Background : This great fast food franchise was founded in 1954 by James Mclamore and his partner David Edgerton who are basically two very successful businessman in the fast food industry. Actually it's because they had the knowledge of how to run restaurants successfully that they were able to make a great history of Burger King. The first outlet was created in Miami, Florida and at that time the restaurant we all know today was not called Burger King. It was called Insta Burger King because they wanted to emphasize the fact that their food was done instantly so they could eat on the go. A Burger King franchise is expensive and you'd be surprised that although it is expensive almost 90% of franchises are not run by major enterprises. In fact many of them are run by family businesses and independent owners.
ISSUE : Should Burger King develop and strategy where a greater percentage of it's restaurants are company owned vs. franchised?
Analysis : Yes – Answer (Why) :
•Improved control over operations at the retail level.
•Franchising provides both a legal and institutional structure allowing detailed control over the individual unit’s marketing and operational programs. If you believe that it is critical for each unit’s success (as well as that of the system as a whole) that each unit follow recommended marketing and operational guidelines, franchising provides one of the strongest methods of achieving that objective.
•Ownership mentality.
•Similar to a dealership, but with more emphasis in franchising, particularly where being a business owner (not merely dealing with one product line among many) and is more likely to devote time, attention and capital to growing the business, following the approved system and not walking away from occasional business challenges. As one observer put it: “The best fertilizer for growing a business is the owner’s foot firmly planted on the premises.”
•Protect the Burger King