Franchising - a short history

Franchising as we know it today originated with the Singer Sewing Centre developed by Isaac Singer in 1858. After he had invented the sewing machine, Singer encountered two problems when he took it to the market. The first was that customers had to be taught how to use the new invention before they would buy it. The second was that Singer did not have enough capital to manufacture his machine in large numbers. He then came up with the idea of selling the rights to local business people to sell the sewing machine and train those who bought it. Once he embarked on this route his enterprise expanded rapidly. Fees earned from the licence rights helped to fund his manufacturing costs and, because each franchise was self-financed, Singer was able to tap into the entrepreneurial attributes of his franchisees.

This franchise model was copied in several industries. Coca-Cola was able to expand throughout the United States by shifting the burden of manufacturing, storing and distributing its product to local business people who acquired bottling rights. Car manufacturers who had been spending enormous amounts of capital tooling their assembly lines found they could develop retail distribution networks using capital provided by independent dealers. Oil companies such as Standard Oil and Texaco granted franchises to convenience stores and repair mechanics across the US. In the 1950's Ray Kroc saw the potential in franchising a successful hamburger stand. He has been compared to Henry Ford for bringing the assembly line to the fast food industry. Be they coffee and sandwich bars, fried chicken, pizza or taco diners, many food outlets are now franchised.

Franchising - a short history - To learn more about this author, visit Diarmuid Kieran's Website.

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