The impact of external factors on implementation of franchising as a strategy of internationalization

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to emphasize the importance of franchising as a strategy of internationalization for SMEs and to identify external factors that can have an impact on the implementation of franchising as an internationalization strategy in the Republic of Serbia. The paper highlights the impact of external factors that are related to economic development and geographical and cultural distance between countries of origin of the franchisor and the franchisees on the implementation of franchising as an internationalization strategy. This paper is the first study on the impact of external factors on the implementation of franchising as a strategy of internationalization for SMEs from the Republic of Serbia. The findings show that external factors that are related to economic development and geographical and cultural distance between countries of origin of the franchisor and franchisees have an impact on the implementation of franchising as a strategy of internationalization. Franchise SMEs from the Republic of Serbia decide to implement franchising as an internationalization strategy in the markets of those countries that are at a similar level of economic development, which are geographically closer and that have a similar culture as the Republic of Serbia.