DTI assures support for Filipino franchisers
The employment that we generate, both direct and indirect, is about two million
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) assured Philippine franchisers of its continued support to help businesses thrive and survive under the “new normal.”
In his keynote address during the opening of the Franchise Asia Philippines (FAP) Virtual Conference on Monday, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said “the DTI has always believed in franchising as a tried and tested business model.”
“DTI will continue to support the franchise sector by spousing the continued reopening of our economy,” Lopez added.
Also during the opening of the five-day virtual conference, themed “Pivoting to the Golden Age of Franchising,” Philippine Franchise Association (PFA) founder and chairman emeritus Dr. Sammie Lim says he “believes that from the ashes of the mediocre and fake franchises will emerge a new breed of strong franchisor and franchisee to serve the pent up demand of the consumer,” as franchisers enter the golden year of franchising starting next year, hitting the peak by 2025.
“I couldn’t be prouder of how franchises in the Philippines pivoted under the circumstances. As entrepreneurs, we always believe that there are opportunities in the midst of adversities but we need to decide and act fast,” Lim says.
He noted that the coming years will be a boom for the franchising community for a number of reasons such as the growing number of people, especially those who lost their jobs looking at starting a business, the availability of retail spaces and the new opportunities in the new normal.
“But the best reason, perhaps, is that franchising continues to be the best model to grow your business and, if you are a new into business, the safest way to open a business is to franchise, rather than starting a business from scratch,” says PFA chairman Richard Sanz.
He revealed that based on EGS, a US-based franchising think tank, the Philippines still ranks among the best destinations for international franchises and garnered an average of 2.1, with 1 as the highest, 2.5 as fair and 4 as the lowest.
Sanz said the ranking was based on a number of indicators, namely, GDP growth, market size, Intellectual Property (IP) protection, ease of entry, ease of starting a business, corruption index, political situation, economic factors, long term investment level risk and projected COVID-19 recovery.
“The Philippines ranked high in market size, IP protection, ease of entry, economic factors, long-term investment risk and even in the projected COVID-19 recovery,” Sanz said.
While PFA president Sherill Quintana, franchising, before the pandemic, contributed 7.8 percent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).
“The employment that we generate, both direct and indirect, is about two million. And if we talk about taxes, the sector’s direct and indirect taxes can go up to eight percent of the total taxes collected by the government and help fund the nation’s progress. At least, this is how it was before the COVID-19 crisis. But by changing mindset, this can also mean that this is the potential of the franchising sector if we are able to manage the difficulties of the said crisis,” Quintana said.
The FAP’s conference was originally slated last March, but was cancelled when the entire country was placed under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Organizers said the week-long event was designed to help attendees transcend the challenges of the COVID-19 crisis and take advantage of the opportunities under the “new normal.”
Among the topics to be discussed include Shaping the Next Normal: Trends and Outlooks; Pivoting Towards Resiliency and Sustainability; Leading Organizations Amidst Disruptions; Embracing Digitalization in a Disruptive World, among other matters.
The event will also feature franchise and business leaders like Dr. Vicki Belo of Belo Medical Group, Hans Sy Jr. of SM Engineering Design and Development, Josiah Go of Mansmith and Fielders, Robert Trota of Max’s Group Inc., Jose Victor Paterno of 7-Eleven, Jose P Magsaysay, Jr. of Potato Corner, Kenneth Yang of McDonald’s and other sector leaders.