Steps to franchising your business

Steps to franchising your business

Franchising has found a fertile ground in the Middle East and North Africa region, where the industry is valued at more than USD 30 billion, with annual growth at an impressive 27%, Charafeddine pointed out."The Middle East markets are lucrative in terms of volume with a presence of more than 400,000 high-net-worth individuals, each with liquid assets of more than USD 5 million to invest in new businesses,“ he explained. "That means over 13% of the population are very rich and together have available funds of more than USD 2 trillion. Developing proven business franchise opportunities and encouraging investment in the domain can go a long way in sustaining the MENA economic future.“GCC franchising issuesAs a global consultancy, the US-based Francorp has been operating since 1976. But realising the growing potential of the Middle East, the company set up its regional office in Dubai more than a decade ago.In the Gulf region, Charafeddine said despite promising growth prospects, the lack of an official franchise association, which can support and provide the legal framework for a region-wide industry progress, is an underlying issue facing the sector."For entrepreneurs, some of the challenges are lack of knowledge on their strategic decision and specifically