Down with Franchises!

[Jason76]

Everywhere you go, another dumb one on the horizon! In fact, so much it practically ruins the scenery - of otherwise beautiful places!

Well, franchises certainly hurt independent restaurants commercially - but also, they simply stink! I mean, regardless of what they do - they can't capture any local flavor. A McDonald's in Some Place, USA - is just another McDonald's - regardless of throwing on some local sports team posters.

Anyway, there was a case where Wal-Mart was actually leaving a town near me - and the people protested! Can you believe that? Well, to me, that seems like Battered Wife Syndrome - to be honest!

 

[tango]

The bit that annoys me more and more is the idea of "supporting local businesses" when the "local business" is just the local rep for the latest direct sales fad. The local rep who sells Paparazzi jewelry isn't a small business, they are just a small cog in a giant corporate machine that makes junk in foreign sweatshops and uses a network of people to save their overheads.

A small business is the kind of thing that doesn't have lots of reps, doesn't have operations in multiple states or countries, and involves the owners doing a whole lot more than just ordering a huge box of stuff and hawking it out for twice what they paid for it.

 

[Lamb]

People start up franchises because there is a marketable name already in place that's recognizable so they don't have to work twice as hard as a mom and pop shop has to to get their name out in public.

Not all franchises are food places. Back in the 80s my boyfriend's mother had a learning center that was a franchise and the name helped them build up a good clientele that they never could have gotten on their own. All they had to do was have a nice sign out front on a busy road and people knew what the business was and that it was trustworthy.

 

[psalms 91]

I would love to go back to the mom and pop shops but those days are long gone. If a business is truly local I will try to support it but the problem is price. They cant match a bigger stores prices usually

 

[vince284]

Franchises provide a much needed consistency. When I travel I use franchises and name brands because I don’t have the luxury of making time to meet the owner and try the business. I have not been to a local McDonalds in 10-12 years, but certainly have stopped at a McDonalds in some unknown town even if they do have a breakfast/lunch place with a screen door and much needed paint on the wood siding. For me, McDonalds is horrible, but consistent, that’s why they are big, because they are basically the same everywhere.

We have many local restaurant and businesses where I live, and they don’t really need to advertise. If they are good, then the local community will support them. But for some businesses offering a national brand or products is necessary for their survival. We don’t have the local golf club maker or the local horse shoe maker, we’re losing the butchers and bakers, but like Lammchen mentioned not all franchises are food. My local ACE Hardware is locally owned but it helps him stay in business because of the name and products associated with the name.
When people started to travel more than 30 miles a day, franchises needed to become national. That was good. I did stop in the only McDonalds in Buenos Aires, Argentina and bought an ice tea. Tasted exactly like any other McDonalds I have been to! Not saying it was good tea, but I knew what I was getting and had no complaint.

 

[Jason76]

Franchises provide a much needed consistency. When I travel I use franchises and name brands because I don’t have the luxury of making time to meet the owner and try the business. I have not been to a local McDonalds in 10-12 years, but certainly have stopped at a McDonalds in some unknown town even if they do have a breakfast/lunch place with a screen door and much needed paint on the wood siding. For me, McDonalds is horrible, but consistent, that’s why they are big, because they are basically the same everywhere.

We have many local restaurant and businesses where I live, and they don’t really need to advertise. If they are good, then the local community will support them. But for some businesses offering a national brand or products is necessary for their survival. We don’t have the local golf club maker or the local horse shoe maker, we’re losing the butchers and bakers, but like Lammchen mentioned not all franchises are food. My local ACE Hardware is locally owned but it helps him stay in business because of the name and products associated with the name.
When people started to travel more than 30 miles a day, franchises needed to become national. That was good. I did stop in the only McDonalds in Buenos Aires, Argentina and bought an ice tea. Tasted exactly like any other McDonalds I have been to! Not saying it was good tea, but I knew what I was getting and had no complaint.

Well, they don't always cook food up to their standard. You're often taking a chance at a franchise restaurant - just like as you would with something independent. Anyway, nowadays the net is saturated with reviews of independent restaurants.

 

[NewCreation435]

Everywhere you go, another dumb one on the horizon! In fact, so much it practically ruins the scenery - of otherwise beautiful places!

