The Indian franchising industry has seen robust growth within the last decade. In spite of auto recession, the annual growth rate on the franchising industry in India has always been positive which is currently pegged at 30%-35%. The success with the franchising story in India is really a testament to the massive potential and promise that India holds to the franchising industry.
In India, franchising has gained considerable popularity in a variety of sectors, including, education and training, healthcare and wellness, it services, especially, the retail sector including, food and beverage, fashion and lifestyle, etc. However, franchising of items and services in India is in its infancy thus presenting to interested foreign enterprises an enormous untapped income opportunity.
A fast growing middle class population using a faster growing disposable income and propensity to invest is one with the paramount reasons with the mushrooming from the franchise industry in India. Additionally, the entrepreneurial character of India’s population and increased logo and quality awareness amongst urban consumers provides another impetus to franchising in India.
Apart from your huge consumer base, next simply to that of China, experience of international standards of products and services and accessibility to skilled, technology savvy and relatively cheaper hours, India has one on the fastest growing retail sectors. As per Business Monitor International’s India Retail Report for that third quarter on the financial year 2010, retail sales need to grow from $353 billion last year to $543 billion in 2014. Clubbed together, these factors present an incredibly lucrative home based business for foreign enterprises needing to franchise their business, brands, or a few.
Franchising is often a relatively modern distribution channel which allows foreign brand keepers to exercise an amazing degree of treating the manner and mode in which their items or services can be found and sold to consumers. It ensures efficient and rapid trans-border market penetration on the Franchiser, a way to take its brand beyond boundaries with minimum capital investment and risks.
Simply put, a franchise is really a business model premised with a license granted by one entity (the ‘Franchiser’) to a different (the ‘franchisee’) permitting use/exploitation from the Franchiser’s intangible assets for example brand/trade name, enterprize model and concept, image, marketing strategies and other intellectual property for that purpose of making sales or providing services inside a defined geographic location in substitution for a sum of money.
India doesn’t need a consolidated legislation regulating franchising, although private sector bodies happen to be lobbying for enactment of franchise specific legislation. Some key laws which impact franchising in India range from the Indian Contract Act, 1872, the Competition Act, 2002, the Trademarks Act, 1999, the Copyright Act, 1957, the Patents Act, 1970, the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 2000, labour and taxation laws.
Importance of your Quality Franchise Agreement
‘Quality’ in a agreement, in spite of its subject theme, is, inter alia, seminal for mitigation or avoidance of disputes between contracting parties. ‘Quality’ associated with an agreement could possibly be assessed on numerous parameters including: clarity in purpose, holistic/loophole free character; unambiguous provisions/terms/conditions without scope for contradiction; types of presentation; and a lot important enforceability.
A ‘franchise agreement’ is really a contract involving the Franchiser along with the franchisee which defines their relationship and inter se rights and obligations.
‘Quality’ assumes all the more significance in the franchise arrangement due for the inherent commercial and operational complexities within such arrangements. A quality franchise agreement must effectuate the main symbiotic relationship between your Franchiser as well as the franchisee.