NEW FRANCHISE SURVEY TO BE RELEASED THIS YEAR
In 2010 discussions between FANZ, Auckland’s Massey University and Queensland’s Griffith University, led to the production of the first New Zealand survey based on the biennial Australian survey that had been established over a number of years. Franchising New Zealand 2010 provided a detailed and comprehensive report on the status of the NZ franchising sector and formed the base year in the planned New Zealand biennial series to follow.
The new Franchising New Zealand 2012 survey is now underway and once again the survey will employ New Zealand academic guidance by Massey University and input together with the expertise and experience of the Australian researchers from Griffith University.
The Trans-Tasman approach will continue to provide an opportunity for international benchmarking for further reference and comparison between the federal regulated Australian sector and the self-regulated NZ sector. It will also provide information on how franchising has fared during the financial crisis from the perspective of both countries.
WORLD FRANCHISING
As members of both the World Franchise Council (WFC) and the Asia Pacific Franchise Confederation (APFC), FANZ plays a continuing role in the activities of both these organisations and as was reported in the last issue, the next meeting of the APFC will be in Auckland this November to coincide with the annual franchise awards.
The most recent meeting of the WFC took place at the end of February, in Mexico City, which was timed to coincide with the Mexican Franchise Association’s International Franchise Fair. FANZ as the current General Secretariat of the WFC was very involved in both the preparation and the running of the meeting that was attended by representatives of member countries from around the world and also provided a forum for discussion on issues affecting franchising in each country.
Two new members of the WFC were admitted to the Council at this meeting following a process of accreditation by the Admissions Committee. The new members are the Guatemala and Venezuela associations, which bring the total membership to 45.
The meeting was addressed by a senior official of the Mexican Ministry of Economy who confirmed the importance of franchising in their economy and gave an overview of the assistance that their government gives to franchises that includes zero rate loans for new franchisees, zero rate interest loans to franchisors needing consultancy to expand and a credit guarantee process to assist in the purchase of new equipment. These benefits are administered by a committee of the Ministry with participation by the Mexican Franchise Association.
In addition to providing updates on the economies of each country and current performance of franchising, all the members are now linked on a regular basis to exchange information and to provide assistance both with the development of franchising in their own countries and the provision of useful contacts for franchise systems looking to move offshore. A bank of information on franchising legal issues and economic outlooks is maintained and this information is readily available to FANZ members.