A master franchise is one that is managed by a master franchisee - an investor who pays the business owner, or franchisor, an initial fee to secure the rights to scale the business under its brand name in a specified region. From that point onwards, the master franchisee acts as the franchisor of the brand within that territory, taking on responsibilities such as recruiting, training and supporting other franchisees in various aspects such as marketing, operations and more. The initial franchise fee that these franchisees pay them can be retained by the master franchisee, who can be regarded as a mini-franchisor, managing and expanding the businesses within the territory he takes on.

At its core the decision to open a franchise isn’t a trivial decision. You are making a serious investment, but if you take all of the factors into account it can be an amazing one. But before you get there you need to sit down, analyze your needs, capabilities and limitations in relation to a franchise business. This could take a few days to consider or a few weeks or months. In either case, it is one of the most important steps in the franchising process, so don’t skip it.

Possessing an entrepreneurial mindset is a plus but one should also have the employee mindset as well. This lies in the fact that even though the franchisee must have the steely determination and drive to launch a business, they must be willing to be restrained and follow the directions of the franchisor. The level of control for a franchisee is noticeably less than of that of being an owner of your own independent business. However the level of risk presented to a franchisee is less than that of an independent business owner. Therefore this type of business is preferable for those looking for less risk. If we were to prepare a checklist of the traits, which were to be present within the ideal franchisee, it would appear something as: