Will These Franchises From Down Under Come Out on Top in America?
Take a walk down the street in Sydney or Brisbane, Australia, the world’s most franchise-crazy nation, and you might see a few familiar American brands like Subway and McDonald’s. But citizens of Oz are more likely to opt for a popular, homegrown brand like Donut King, Muffin Break, Bakers Delight, Mad Mex or Dymocks bookstore. Down Under, Wendys isn’t Dave Thomas’ hamburger kingdom; it’s a South Australia-born ice cream franchise.
Concepts that might have a hard time taking off in the U.S., like Melbourne-based Roll’d, which sells Vietnamese street food, and Schnitz, a Polish-owned purveyor of pan-cooked schnitzel, are franchise hits, while popular U.S. franchises like Taco Bell have turned tail and pulled out after failing to catch on.
But although many of the names may be unfamiliar, there’s plenty about franchising Down Under that Americans can relate to: the attitude, branding and overall feel of the industry. That’s because for decades Australia has looked to the U.S. for franchising inspiration. And now, as the Aussie franchise culture
