Exploring the Lived Experienced

of Franchiser and Non Franchiser; A Qualitative Investigation into Challenges,

Opportunities, and Satisfaction of Franchise Business Model

A Qualitative Research
Presented to the
Faculty of the Senior High School Department
Naic Integrated National Senior High School
Halang, Naic, Cavite

In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirement for the
Accountancy, Business and Management (ABM)

by:

JENNEVIE MATRANAS
MARCH 2024
 CHAPTER 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

1.1 Introduction

Franchise Business involves a contractual arrangement where a company grants

individuals or entities the right to operate under its established brand name and business
model. It uses the branding and operational framework provided by the franchisor. In return
for this privilege, franchisees typically receive support, guidance, and access to established
systems from the franchisor, and it must adhere to the franchisors rules and often pay fees or
royalties.

Moreover, Birkeland states the he met CEOs and executives during his three years of
employment in the front-line operations of franchise units for three different organizations.
He also attended a countless of trade events, conferences, and expositions. Due to his
extensive personal experience, he was able to gain unparalleled insight into the dreams and
ambitions of franchisees. His book follows several franchisees as their aspirations of
financial success and independence are dashed by unlucky administrative procedures and
legal nuances. In addition, Birkeland learns the challenges of operating a business in
accordance with someone else’s system and ideals through in-depth study and interviews. He
also learns what makes franchisees successful or unsuccessful. Observing a market
overflowing with competitors and dependent on the strange moods of customers, he
discovered the multiple obstacles that franchisees must overcome in order to build successful
enterprises. (Franchising Dreams: The Lure of Entrepreneurship in America, University of
Chicago Press, 2022)

As a matter of fact, there are over 1,300 franchises in the culinary, retail, and service
industries in the Philippines. Local franchisees have increased in number over the past ten
years due to the success and ongoing growth of local enterprises. There are roughly 55%
domestic franchisees and 45% international ones. Local chains like Jollibee have recently
even gone global. (Philippine Franchise Market, 2020)

Behind this study of Exploring the Lived Experience of Franchisees is a genuine

curiosity and a desire to understand the intricate interactions of entrepreneurship within the
franchising business model. As the reason, lack of business experience and training is one of
the main causes that franchisees do inadequately. A lot of franchisees could sign a franchise
agreement without having enough experience or understanding on how to manage a company
profitably. Due to insufficient experience, decisions may be made improperly, marketing
strategies may not be successful, and overall client demands may not be fulfilled. (The
Challenges of Poorly Performing Franchisees; Ana, 2023)

A budget shortage of purchasing and running a franchise can also be quite challenging.
For as much as when acquiring a franchise business you pay a flat price, royalties, and
occasionally a marketing fee to have the right to use the trademark should be paid. And this is
only the start. Potential franchisees need to take into account other costs as well. These
includes of office rent, the cost of supplies and equipment, employees pay, and so forth.
Many franchise business owners fail due to lack of comprehension. The best course of action
is to accurately evaluate the budget and determine if it is afforded to start a business.
(Gazizulin, 2022)

Despite the challenges, franchising presents a lot of opportunities and business

satisfaction and success. Franchisees can seize market opportunities and set themselves apart
from competitors by using current brand equity, economies of scale, and group resources. In
a market that is becoming livelier, franchisees can position themselves for long-term
sustainability and profitability by taking an actuve approach to creativity, adaptation, and
planning for success.
 This study aims to explore the challenges and issues that franchisees encounter in a
different aspect related to their business operations, such as meeting contractual
commitments, managing operations, and competing in the market. And also determine how
the franchising industry can enhance support, resources, and guidance for franchisees to
overcome challenges, optimize performance, and achieve greater satisfaction and success

1.2 Statement of the Problem (SOP)

The primary objective of this research is to gain insights into the lived experienced of
franchisees. And this study will investigate the challenges, opportunities, and satisfaction
of franchise business model.

Specifically, this study aims to address the following research questions:

1. How may the demographic of respondents be described;

1.1 Franchise Business Owner;
1.2 Age;
1.3 Gender;
1.4 Educational Background;
1.5 Geographic Location;
1.6 Franchise Business and Industry;
1.7 Business Size and Scope;

2. What are the main challenges that business owner encountered while operating their
franchise business?

3. What support mechanisms or resources that find most helpful in overcoming

challenges within the franchising model?
 4. How do they assess their level of satisfaction with the franchise business model,
considering factors such as financial performance, work-life balance, and overall
fulfillment?

