The past three years have proven the strength and resilience of the Canadian franchise industry. Despite recent challenges, Canadian franchising has continued to grow, as it expects to contribute $117 billion to the national GDP by the end of 2023, up from $100 billion in 2019. This makes franchising the 13th largest industry in Canada and the second largest in the world, with the nation also ranked high on the International Franchise Attractiveness Index. Canadian franchising is also an economic force when it comes to employment, with almost two million Canadians employed in franchising.
Franchisees are the cornerstone of this success. These local business owners are making valuable connections within their communities, and finding ways to adapt and grow, despite the many challenges they face, from labour shortages to inflation. The franchise business model itself helps to set these franchisees up for success, as they can operate their own businesses with the structure and support of the franchise system behind them.
For those looking to be in business for themselves, but not by themselves, franchising can be a viable path to successful business ownership. Alberta is uniquely positioned to offer opportunity, as it’s at the forefront of this franchise activity.
There are more than 65,000 franchise locations across the country, with that number expected to continue to grow throughout 2023. Alberta is leading the way in this franchise unit growth, representing 46 per cent of expected franchise units in 2023. The prairie province also has favourable business laws, with the lowest corporate tax rate of any province. Furthermore, Alberta’s higher household income means consumers have increased spending, which means more room for business revenue.
For entrepreneurial Albertans, this growth represents the vast opportunities for success available through franchising in the province. As the voice for franchising in the country, the Canadian Franchise Association (CFA) supports and promotes the efforts of entrepreneurs in realizing their business goals through the power of franchising.
The CFA provides valuable tools and resources to help prospective franchisees learn more about franchising as a path to business ownership success, and to connect them with available opportunities, through the Franchise Canada brand. This includes Franchise Canada magazine, a bi-monthly digital publication; the Franchise Canada Directory, an annual print and digital publication that includes information about the brands franchising in Canada; and Franchise Canada E-News, an e-newsletter sent to more than 27,000 subscribers twice a month.
Those interested in franchising can also turn to FranchiseCanada.Online, a digital resource that includes inspiring franchise success stories, franchise industry news, advice from franchise professionals, educational videos, podcast episodes, and more. The CFA also helps connect prospective franchisees with opportunity through LookforaFranchise.ca, an online directory of CFA member franchises that can be searched by industry, investment level, and more.
Beyond these resources, the CFA regularly hosts tradeshows, including the recent Calgary Franchise Canada Discovery Day, which took place from April 29-30. This event provided entrepreneurs in the region the opportunity to meet face to face with representatives from leading franchise brands and to participate in educational programming that covered the fundamentals of franchising, including how to find the right franchise, how to finance your franchise, and what you need to know about the foundational legal documents.
Franchising is a strong economic force in Canada, and Alberta will play a key role in its continued growth going forward. Finding the right franchisees to help build on this success is paramount, and the CFA’s Franchise Canada resources are helping to not only educate entrepreneurial Albertans about franchising, but also connect them with the franchise brands that are looking to fuel this growth in the province and beyond.
Learn more at cfa.ca and FranchiseCanada.Online.
