Scenario: You own and operate Organized Space, a small business located in in the Midwest in the city of Jefferson, population 100,000. Organized Space specializes in designing space and installing furniture and shelving for customized home offices, craft rooms, laundry rooms, and closet organizers.
Your business has been profitable for the past 10 years, receives favorable publicity in the local media. For the past two years, you have expanded the business to customers in a few surrounding towns.
You want to expand the business further and are considering franchising. Before meeting with your business attorney to discuss franchising, you prepare a report that:
A. Summarize the advantages and disadvantages of franchising Organized Space
B. Evaluates the most significant factors to consider in the decision.
Learning Activity
This assignment focuses on franchise law.
Background: Refer again to the scenario facts in Learning Activity 1 regarding Organized Space.
Scenario: In 2007, you and Jill considered franchising but made the decision to not franchise and to focus on other ways to grow your business.
Now, in 2017, OS has been in business for twenty years. Several years ago, you and Jill, joined with 5 other business people and reorganized OS as a LLC.
OS has continued to grow by adding internet sales and by manufacturing its own line of modular office furniture. All the owners want to expand the business even further. You and the other owners believe that franchising is now a viable option for OS, both domestically and internationally.
You represented OS in conferring with a business marketing analyst and a business development consultant about franchising. Before meeting with the other owners to discuss what you learned, prepare a memorandum to the owners that:
A. Evaluates and compares the pros and cons of franchising in the US vs. franchising internationally for OS; and
B. Recommends whether OS should franchise only in the US or only internationally, or both. Justify and explain your recommendation specifically.