JEDDAH: In a young country, franchises are becoming more and more important to Saudi Arabia’s economic growth, generating jobs, tax income, and cultural change. A law was introduced in 2019 and regulations were expanded the following year, which helped open the Kingdom to foreign companies and improved the interaction between franchisors and franchisees, according to economic experts who spoke to Arab News.
Yaseen Ghulam, an associate professor of economics at Al-Yamamah University in Riyadh, claims that as a result of these actions and Saudi Arabia’s economic growth as part of the Vision 2030 initiative, the Kingdom now controls almost half of the $30 billion franchise market in the Middle East and Africa. Researchers and industry watchers agree that franchise firms will grow by more than 20 percent annually over the next five years and beyond, he told Arab News.
Given that the consumer markets in North America and Europe are suffering from unemployment, economic uncertainty, and rising living expenses, Ghulam stated that this offers a unique chance for foreign companies to join the Kingdom through franchising. By the conclusion of the third quarter of 2024, there were 1,788 franchise registrations in the Kingdom, compared to just 185 three years prior, he added.
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