Some of you may have seen the recent story being circulated by RFK Jr. that paints the franchise industry in a very negative light.
There is a major hole in his “franchises are bad for small business” fallacy.
Let’s imagine a world where McDonald’s wasn’t a franchise.
The idea that there would be a thriving, independent, Mom & Pop burger joint on every street corner is complete nonsense.
Brand recognition matters in business. Consumers gravitate towards what they know.
If franchising didn’t exist, the strongest consumer brands in the world would STILL be publicly traded or private equity owned.
The only difference is these massive corporations would also own the operating units instead of small business owners.
In industries that are dominated by national or international brands, franchising is the only vehicle by which non-institutional players (also known as “us common folk”) can get a piece of the pie.
My heart goes out to any franchisees who have been manipulated by bad actors in the industry. I can relate to a greater degree than I can publicly discuss at this time.
But the appropriate response is not to come for the throat of an $800B+ industry because of a few bad actors.
I hope the bad actors are brought to justice.
I hope franchisees that have been wronged are duly compensated.
Most of all, I hope that the franchise industry is alive and stronger 50 years from now to provide the same opportunities to the next generation that it has provided to me.
VP, Strategic Partnerships at freely Payments
2moLove this!!! Congratulations #hamfam ❤️