Well, franchises certainly hurt independent restaurants commercially - but also, they simply stink! I mean, regardless of what they do - they can't capture any local flavor. A McDonald's in Some Place, USA - is just another McDonald's - regardless of throwing on some local sports team posters.

Anyway, there was a case where Wal-Mart was actually leaving a town near me - and the people protested! Can you believe that? Well, to me, that seems like Battered Wife Syndrome - to be honest!

i'm confused about what you mean by "Battered wife syndrome."?

 

[psalms 91]

WalMart drives out local businesses and then they provide poor service if at all, so protesting the very thing that caused local dealers to disappear seems like that to me

 

[Josiah]

Franchises, by definition, ARE locally owned and operated. Someone (probably living in your community) owns and operates you local McDonalds, and likely is active in your community... it is as much a local business as any other. TRUE, the product line is largely prescribed (and sometimes the prices) but the owner LIKES that since the model has proven to be successful and because McDonalds supplies a great deal of support, training, help and more so that the business suceeds FAR more often that other types of local businesses. How many McDonald's do you see close within 5 years? Ah, compare that to non-franchise restaurants.


People love to hate Walmart, Lowes, etc. But notice how they go there. I tend to believe what they say by their feet rather than by their mouth.





.

 

[psalms 91]

When business is driven away not a whole lot of choice is there? I go there for prices but still frequent other stores in the area. Most are like me, they cant afford to pay higher prices so we go where we get the best bargain and for me that isnt always wal mart, I buy very little meat there and other things I go to a discount store for.

 

[tango]

WalMart drives out local businesses and then they provide poor service if at all, so protesting the very thing that caused local dealers to disappear seems like that to me

Walmart does nothing of the sort. What drives out local business is the people who choose to spend their money at Walmart. If you choose to spend your money at the big box stores you don't get to complain when the local stores (the ones you didn't support) end up closing.

Personally I loathe Walmart with a passion. I honestly couldn't tell you the last time I set foot in one of their shops. Unless the price difference is substantial I prefer to shop at local stores, and in this context "local store" means a place that is both local and independent. In my view Walmart and McDonalds don't count as local stores however close to my house they happen to be.

 

[tango]

People love to hate Walmart, Lowes, etc. But notice how they go there. I tend to believe what they say by their feet rather than by their mouth.


.

The only time you'll ever find me shopping in Walmart is if I absolutely, positively, can't find what I need anywhere else.

I buy hardware at Lowe's if my local hardware store doesn't carry it, or if Lowe's is substantially cheaper. I have been known to leave a product on the shelf at Lowe's to buy the identical product for a few dollars more at my local store, simply because having the local store exist has a value to me. If nothing else it means I can get simple day-to-day stuff without having to drive across town for it. For me that's worth a couple of extra bucks here and there.

 

[psalms 91]

Walmart does nothing of the sort. What drives out local business is the people who choose to spend their money at Walmart. If you choose to spend your money at the big box stores you don't get to complain when the local stores (the ones you didn't support) end up closing.

Personally I loathe Walmart with a passion. I honestly couldn't tell you the last time I set foot in one of their shops. Unless the price difference is substantial I prefer to shop at local stores, and in this context "local store" means a place that is both local and independent. In my view Walmart and McDonalds don't count as local stores however close to my house they happen to be.

Bingo

 

[Josiah]

Walmart, Target. Home Depot.... none of these are franchises, each is owned and operated by the corporation. The topic here is franchises.

I can appreciate how some don't like big, popular businesses coming into their community, and sometimes small "mom and pop" stores fear them and the enormous success they tend to have. I get it. But what TENDS to be true is that the "mom and pop" businesses that are hurt by them are because customers often prefer the incoming businesses. If people prefer the "Mom's Hardware" to "Home Depot" then the Home Depot will close in a year. More often, it's the other way around. Maybe that's sad... but businesses tend to be customer driven, customers vote with their feet and not their mouths... I'd agree they don't always vote wisely, but what is, is.

It should be noted, too, that HISTORICALLY being very popular and successful (and thus displacing lesser businesses) guarentees nothing long term. Consider Pizza Hut or Radio Shack or even Sears. When the "big name" business cease being better, people vote with their feet and those businesses suffer. The past counts for not much - whether one be a big national brand or a tiny mom and pop. Customers look for what they want, how they want it. And where I live, there is a huge uprising of local breweries and cafes - they are springing up all over the place - in part because the "big boxes" aren't responding to the desire and because the very nature of these businesses invites small and local. It's mean out there. Survival ain't easy, thriving downright hard. But when customers are given a choice, they will make it and thus they will be the determining factor (unless the government discounts them, as socialism does).

