Jo Middleton is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, author and investor, and owner of the Franchise Business School and Wizziwoos Kids Clubs

As we reach a further period of economic uncertainty in the UK, it is understandable that there are widespread concerns within the franchise industry. Both household and commercial costs are rising, seemingly out of control, for franchisors and franchisees alike.

The franchise industry is known to be resilient. Franchisees come on board with a brand that is able to provide them with a security blanket of a proven and successful business model along with all the tools and support they need. It’s well documented how buying into a franchise is a lower risk than starting your own business.

However, it really concerns me when I see sweeping statements made about how great it is to buy a franchise during uncertain economic times. I question whether those making statements around a franchise brand being “recessionproof” or a “safe investment during a recession” are able to back up those claims by having come out of the last recession unscathed. Many franchisors have indeed been established for several decades and have already experienced similar financial climes. But is the economic downturn we are currently facing comparable to the last one, or even the one before? Perhaps. Perhaps not, as we had not just come out of a two-year global pandemic before.

It’s simply common sense that there will be some franchises that do commercially better than others during a recession. I don’t believe it’s fair or ethical to sell a dream to prospective franchisees when you can’t back up your statements or are prepared to guarantee the promises you are making.

Franchisors and franchisees alike have been forced to become more resilient over the COVID pandemic. There’s no reason why the franchise industry cannot continue to collaborate, learn and strengthen further together during any economic downturns that we are now presented with.

There will be many areas that are outside of our control; stressing and worrying about these and what may or may not happen is not productive, nor healthy. Franchisors will need to once again have systems and processes in place to reassure franchisees that they are protecting and growing their brands to the best of their ability, while also increasing network motivation and providing their franchisees with the ‘tool kit’ they need to weather a financial storm.

Franchisors need to take a strategic and measured approach, rather than being complacent or sticking their heads in the sand. Providing they are transparent and open with prospective franchisees, rather than selling a pipe dream and making empty promises, there’s no reason why franchisees looking to buy into their brand should not feel confident to proceed.

There will be many opportunities presented, both in the UK and internationally. Many brands will see a boom in the coming times. There may be diminished job opportunities and increased redundancies leading to more people with a lump sum to invest and the desire to work for themselves, but with a lower-risk entry level.

There are absolutely areas that are within our control to focus on, if only to ensure that we’re not swallowed up in the negative media hype, and we will no doubt reap benefits. We’ve had financial downturns before – and not that long ago – so let’s use them as learning opportunities to make sure that mistakes are not repeated. Researching thoroughly how similar businesses fared in the last economic crisis, reaching out to those who have already been through this for advice, and making contingency plans accordingly is a strategic way to approach this.

We can also all continue personal development, working on strengthening our mindsets and “catching” negative thoughts, flipping them to positive ones. It is possible to consciously control the volume of negative media we’re exposed to, and take time to work on our own wellbeing as well as the wellbeing of our teams and networks.

If you’re a franchisee looking to buy into a brand then you need to be doing your own due diligence. Look into the impact of the last recession on the industry you’re looking to buy into. Be sure to ask the franchisor strategic questions to reassure yourself that they too have done their research. I would recommend that you do some work around what your key values are and what your motivation is for buying the franchise so that you can make an informed decision about whether this is the right opportunity for you.