Microfranchising is a new frontier, but why? If you’ve tried to find out you probably couldn’t find much information. This list compiles the best resources on microfranchising as it relates to microfinance, social enterprise, and big business. It’s not exhaustive: it’s handpicked to give you a solid grasp of the sector. We use it to train volunteers and educate our peers about why microfranchising is an important new tool for tackling poverty.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION: To ‘get’ microfranchising, a basic understanding of low-income economies, social enterprise, and microfinance is needed.- Low-Income Economies: WRI NextBillion Report (NextBillion.net is the best website on the sector)
- Microfinance: Reimagining Microfinance: Grameen’s Vision for the Future
- Social Enterprise: Monitor Group Study - Phenomenal, a must-read.
MICROFRANCHISING:
- iuMAP / Next Billion Microfranchising Series This eBook collects a series of blog posts on microfranchising written for Next Billion by Ayllu team members.
- Creating Wealth at the Bottom of the Pyramid (Fairbourne/Gibb Dyer) If you’re serious about understanding microfranchising, this book is a must-read. It’s a compilation of essays and case studies written by different industry leaders for an academic audience. It focuses on microfranchising across sectors and how it is being used by microfinance, nonprofits, large companies, governments, and, of course, the poor. For a book review see Nathan Ketsdever’s blog.
- Acumen Fund White Paper (David Lehr) A short, thorough exploration of social enterprise and microfranchising. **Pay particular attention to the right column on page 14; it outlines the case for Ayllu.
- The Next Generation of Microfinance: Microfranchising (Melissa Richer in Beyond Profit Magazine) Ayllu’s Founder explores how to use microfinance channels to do more.
- FINCA: Feasibility Study on Microfranchising An exceptional document, it’s an MFI’s (microfinance institution) report on how microfranchising will add value. FINCA is one of the oldest and most successful MFIs in the world.
- The Match between Youth Employment, Microfinance & Microfranchising (John Hatch) Excerpt of #1: FINCA Founder discusses how to employ the world’s youth, who dominate populations in poor countries and make up 50% of the world’s poor.
- The Future of Microfranchising Deborah Burand blogs on CGAP website about why microfranchising is where microfinance was 10 years ago.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Lists of more readings can be found on ClearlySo and NextBillion.
If you have any mode resources to suggest, we’d love to hear about them below.