By HS Van der Linde, Business Development Manager – Retail Franchising, Absa Business Banking Retail franchising is a fast-paced and vibrant sector offering an array of opportunities to ambitious and dedicated franchisees. However, the industry is not immune to the economic difficulties sweeping the globe. With typically wafer thin margins set in an economy not predicted to grow more than a couple of percentage points, franchise owners are required to be more agile. The retail franchising industry that Absa supports can be broadly divided into food, hardware/building material/spare parts stores and the second-hand tradable goods sectors. Each sector comes with its own set of intricacies, challenges and prospects resulting in unique solutions being offered in a recessionary environment. Food retailers, for example, have seen a decline in margins of between two and three percent in the past 18 months. This is due to consumers having notably less money to spend. Major retail brand...