A View From The Top
Jon Smith Subs president: 'Millennials are the future of franchising'
Jim Butler, the president of The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill and Jon Smith Subs, weighs in on why millennials are the future of franchising.
March 2, 2020
Editor's note: A View From the Top is a series featuring first-person accounts from some of the fast casual industry's most innovative leaders. If you are interested in being featured, send email to editor@FastCasual.com
By Jim Butler, president of The Great Greek Mediterranean Grill and Jon Smith Subs
Today, more than ever, the appeal of franchising is gaining popularity with millennials. This generation is defined by those born between 1981 and 1996, according to the Pew Research Center. Recently, millennials became the generation that is dominating the U.S. labor force. The growing interest in franchise ownership among this group is due to the almost limitless prospects and opportunities within franchising industries.
The business diversity available means young people who are interested in becoming franchise owners can research almost anything involving their interests and find a matching franchise.
Millennials are expected to have a positive effect on restaurant franchising in several different ways.
Purpose and community
One major reason that franchising appeals to millennials is that it offers them a sense of fulfillment from their work. Millennials need a sense of purpose and responsibility: they value being part of something bigger than themselves. In a restaurant franchise, this can be especially applicable to working within a team where everyone is focused on serving hundreds of customers per day and delivering a consistently positive experience each time. In this way, franchising gives the quintessential millennial the satisfaction of purpose and community, knowing their talents make a difference through their business.
Technological connection
Millennials are changing the landscape of franchising tremendously through technology. Most consumers buy online, and the way people interact is becoming more digital every year. Most franchisors have a system to generate leads online for their franchisees, who will become more dependent on that type of advertising. This will change the way that franchises do everything, from finding prime real estate to marketing their business.
Millennials who choose to become franchisees are more active and successful using social media to drive business. This isn’t because they have to; they choose to and enjoy it. The generations that came before haven’t taken total advantage of the promotional features offered by social media — arguably some of the most accessible marketing tools available. 
Another franchise business advantage that comes from tech connectivity among millennials is that these new business owners are more inclined to collect, review and comprehend data generated by business technology. Interpreting the data reported by a POS system in a restaurant, for example, is part of the daily work routine for many millennial restaurant franchisees. Referring to the data is a major advantage when identifying sales trends and keeping business flowing smoothly.
Longevity and flexibility
Most people who join a franchise system stay in the franchise system for the rest of their careers. If they want to make a change, many owners decide to join another franchise group after they sell their former business. This gives the millennials coming in at an earlier age the opportunity to invest more time in the success of their franchise, the option to own more than one franchise over their career, and, therefore, contribute to more growth within the franchise sector than any other. Strength in creativity and flexibility are characteristics commonly found among millennial franchisees - perfect for running a restaurant franchise.
In the restaurant sector, especially, millennials enjoy the freedom and autonomy to implement changes in real-time and see the results firsthand. The rise of millennial franchisors is, for many reasons, a great benefit to the economy and the franchising sector. Franchising gives the younger generation options to diversify and grow something for themselves, making the future of millennials in franchising very bright.