5. What strategies they implemented to capitalize on opportunities for growth and

success within the franchise model?

1.3 Significance of the Study

This study will be advantageous for the individuals of interest as listed below;

Franchisees – The results of this study will be very beneficial to franchisees. Franchisees
are better equipped to make decisions about starting, running, and expanding their
businesses when they have a better understanding of the opportunities, difficulties, and
levels of satisfaction associated with the franchise business model. Having information
from other franchisees experiences can help them identify possible barriers, discover
successful techniques, and enhance their overall profitability and satisfaction.

Franchisors – Franchisors are essential in helping and advising franchisees. Franchisors

can better satisfy the requirements and expectations of their franchisees by customizing
their operational standards, training efforts, and support programs based on an awareness
of the lived experiences of their franchisees. Stronger ties between franchisees and
franchisors, better system performance, and a higher reputation for the brand in the
marketplace can all result from this.

Investors and Lenders – Lenders and investors who fund or lend capital to franchise
companies depend on precise and thorough understandings of the profitability and
possible risks of franchising. This study provides a comprehensive view of the potential,
difficulties, and satisfaction levels inside the franchise business model, can help them
 make more informed investment decisions. In franchise endeavors, this can help
minimize investment risks and maximize returns on investment.

Industry Associations and Advocacy Groups – It is beneficial to industry associations

and advocacy groups that work to advance the interests of franchise stakeholders. These
groups can promote laws, rules, and industry standards that promote franchisee success
and well-being by using the results of this study. All parties involved stand to gain from a
more fair and long-lasting franchise ecosystem.

Future Researchers – Future researchers can determine areas where more research is
necessary or where there are gaps in the body of literature by looking at the study’s
findings. This will ensure that this research target issues concerns within the franchising
business and help influence the direction of future researchers.

1.4 Scope and Delimitation of the Study

This study aims to explore the lived experiences of franchisees including the
challenges, opportunities, and satisfaction of franchise business model.

This is qualitative research will use phenomenological research design. Using a

phenomenological design, data will be collected utilizing survey questionnaires, focus on
groups, and individual interviews. Exploring the lived experiences of franchises will
provide essential insights for business owners.

The variable comprise in the study are franchise business owners that stood
bigbrew and ducatea business, specifically its franchise business or industry, and business
size or scope.

The locate of the study is limited to two franchise business model in Naic, Cavite,
Philippines.
 References

Peter M. Birkeland (2022). Franchising Dreams: The Lure of Entrepreneurship in America,

University of Chicago Press. https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/F
/bo3639849.html

Philippine FRANCHISE Market, (2020). https://www.trade.gov/market-intelligence/philippines-

franchise-market

Ana, (2023). The Challenges of Poorly Performing Franchisees.

https://www.haarsma.com.au/blog/the-challenges-of-poorly-performing-franchisees?
hs_amp=true

Gazizulin, (2022). Top Franchises for Sale. https://topfranchise.com/amp/articles/top-4-main-

franchise-markets-on-the-earth-in-2022
 CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

The research methods employed for the study are presented in this chapter. The following
research procedures are being described here: (a) research design; (b) population sampling and
respondents of the study; (c) research instrument; (d) data gathering procedure; and (e) data
analysis.

3.1 Research Design

Since this study focused on the lived experiences of franchisees, qualitative research was
utilized to precisely confirm the factual accuracy of the shared experiences. Ivey (2022)
described qualitative research. Through interviews, it is research aimed to assist readers and co-
researchers in comprehending why and how people feel the way they do.

In short, the goal of qualitative research is to comprehend the meaning that individuals
have created, or how they interpret the world and the experiences they have had in it. The
foundation of qualitative research is the understanding that individuals build when they
participate in the process and interpret a phenomena, experience, or activity.

This study uses phenomenological research design with main themes centered around
motivation, personal growth, and change, as well as appreciating oneself and one’s inner
existence. (Yadav, 2018) described phenomenon as “an observable fact or event.”
Phenomenology is a qualitative method that offers a theoretical instrument for study in
education. Its flexible activities enable researchers to describe and shed light on complex
phenomena, like many facets of the human social experience (Alhazmi & Kaufmann, 2022). It is
an effective research design technique that works well for examining difficult issues (Neubauer,
Witkop, & Varpio; 2022).
The main objective of a phenomenological study is to fully comprehend, characterize, and
capture the essence of participants’ lived experiences with a particular occurrence. Every
experience has both a material and an ideal component. The interview will be planned and will
start with some interest of the interviewee and forms to be filled out by the interviewee in
advance as well as in conference are presented. This view of interviewing cam be term
‘objectivist’, it holds that the goal of an interview is to record objectively the insights, feelings,
ideas, reminiscence and so on that are communicated with the interviewer (B Emans, 2019).

