As layoffs and termination packages mount and companies feel the pain of the recession, more Canadians are looking for alternative employment. Some will consider buying a franchise.
People who have lost their jobs are “vulnerable,” and should be careful, warns Ned Levitt, a franchise lawyer at Gowlings in Toronto. In times like this, “franchising lends itself to con artists and flim-flammers” who will “take advantage of naive individuals.”
That’s not to say you should avoid franchising. On the contrary, a franchise can present a good opportunity for those who want to own a business.
Mr. Levitt’s firm recently surveyed 400 franchise owners, half of whom had owned their franchise for less than five years. The results were interesting. “The classic image is that they are people in their forties and fifties,” he said. Yet, 52% of respondents were under 44 years old. Read full post.
Photo: Peter J. Thompson / National Post – Financial Post.
