Exploring the Choice: Franchise vs. Independent Business for Optimal Profitability

The choice between investing in either a franchise or an independent business can be difficult because all of them are business opportunities and offer great opportunities in the form of profits. The main difference between is that investing in a franchise means inve4sting in an already established system. A franchise is a system that already has a well-developed brand, products, marketing, and operations. Investing in a franchise, therefore, involves buying a license into a business which gives out the rights to sell products that are similar to other brands within different locations. On the other hand investing in an independent business means that all the rights associated with the business go to the investor. The owner of the independent business, therefore, becomes t\responsible for all decisions associated with the business (Akalp, 2015).

 Another difference between the two forms of business is the lack of autonomy for a franchise. In this case, franchises make sure that they dictate all aspects of performance, products to be sold and the type of marketing to be used by the investor. As a result, this leaves no room for the investor to make any crucial decision about the franchise. The lack of autonomy is also seen where the investor is forced to follow all directions given by the franchise. Operators are, therefore, left with minimal aspects of control over the business. However, investing in franchises is best suited to those investors that have little background in business development and management. It is very suitable for those people who find it hard to establish a brand from scratch (Akalp, 2015).

On the other hand, people with the capacity and the patience of establishing an independent business from scratch can benefit from having control over all aspects of the business. It is associated with high levels of creativity, skills in management and leadership. Independent business requires taking full responsibility for every aspect of the business and thus translates to being engaged with more work (Kroeker, 2013).

Independent business also requires the complete design and establishment of a brand. Developing a brand is very difficult because it requires, marketing, product placement and advertisements which can be very expensive. Small business owners are, therefore, challenged with the task of having to get their brand noticed and this can be very expensive and consume a lot of time. They require a well-designed brand that showcases the corporate image of the business (Kroeker, 2013).

 One the other hand branding for a franchise is very easy. This is because it already exists and investing in a franchise means that the operator gets rights over the use of the franchise’s brand. When the franchise has a popular and well-established brand, then it becomes easier for the operator. However, anything negative about the brand trickles down to the branches and can affect the business. Another important aspect associated with the brand is that it allows operators to have a faster return on investment because the business will be recognized in an instance (Kroeker, 2013).

It is, therefore, important to note that independent business and franchises are different from one another. The main difference is that one is already established and the other one has to be developed from scratch. The choice between an independent business and a franchise can be very difficult because they are all business and are profitable. However, a franchise offers more benefits than an independent business. A franchise is already established and well recognized. It also takes less time to be in full operation and profitable as compared to an independent business which has to get recognized first before it can start making money (Akalp, 2015).