The Franchising Centre - Key Insights: December 2025

It’s been a long time since any of us could say we’ve had a “normal” year, hasn’t it? The last 5 years have been a roller-coaster of change and uncertainty, not just in terms of the pandemic and politics, but also in terms of how people think about franchising, technology, and what business growth strategy in the next 1-5 years will actually look like.

2025 has been no exception, but there is still a great deal of positive feeling towards franchising, and for good reason. While improvements have been a bit uneven across the industry, there’s definitely cause for a lot more optimism as we look ahead to 2026.

As ever, we’re always keeping an eye on what’s happening in the industry and how both aspiring and established franchisors can stay ahead of the game, so here’s a round-up of all the latest news and insights from our specialists:

International Franchising

We’ve seen an extraordinary amount of activity on the international franchising scene in the last 6 months. It’s always difficult to pin down any single factor for significant change across such a vast array of markets and cultures, but something fundamental has definitely shifted overseas which a renewed vigour for franchising as a business model.

Most importantly, a lot of that fresh interest is being focused on British franchise models, with a huge amount of interest from overseas investors in several of the brands we’ve been working with, as well as those we are privileged to consider friends and partners. 2026 is going to have immense potential for anyone looking to tap into new markets.

TFC Software House

Huge news from our Digital team this month!

If you were at the bfa conference in November, you'll have heard Piers Linney's compelling take on AI's role in the future of franchising. We're delighted to share that we clearly made an impression on Piers too - he's agreed to collaborate with us to bring his Implement AI platform to UK franchisors exclusively through The Franchising Centre!

Implement AI deploys intelligent agents that function as role-specific digital workers across your sales, support, and operations teams. Think instant lead response across all your locations, 24/7 customer support without adding headcount, and consistent service delivery across your entire network. This offers a genuine alternative to the traditional "just hire more people" solution, and is going to be a total game changer for franchisors in 2026.

We’ll be talking a lot more about this in the coming weeks, of course, but if you want to get in before the rush, you can book a chat with the Digital team whenever you’re ready and explore how it might work for your network.

Franchisee Recruitment

John Overdijking, one of our key recruitment consultants, has been focusing this month on helping franchisors take a fresh look at who they partner with to achieve their growth goals, and why moving beyond the idea of traditional supplier relationships might be the key to success in 2026 and beyond. Drawing on The Franchising Centre's own experience as franchisors of Access4Lofts - which has achieved coverage across over 100 UK territories - he offers a compelling argument for seeing recruitment support not as a transactional relationship, but rather as a strategic partnership designed to augment and amplify your existing team.

The core insight is particularly relevant for franchisors setting next year's growth budgets: strategic recruitment is all about bringing in the right expertise at the right capacity to ensure every process and system aligns with attracting quality franchisees.

Franchise Operations & Support

If you've ever wondered whether outside support might accelerate your own network's potential, hearing a fellow franchisor's unfiltered experience is probably the most reliable way to gauge it. Which is why this month’s blog from our Franchise Operations & Support team focuses on a series of honest, unscripted video conversations with Billy Densham, Director and Network Manager at Super Star Sport. He talks about what to do when growth stall, and how you can get back on track.

Rather than a polished case study, you'll hear Billy discuss the real challenges they faced: recruitment slowing down, franchisee support becoming more demanding, and the difficulty of knowing which improvements to prioritise next. Across four short videos, he walks through their decision to bring in external perspective, the consultancy process itself, and the tangible outcomes, including recruiting 10 franchisees in just 9 months after the stall.

Franchising Your Business

What happens when you realise your initial franchise structure wasn't quite fit for purpose?

We had some great insights from Billy at Super Star Sports, about what getting your foundations right actually means in practice. He reflected on the challenges the franchise encountered which could have been avoided with more structured development from the very start. Basically, if you’re considering franchising your business, or just reviewing the foundations of your existing one before you grow, the right kind of planning and advice could save you time, money, and a lot of headaches down the line.

Whether you’re just thinking about franchising for the first time, planning ahead for your next phase of growth, or just want to ensure your systems have what it takes to genuinely thrive under pressure and unexpected challenges, we can help

Want to take a deeper dive into any of these topics?

If anything has piqued your interest in this newsletter and you’d like to learn more, or even if you’re just curious to learn if The Franchising Centre could support your business, please do get in touch!