 

[tango]

Walmart, Target. Home Depot.... none of these are franchises, each is owned and operated by the corporation. The topic here is franchises.

I can appreciate how some don't like big, popular businesses coming into their community, and sometimes small "mom and pop" stores fear them and the enormous success they tend to have. I get it. But what TENDS to be true is that the "mom and pop" businesses that are hurt by them are because customers often prefer the incoming businesses. If people prefer the "Mom's Hardware" to "Home Depot" then the Home Depot will close in a year. More often, it's the other way around. Maybe that's sad... but businesses tend to be customer driven, customers vote with their feet and not their mouths... I'd agree they don't always vote wisely, but what is, is.

It should be noted, too, that HISTORICALLY being very popular and successful (and thus displacing lesser businesses) guarentees nothing long term. Consider Pizza Hut or Radio Shack or even Sears. When the "big name" business cease being better, people vote with their feet and those businesses suffer. The past counts for not much - whether one be a big national brand or a tiny mom and pop. Customers look for what they want, how they want it. And where I live, there is a huge uprising of local breweries and cafes - they are springing up all over the place - in part because the "big boxes" aren't responding to the desire and because the very nature of these businesses invites small and local. It's mean out there. Survival ain't easy, thriving downright hard. But when customers are given a choice, they will make it and thus they will be the determining factor (unless the government discounts them, as socialism does).

Part of the issue is the way people want what is familiar to them. Often people will choose something of low but known quality over something unknown even if it is likely to be better quality.

You don't have to look very far to find examples like an independent restaurant serving Mexican food, cooked in an authentic manner by Mexican people using traditional Mexican recipes, closing down because a Taco Bell opened down the road and people decided to get "Mexican" food at the Taco Bell instead of the authentic Mexican food. It's not even as if Taco Bell's food is better, about all it offers is that it's moderately cheap.

It's far from rare that I wonder in disbelief, when I drive past a McDonalds and see a huge line of cars waiting at the drive-thru to pay over the odds for garbage. The thing I really don't understand is when people go on vacation and the first thing they do in the area they are visiting is look for the McDonalds and eat there. When I'm visiting an area I don't want the food and drink I can get back home because, well, I can get it at home. I want to try something local, a locally sourced and made meal, a locally brewed beer, a local restaurant, whatever.

 

[psalms 91]

Yup I also dont do McDonalds etc.

 

[Jason76]

Part of the issue is the way people want what is familiar to them. Often people will choose something of low but known quality over something unknown even if it is likely to be better quality.

You don't have to look very far to find examples like an independent restaurant serving Mexican food, cooked in an authentic manner by Mexican people using traditional Mexican recipes, closing down because a Taco Bell opened down the road and people decided to get "Mexican" food at the Taco Bell instead of the authentic Mexican food. It's not even as if Taco Bell's food is better, about all it offers is that it's moderately cheap.

It's far from rare that I wonder in disbelief, when I drive past a McDonalds and see a huge line of cars waiting at the drive-thru to pay over the odds for garbage. The thing I really don't understand is when people go on vacation and the first thing they do in the area they are visiting is look for the McDonalds and eat there. When I'm visiting an area I don't want the food and drink I can get back home because, well, I can get it at home. I want to try something local, a locally sourced and made meal, a locally brewed beer, a local restaurant, whatever.

Well, the appeal of independent restaurants might be the same. What I mean is that people would rather go where they feel "at home" - even if the food is mediocre.

 

[psalms 91]

People like quick and easy because McDonalds is overpriced and not so good but yet people flock there

 

[tango]

People like quick and easy because McDonalds is overpriced and not so good but yet people flock there

it's overpriced, low quality and, given the lines at the drive thru, it's hard to see how it's even quick or easy.

 

[tango]

Well, the appeal of independent restaurants might be the same. What I mean is that people would rather go where they feel "at home" - even if the food is mediocre.

That's the thing - people seek what is familiar even if they know it's trash. Hence the thriving authentic Mexican restaurant shuts down because a low-quality kinda-sorta-Mexican-style fast food joint opens up a mile away and people go there because they know what it is.