Chapter 21: The Future of Franchising

With industry trends and innovations continuously reshaping business models, franchisors face the urgent need to adapt and thrive in the face of change. 

One major part of these adaptation duties is embracing new technology. By doing so, franchisors can stay in the loop regarding franchising trends and business growth. While every new tech craze won’t be relevant to everyone, it's up to franchisors to keep a pulse on what's happening and decide what is right to use in their own system. 

Keep Up with Trends and Innovations in Franchising

As the world evolves, so do consumer preferences, technology and market dynamics. Whether it's tracking emerging consumer behaviors, understanding market shifts or adopting innovative business models, being aware of what’s going on in the industry is essential. 

“Keeping up to date with trends and innovations is one of the hardest parts of being a restaurant franchise,” said Blair Lalor, project manager for gourmet toast, juice and smoothie franchise Toastique. “We want to be able to lean into new possibilities without losing our brand, and it's definitely been a learning process.” 

Lalor added that Toastique does this by testing new big ideas, starting at just one location before pushing them out to all locations. And before moving ahead with any technology changes, the brand spends a lot of time calculating whether or not the cost and effort of setting up a new system will be worth it. 

Meanwhile, when it comes to technology and innovation at Wingstop, Craig Sherwood, senior vice president of U.S. Development, shared that the brand has a constant pulse on how the industry is evolving and actively tests workflow optimizations with a restaurant in Dallas. 

“We are choiceful in what we bring to life in our 2,000-plus restaurants worldwide, keeping operational simplicity, return on investment and guest experience top of mind when evaluating innovation implementation,” Sherwood added. 

Making Sure Franchisees Are Set Up for Success

Just as important as keeping up with innovation is making sure that franchisees are set up for success when implementing changes. Communication, transparency and support are key to making seamless transitions within the system. 

“During the process of selecting franchisees, we do spend a lot of time discussing the importance of growth and making sure the franchisees we move forward with are open to trying new ideas,” said Lalor. “However, we also make sure that when we select new technologies to move forward with that they will be as easy a transition as possible for our franchisees as to not complicate the process of things too much.” 

At Wingstop, Sherwood noted that over 90% of restaurant development is done by existing brand partners who continue to expand and invest in their organizations. 

“Wingstop provides 360-degree support as our brand partners grow, and we have strong relationships with supplier partners to position the business for best-in-class returns,” he added. 

Key Innovations in Recent Years

In recent years, the franchising industry has witnessed a wave of remarkable innovations that have reshaped traditional business models and propelled franchise systems to new heights. In the restaurant space specifically, online ordering has been a key innovation. Although propelled by the pandemic, it has proved to have lasting staying power.

“When the first Toastique opened in 2018, we did not have an online ordering option,” said Lalor. “Now, just five years later, we are fully online with our own app, on top of being available on Uber, DoorDash and Grubhub. We continue to grow in this area and will be having updates coming to our app within the next few months and year. Today, nearly a quarter of our orders are placed through online platforms.” 

Sherwood also pointed out that AI continues to be a buzzword in the industry and that Wingstop is testing the waters with it. 

“With a goal to digitize every transaction, we just completed an AI-enabled phone order test, converting phone-in orders to digital transactions,” he explained. “Early results are promising as we see an improvement in the team member experience, order time, guest satisfaction and an increase in ticket size with the ability to capture this guest digitally.” 

Looking Forward

In the digital age, embracing new technologies and best practices is not merely an option but a necessity for franchise owners seeking a competitive advantage. By harnessing the power of technological advancements, franchisors can continue to enhance operational efficiency, elevate customer experiences and unlock untapped potential.