Building on the momentum gathered at last week’s IFA Convention in San Diego, IFA president Matthew Shay has written to Congress directly to appeal to lawmakers to help that franchising industry. It’s the kind of positive action that we hope will lead to direct government backing for the franchise community.
Shay’s letter was sent to the House Committee on Small Business forum. Its purpose was to address the role that small businesses will play in revitalizing the economy.“By identifying and implementing specific strategies for improving the economic conditions for small businesses, IFA believes the entire American economy will reap the benefits,” Shay wrote. “To address this and other challenges, IFA has developed an Economic Recovery Plan that outlines short-term strategies for helping all small businesses regain economic vitality.”
Shay’s Economic Recovery Plan consists of the following five points:
- Increase the amount of credit available by strengthening secondary markets
- Increase access to capital through changes to Small Business Administration loan programs
- Remove tax uncertainties and inequities for small business
- Make small business health insurance more affordable
- Support veterans as small business owners.
“Particularly in times of economic stress, franchising gives small businesses an extra margin of help through access to training, business methods and marketing support provided by the franchisor,” Shay added.
It’s exciting to see Capitol Hill being lobbied directly about the importance of franchising. For more insight from Matthew Shay, keep an eye on the FranchiseDirect blog over the next few weeks, as we’ll be posting a video interview we conducted with him at the IFA Convention last weekend.