Franchise Industry Research

The 2024 International Franchise Association (IFA)/FRANdata Franchisee Survey Report provides a detailed analysis of the economic conditions on franchised businesses. While recent data show moderating inflation, the report showed these businesses have faced significant challenges over the past year due to persistently high operating costs and a slowdown in consumer spending. The report also shares some franchise sentiments on disclosure and tax policy.

The report highlights the ongoing labor challenges encountered by franchise businesses. Concerns of inflation has faded for the businesses, but the cost of borrowing and the slowdown in consumer demand has started to challenge franchises. Significantly, there is a notable increase in budget allocations for technology, innovation, and marketing as well as training and development, crucial for the success of franchise systems.

As new joint employment standards loom, franchisors are highly concerned if they have to increase control or reduce support to their franchisees.

The survey reflects a diverse respondent pool, encompassing 215 brands from 26 different industries with franchise units ranging from less than 10 to over 12,000. Executives from private family-owned systems to platform companies and publicly listed firms contribute to the varied perspectives presented in this report.

The International Franchise Association's (IFA) 2023 Franchisee Survey shows the impacts of inflationary pressures on franchised businesses. The report highlights that while inflation is improving as compared to 2022, it is still having a significant impact on franchised businesses across all sectors with the cost of labor being the biggest driver. The report also highlights a number of ways that being part of a franchise system provides advantages for navigating rising costs.

Ahead of the NLRB’s forthcoming joint employer rule, survey conducted in partnership with Oxford Economics shows significant concerns among franchisees with broadened joint employment standard, decreasing access to business ownership, causing disruptions to the franchise relationship, and increasing costs.

The International Franchise Association annual study on labor trends in franchising, showing that the availability of qualified labor remains the number one challenge facing franchised businesses today, conducted by FRANdata. The survey shows slight improvement in labor market conditions, but four out of five franchised brands continue to experience constrained growth due to labor challenges.

Like most businesses, the franchise ecosystem has experienced a negative impact of inflation lately. Approximately 90% of franchisees witnessed a moderate to substantial inflation impact in their business. Some industries such as lodging, QSR*, and child-related are feeling a greater impact than other industries. Being in a franchise system has helped franchisees by sharing best practices with other franchisees, customer marketing, and resolving supply chain disruptions. Some brands have helped their franchisees in employee recruitment.