Franchise Industry Research

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 2023 Franchising Economic Outlook is IFA’s annual study in partnership with FRANdata detailing the franchise sector’s performance for the past year and projected economic outlook for the year ahead, as well as an in-depth state outlook for all 50 states and Washington, D.C. The report highlights sector growth across eight key franchising business lines and details regional trends, including the top states for franchise growth. It also provides key insights into the state of the U.S. economy, trends in business, and challenges facing small business owners.

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.

A 2022 Study on the Impact of Labor Shortages in Franchising

The International Franchise Association (IFA) and FRANdata today released an inaugural annual study on the impact of labor shortages on franchised businesses. Surveying over 200 franchise executives representing 197 brands and approximately 90,000 units, the results show that quality of labor is the number one challenge facing small businesses. The survey also presents the ways franchisors are helping their franchisees address the shortage, highlighting how the franchise business model is uniquely equipped to adapt to today’s challenges.