Lastly, phenomenology is a method to study that looks at a phenomenon from the view-
point of those who have experienced it in order to try and capture its essence [1] to explain the
significance of this experience in terms of what was experienced as well as how it was experi-
enced is the aim of phenomenology [2] diverse phenomenological approaches are based on vari-
ous conceptions of the what and how of human experience (Neubauer, Witkop, & Varpio; 2019).
Using phenomenology to study phenomena involves adopting an attitude of immediate witness-
ing and cultivating a conscious awareness of the world around us as it is opposed to how we the-
oretically or conceptually understand it and direct description is the process of clearly articulat-
ing the original meanings of an experienced or perceived thing (van Manen, M., & van Manen,
M., 2021).

3.2 Respondents of the Study

Two (2) franchise businesses were included in the purposeful sampling. As stated in the
scope and delimitation of this study, this is done in order to avoid controlling and/or restricting
the insights and sharing of certain franchise business owners. Based on the depth of their lived
experiences during the first interview, franchise owners were selected to take part in this study.
They were two franchise owners: one from the bigbrew company and the other from the ducatea
company.

3.3 Research Instrument

This study used interviews to get lived experiences from franchise business owners. This
was done in order to avoid limiting or restricting the franchise business owners' ability to share
their journey of successes and setbacks, realized and unrealized dreams, laughter and sorrows,
struggle and surrender, fall and rise again, significant choices made, and finally, opportunities
and fulfillment. The purpose of the guide questions was to avoid interfering with the franchise
business owners' common experiences. The franchise business owners' answers were in no way
influenced by these questions.

3.4 Data Gathering Procedure

The following procedures were used in order to compile the franchise business owners'
actual experiences:

1. A request letter was passed for approval to the Schools Division Superintendent.

2. The prospective franchisees of the two (2) distinct businesses that approved the research's
conduct were given a letter.

3. The goal of the study was explained to franchise business owners. Procedures were talked
about so they could understand how the study was going. In addition, the advantages and
disadvantages of taking part were outlined and addressed in order to foster openness and
establish confidence.

4. I guaranteed the identity of the franchise business owner confidentiality. I interviewed the
franchise business owners several times to make sure they were truthful, consistent, dependable
in their responses, and efficient in the finished product. Prior to the interviews, the respondents
were not offered any kind of reward or incentives in order to further reduce bias and ambiguity in
the data analysis.

5. In order to determine which franchise business owners' shared experiences would be valuable
and significant for the study, I conducted the first interview. Validity, correctness, and sincerity
were ensured by the recording and transcription of interviews.

6. Once more, during their interviews and story recording and transcription, the selected
franchise business owners who voluntarily consented to take part in the study were able to talk
freely about their real-life experiences.

7. Following transcription, the franchise business owners were shown the stories and the
narrative reflection for approval, validation, and reconstruction.

8. To support and validate comments, a small number of important individuals who were
acquainted with the franchise business owners were also interviewed.

9. Franchise owners were granted the freedom to discontinue participation at any point, as long
as they could justify their decision and could show that there was a risk involved in taking part in
the study.

10. The franchise business owners common lived experiences were categorized into themes and
offered reflection via eidetic insight.
 References

Neubauer, B., Witkop, C., & Varpio, L. (2019). How Phenomenology Can Help Us Learn from
the Experiences of Others. Perspectives on Medical Education, 8(2), 90–97. NCBI.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-019-0509-2

van Manen, M., & van Manen, M. (2021). Doing Phenomenological Research and Writing.
Qualitative Health Research, 31(6), 1069–1082. https://doi.org/10.1177/10497323211003058

Yadav, M. S. (2018). Making emerging phenomena a research priority. Journal of the Academy
of Marketing Science, 46(3), 361–365. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0575-0

Alhazmi, A. A., & Kaufmann, A. (2022). Phenomenological qualitative methods applied to the
analysis of Cross-Cultural experience in novel educational social contexts. Frontiers in
Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.785134