What is a franchise--and how do you know if you're right for one? Essentially, a franchisee pays an initial fee and ongoing royalties to a franchisor. In return, the franchisee gains the use of a trademark, ongoing support from the franchisor, and the right to use the franchisor's system of doing business and sell its products or services.

Franchising is a long-term cooperative relationship between two entities—a franchisor and one or more franchisees—that is based on an agreement in which the franchisor provides a licensed privilege to the franchisee to do business. The franchisor grants the franchisee the right to use a developed concept, including trademarks and brand names, production, service and marketing methods and the entire business operation model, for a fee.

The franchisee then provides the time, capital, and desire to utilize the brand and services provided by the franchisor to build a thriving business.The product, method or service being marketed is usually identified by the franchisor's brand name, and the holder of the privilege (franchisee) is often given exclusive access to a defined geographical area for a defined period of time, all of which is defined in the Franchise Agreement.