Thoughts on Franchises

I was driving down the main retail strip in my town the other day and temporary marvelled at the number of chain stores (many of which are franchises) that, despite the comings and goings of independent small businesses up and down the street, have hung around for years (if not decades).

My girlfriend's parents remembered back 30 years ago to the time that they were glad to be within walking distance of the Wendy's. Since then--the whole city has changed and grown around that Wendy's, and even though it's a giant national chain, it's funny the way how Wendy's has really become kind of a community anchor for this town and it's ever-changing business environment.

I can't tell you if that Wendy's is a true franchise or not (Wendy's both owns and franchises)--but assuming it is, the story above illustrates a few things to me. First, franchises seem to be relatively stable, although the Carland's sensibly raise questions about this common conception. Second, franchises still may be a great way to own (or at least manage) a business and many entrepreneurs may find this a suitable alternative to the world of independent, oftentimes untested business ideas.