Without a doubt, the franchise system is already consolidated in Spain, it has reached a level of maturity that allows it to be placed among the top 10 countries in the world.
Last year 2023 marked a before and after for our own association. In the year in which we fulfilled our 30th anniversary, the Spanish Association of Franchisors was renamed Spanish Franchise Association, with the clear and firm objective of integrating both franchisors and franchisees. From this decision, which is now a reality, we represent the entirety of this trading system and the two parts that make it up, which cannot be understood without each other, which reinforces and enhances our representativeness before the different administrations and institutions.
And we have carried out this important and decisive change, in a year in which the franchise performed well, after some years marked by global crises. The data from our report “The Franchise in Spain 2023” This is how they corroborate it. In 2023, the system grew by 2,9% in its turnover, reaching 26.929 million euros, and 3,18% in the jobs generated, which already exceed 303.000. Figures and percentages that show that the franchise is growing again and, most significantly, that we predict that it will continue to be this way, in the short and medium term.
In addition to this national study, the AEF has continued to publish other reports, such as “The Spanish Franchise in the World 2023”, which reflects that 26,82% of our brands (305 chains in total) are already established in 140 countries on five continents, operating with 19.336 establishments, 2,8% more than in the 2022 international study; We also publish the seventh “Observatory of Franchise Jurisprudence in Spain”, prepared by our Committee of Legal Experts, which has analyzed the 850 rulings issued on franchise matters by the Provincial Court and the Supreme Court between 2002 and 2022, concluding that the level of litigation in the franchise is 0,09 % extremely low percentage, which continues to reaffirm that the franchise is a robust and effective business model.
Likewise, in 2023 the second study was carried out on “Women in the Franchise. “Spain 2023”, showing that women are advancing in management positions in franchising companies - 30% compared to the 21,82% they occupied in 2021 -, also having an increasing presence in management bodies and confirming that, in the Currently, 69,6% of companies have the presence of some women. Likewise, the increase in women entrepreneurs who operate their own businesses under a franchise regime is notable, whose current representation is 33,26% of the total number of franchisees in our country, compared to 32,54% in 2021.
2023 was also a year of celebration for the AEF, since the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism gave us the Plaque of Merit in Commerce 2023, as a public recognition of the continuous carrying out of actions, which have contributed to the development and improvement of the franchise system, as well as for our collaboration with the Spanish Commercial Administration and, in particular, with the Secretary of State for Commerce.
We could see this same involvement of public administrations with the franchise in the second edition of the National Franchise Awards, which we organized at the AEF, and which were attended by prominent personalities from the political world, such as the General Director of Commercial Policy of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Juan Francisco Martínez García; Marta Nieto Novo, General Director of Commerce, Consumption and Services of the Community of Madrid; Engracia Hidalgo, Delegate of the Treasury and Personnel Area of the Madrid City Council; Miguel Ángel Redondo, Delegate of the Government Area of Economy, Innovation and Employment of the City Council, or Reyes Maroto, councilor and spokesperson for the Socialist Party in the Madrid City Council.
Optimism for 2024
We have started 2024 with optimism and with the forecast that the franchise system will continue to offer growth figures at the national level, in all its variables, in terms of billing, jobs generated, operational establishments and new companies that decide to franchise their business concepts. . At the same time, we also contemplate a greater number of Spanish brands implemented in foreign marketsbecause the Capabilities continues to be a determined commitment by our franchising chains.
Without a doubt, the franchise system is already consolidated in Spain, it has reached a degree of maturity that allows it to be placed among the Top 10 countries in the world in which this formula of business collaboration has greater roots and continues to be one of the main business models that attract the interest of entrepreneurs, both when franchising their companies and operating businesses under a franchise regime.
With all these ingredients, at the AEF we foresee a 2024 with good prospects for the franchise as a whole, with sectors that have demonstrated their leadership and good behavior, such as the traditional Food, Hospitality/Restaurant or Health and Beauty sectors, but also in other areas, as long as they are committed to technology, innovation and sustainability.
In short, we are experiencing a stage of growth, in which the franchise system is expanding its implementation in all sectors, demonstrating the success of its business model.
Luisa Masuet
President of the Spanish Franchise Association (AEF)
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