.franchiseperfection.com “The future of franchising is as bright as ever and if you are ready to take the step and go into business for yourself, franchising is the vehicle to take you where you want to be in the 21st century.”

The question that I now ask myself is “What will this do to the average shopping-centre?” If I were to walk through a shopping-centre in a randomly chosen town will I see any difference with the town I just came from. I hope not and I think for franchises to be successful in the future that there will have to be diversity within the franchise otherwise no one will travel from their comfort area to shop elsewhere.

This al leads to the next question I have to ask myself “How would I adapt a franchise formula to be unique in many different locations without losing the things that make my franchise recognizable to customers?”