The amount of money generated by franchising hit a record high of £12.4bn in the past year, according to figures compiled by NatWest and the British Franchise Association.
Turnover for the industry rose by £600m last year, a 5 per cent increase on the previous 12 months.
The number of companies franchising their operations in the UK also increased to 897, 6.5 per cent higher than the previous year and 15 per cent up on 2006.
The fastest-growing sector for franchising is catering, including restaurants and fast food outlets. For example, Domino’s, the pizza delivery service, has more than 650 franchised outlets in the UK. It increased its UK sales last year by 19 per cent to £485m and created 1,700 jobs…