Growing a Franchise
In an era of shrinking disposable income, tighter competition and more data than ever, franchise boards are prioritizing KPIs that reveal real system health, not vanity metrics.
Boards are entering 2026 with sharper expectations. With inflation pressuring consumer spending and franchise systems looking for stronger operational performance, board-level KPIs are shifting away from surface-level indicators toward metrics that prove resilience, stability and long-term viability.
According to Chad Coulter, founder and CEO of Biscuit Belly, the spotlight next year will be on real performance — the kind consumers feel, franchisees experience and boards can trust.
“Same-store sales is going to be crucial,” Coulter said. “And traffic. I mean there’s just a tremendous inflation — whether the administration wants to admit it or not — that continues to be an issue, and disposable income continues to shrink. Restaurant visits are under pressure, and so those brands that are able to do what is not being done very often right now — and that’s grow traffic and grow transactions and sales — I think are going to be the winners overall.”
Coulter says the KPI landscape for restaurant franchises next year is brutally simple: boards want to see growth where growth is hardest to achieve.
“I think that’s probably the biggest one,” he said. “It’s getting more butts in seats, providing that value to the customer and guest to get them to visit more.”
Boards are increasingly skeptical of growth driven purely by development deals, price increases or system expansion. Unit-level economics must show real traction, not artificial lifts. Same-store sales and traffic are emerging as the two KPIs that cut through noise and reveal the truth about brand momentum.
Boards want to know: Are guests choosing the brand more often? And are those visits increasing over time?
These two indicators will define how franchise systems are evaluated in 2026, especially in industries where frequency and loyalty dictate revenue stability.
Franchisors love reporting big lead numbers and signed agreements, but Coulter warns that boards are no longer impressed by pipelines that don’t produce real openings.
“The lead pipeline and deals closed don’t really mean anything unless people are opening stores,” he said. “Someone can sign a 100-unit deal and never open one store. So I think the most important piece is getting store openings.”
In 2026, boards will look less at how well a brand attracts franchisees and more at how well it launches them. Conversion from signature to opening will become one of the most scrutinized development KPIs.
Coulter says two indicators reveal real pipeline strength:
Boards will reward sustainable, organic system growth — not inflated deal announcements.
As franchising becomes more data-driven, boards want clearer visibility into what is happening inside the four walls of every unit. Coulter says this means digging deeper into reviews, operational consistency and the guest experience.
“We use Ovation to capture internal reviews and we’ve learned a lot about what we’re doing well and what we’re not doing as well — opportunity growth places,” he said. “It’s understanding how well those operations are humming, where the places are where franchisees or us as a brand need to improve.”
Boards now understand that reviews don’t just reflect consumer sentiment — they correlate directly with sales performance, frequency and lifetime value.
But Coulter says innovation also plays a major role in next year’s KPI focus. “Making sure we’re introducing new items that people want,” he said. “Maybe more lunch items or just unique items in general. I think secret menu items for loyalty guests is something we’re going to play around with this year.”
According to Coulter, Biscuit Belly is also “leaning into… outbound sales or catering” and becoming “noisier within our loyalty program to try to get increased guests.”
For boards, these innovation-driven activations serve as measurable drivers of both traffic and brand excitement.
Coulter notes that every KPI ultimately circles back to one question: Is the system growing?
“From the franchisee performance and KPIs, it goes back to are we growing sales or are we not,” he said. “And a lot of that comes down to innovation, operations, reviews and just getting additional people in the door.”
Boards want clarity — not complexity. And in 2026, franchisors who can translate data into actionable insights and tangible results will earn the most confidence.
Want to learn more about how 1851 helps franchisors grow their franchises with confidence? Visit www.1851growthclub.com and see what we can do for you.
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