What Franchise - Issue 21.2

“EXPERIENTIAL MICRO- FRANCHISINGWILL BECOME A PRIMARY GROWTH DRIVER FOR COMMERCIAL PROPERTYACTIVATION” Nick Jones, Business Development Director, Lucky Voice “FRANCHISORSWILL NEED TO EMBRACE OMNICHANNEL STORYTELLING” Rachael Wenham, Head of Franchise Development, What Franchise and Global Franchise “MULTI-BRAND OPERATORSWILL DOMINATE THE FRANCHISE LANDSCAPE” Sadaf Kazi, Franchise Development Partner, Chicken Cottage “AI-driven candidates will decide faster and demand more” Simon Chicken, Event Director, International Franchise Show Working in the events industry gives me the opportunity to engage in conversations with a variety of franchisors. In 2026 franchise recruitment will become significantly more challenging for some and much easier for others, with the decision-making process becoming a lot quicker in the future. AI will produce more sophisticated and demanding candidates – those who knowwhich questions to ask and where to find the answers. Any weaknesses in a brand’s offering or track record will be exposed quickly. On the flip side, candidates will feel more confident that they’ve thoroughly researched their options, enabling them to reach a decision faster. In 2026, sustained consumer demand for ‘doing’ over ‘having’ and the increasing pressure on landlords and operators to activate under-utilised space will drive the proliferation of Experiential Micro-Franchising. Full-scale leisure venues are capital intensive, so the industry will pivot to modular, low-footprint, ‘box- in-box’ leisure concepts. Brands like LuckyVoice with our “Pods+” private room karaoke franchise model, are proving this can generate a significant revenue streamwhen integrated into hotels, large format entertainment venues or holiday parks. This “plug-and-play” franchise model de-risks diversification for the franchisor, provides an asset- light, high-return investment for the franchisee, and, critically, immediately revitalises dormant commercial square footage, driving footfall and dwell time. This strategic, symbiotic integration will move from a niche strategy to a mainstream commercial option, making micro-franchises a key element of a vibrant, varied franchise landscape in 2026 and beyond. Future franchisees are more selective, informed and value-driven than ever. In 2026, this will intensify. Prospects are researching across multiple channels, comparing brand stories, leadership credibility, customer sentiment and franchisee culture long before they ever speak to a development team. Strong branding is your first and most influential salesperson. Franchisors who show up consistently across multiple channels will win. Not because of volume, but because omnichannel storytelling builds trust at scale.Whether it’s a thought-leadership feature in a sector magazine or franchisee success stories on your website, buyers expect to see it all. And if they don’t, they move on. In a crowded marketplace, brand clarity and visibility are becoming the biggest differentiators. The franchises that scale fastest won’t just have great systems, they’ll have great stories, consistently told everywhere their audience is looking. In 2026, more operators will build portfolios of two to four complementary brands because it spreads risk, strengthens performance, and opens up new revenue opportunities. Instead of depending on one customer base, they’ll be able to trade across different dayparts, price points, and customer missions. A big part of this change will be the growth of store-in-store and co-located formats.We will see more operators putting several brands under one roof – particularly in service stations, transport hubs, convenience-led sites, and small urban locations where space is limited but footfall is strong. This allows operators to share kitchens, teams, supply chains, and equipment, making each site more efficient and more profitable. It also helps keep rent and overheads down while driving more revenue from the same footprint. Multi-brand operators will naturally become more efficient. They’ll recruit and train teams centrally, cross-train staff across brands, streamline local marketing, and negotiate better deals because of their scale. Franchisors will also gravitate toward these operators, recognising their ability to open sites faster andmaintain stronger operational standards. As customer behaviour becomes more fragmented – different channels, times of day and expectations – the operators with varied brand portfolios will be the ones who stay ahead. Financial partners will increasingly prefer this model too, seeing it as lower-risk and more stable. The most successful franchise investors will be those creating small ecosystems of brands that work together, share resources, and deliver stronger, more sustainable growth. “Franchisors need to build personal authority by stepping out from behind their brand in order to attract the right people and make it feel safe to invest in them” – Stacey Cann, MDof Daisy First Aid 55 WHAT-FRANCHISE.COM Interv iew | FEATURE