Cambodia's Economic Growth Sparks Franchise Boom

Speaking at the Cafe Cambodia and Franchise & Licensing Cambodia Exhibition 2017, which is being held at Diamond Island Convention Centre from May 4-6, Conference and Exhibition Management Services group managing director Edward Liu said Cambodia had become one of the favourite hotspots to attract foreign direct investments – especially for cafes and franchising. Liu said the event offered exhibitors and participants a hub and a business platform for key decision-makers to source for new business opportunities and explore new collaborations. It will showcase well known Asian and International brands in various industries such as food and beverages as well as the educational and services sectors. “Certainly, I believe that more Cambodians, especially young entrepreneurs, will want to take advantage of this event and purchase franchise operations. I hope there will be more franchises sold and available in Cambodia," said Liu. “There are more than 45 brands from 18 countries in the event, including Malaysia, Singapore, Philippine, South Korea and Thailand.” Cambodia has many foreign franchises, including BreadTalk, Tous Les Jours, Lotteria, Pizza Company, Krispy Kreme, Costa Coffee, Starbucks, Domino's Pizza and Swensen. Industry and Handicraft Minister Cham Prasidh said that more franchise companies were operating and coming into Cambodia. Most were in the service sectors, food and beverages. The Minister said the country should have a franchise law to protect franchisers and franchisees to make their business more competitive and fair and in turn, offer good service to consumers. “Franchisees should study market trends properly before purchasing franchises to operate in Cambodia,” added Prasidh. Hem Samnang, area manager of BreadTalk Cambodia, a franchise brand from Singapore, said there was a lot of support from Cambodian people for BreadTalk as they became aware of franchising, quality of products, hygiene and lifestyle. However Chy Sila, director-general of CBM Corporation, which has brought a number of Asian culinary franchises to Cambodia such as South Korea’s Tous Les Jours and Japan’s Lotteria, said that while some franchisees proved successful at running a franchise, it was not for everyone. This article was originally published in the Khmer Times.