Articles

BUYING shares in a food franchise has been a poor investment in recent years, and the future is also looking increasingly uncertain.

Store closures underway or foreshadowed by Australia's troubled retailers are equivalent to one and half times the size of Chadstone, the country's largest shopping mall, new figures show. Against the backdrop of Toys 'R' Us and multiple other retailers hitting the wall, Macquarie Bank has compiled a list of companies winding back store commitments that shows landlords face up to 344,000 square metres in vacancy.

Franchising expert Michael Sherlock has called for changes to the board of the Franchising Council of Australia to tackle problems in the scandal-ridden sector.

I was recently in Phoenix Arizona for the International Franchise Association (IFA) conference and my Uber driver told me that every American city has its own dirty little secret, an area where the homeless gather. My hotel was only a few minutes walk from this area in Phoenix and I could feel the effects of this when I looked out my window at night to see shadowy figures walk through the hotel car park...

Franchising will be put under the spotlight as a Senate inquiry into the sector gets the parliamentary go-ahead. Michael Sherlock, former chief of Brumby's, has been critical of bad franchising but insists the model itself is not at fault.

7-Eleven has welcomed a forthcoming Parliamentary inquiry into the franchise sector, renewing its calls for reforms to the franchising code of conduct. Industry veteran Michael Sherlock, who co-founded Brumby's Bakery, also welcomed the inquiry. But has criticised the FCA's lack of leadership in exposing the "20 per cent" of franchisors doing the wrong thing.

A BRISBANE-based property fund is bullish about Townsville with plans to grow its investments here to more than $100 million. Sentinel Property Group has also suggested the State Government’s "terrible" decision to block public funding to Adani's Carmichael...

Brumby's Bakery co-founder and FCA critic Michael Sherlock has called out Billson for being ineffective at tackling the issues plaguing the $170 billion sector. "Mr Billson laid the blame on RFG's problems on landlords overcharging," Sherlock said. "Having spent 45 years in franchising I am passionate...