In going from worst to top of the system, Paul Hitzelberger put focus on the guest experience and building a team through real incentives.

With a mission to inspire and prepare people “to live consciously with themselves, one another and the planet,” Muse Global could initially be mistaken for an environmental nonprofit instead of an early childhood education concept that just began a franchise program.

When Pat Perkinson started working at Wild Birds Unlimited in the mid-‘90s she wasn't into the hobby of backyard birding, but, in the 24 years since, “I've become a full-blown bird nerd,” she says.

Job training can be a real bear, and I have the proof: C-C-C-O-B-B-B-E-T. It's a clumsy mnemonic device I created to memorize every ingredient of a Cobb salad at the Rainforest Cafe during two arduous weeks of training when I was a younger member of the restaurant jungle.

Two approaches to the hard job of hiring seem on opposite ends of the scale: old-school hiring parties that show off the brand's culture, and cutting-edge tech that standardizes and smooths the process. We examine both.

The numbers don't lie. Studies from Forrester Research have shown that making the customer experience your business is good for business. Brands that invest in experience register tangible benefits: their average revenue growth rate is 23 percent compared to 13 percent for those that don't. Given such a powerful incentive to invest in experience, franchises, too, are hopping on board. And they are leveraging a powerful ally to help them get there: technology.

There's an interesting dichotomy playing out in the urban retail scene as more cities encourage or require ground-floor retail spaces in residential, office or mixed-use buildings, while at the same time retailers and casual dining brands are facing an (almost) unprecedented wave of closures.

The ongoing shakeout in the retail sector has put renewed focus on the importance of structuring leases to avoid the potentially costly risks of being stuck in a poor location.

C-level execs from more than 70 brands arrived at the Rio Hotel in Las Vegas to detail their growth plans and connect with franchise lenders and investors during the Finance & Growth Conference May 6-8. The event also brought together the 2019 Dealmakers of the Year for an awards luncheon and recognition of Flynn Restaurant Group as the Deal of the Year winner for its acquisition of U.S. Beef's 368 Arby's stores.

In an environment where bribery is still commonplace, this Mr. Transmission/Milex franchisee did ‘everything by the book' to get her shop open in Nigeria, where she wants to bring transparency to the auto repair industry.