Finance.Yahoo.com:
Pursuing a franchise concept can be attractive for a variety of reasons: proven business model, layers of support and resources in place to achieve success. Entrepreneurs were once after a consistent formula — the cookie cutter franchise. However, today’s franchisees want the satisfaction of integrating their personal opinion or style into the development and future of their business.
Flexibility in franchising isn’t new, says Sue Hilger, vice president of franchise development for Kiddie Academy, an educational child care franchise organization. “Flexibility used to mean the opportunity to own a business and have a better work-life balance. That idea still exists, but now, the concept has expanded to mean that a franchisor is flexible in the structure of the business.”
According to Hilger, this flexibility could mean anything from input on the layout of a building to what vendors to use for marketing implementation. And sometimes a franchisor’s flexibility over a competitor is the decision maker.