Like most sectors, franchising took a hit last year because of the pandemic, losing close to 20,000 establishments and over 900,000 jobs nationwide, according to a report from the International Franchise Association.
But recovery is expected this year, with research and advisory firm FRANdata projecting more than 26,000 new franchised businesses opening in 2021, adding nearly 800,000 new jobs and recouping most of the losses felt in 2020, according to IFA.
Locally, experts are already seeing amped-up interest in franchising.
“I think 2021 is going to be better than pre-pandemic levels,” says Tom Scarda, a Wantagh-based franchise consultant and president of The Franchise Academy, who matches individuals with franchising businesses and receives commissions from the franchisers when deals are sealed.
He said people interested in franchises have told him they have money to buy in after putting off trips and discretionary spending due to shutdowns. Plus, others got a taste of freedom working from home and “never want to go back to the cubicle and the commute,” asserts Scarda.
Off the road
Paul Chirichella, 45, of Bayville, who’s working with Scarda to find a franchise, likes the flexibility that comes with being his own boss.
He was given a severance package on Dec. 31 after working almost 16 years in corporate financing for a Manhattan-based entertainment company that took a hit from the pandemic.
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