Daily Sun:
Mr Bigg’s, a Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) and a member of the UACN group, first opened its doors to Nigerians in August 1986. Seventeen (17) years later, it switched to franchising its outlets to solvent Nigerians and individuals resident in Nigeria who wish to engage in its kind of business.
The move raised doubts in some quarters as to the company’s ability to sustain the restaurant chain which had grown in leaps and bounds. And because this was happening at a time when the upsurge in competition had exposed Nigerians to a variety of other options amidst palpable scarce resources, the franchising move was interpreted as an end game of sort – a more dignified way of gradually doing away with that line of business.
Following this strategic remodeling in business plan, the marketing industry became wary that Mr Bigg’s brand equity could be seriously compromised under the franchising arrangement since the franchisees were essentially money people and not brand managers per se.