Pride

The IFA launched a Pride Council in September. The Franchising Pride Council will provide opportunities for mentorship, foster discussions around best practices and create a forum for sharing experiences to benefit others. Representative Chris Pappas (D-NH1) attended the launch and said, “where the business community stands today is ensuring everyone has the opportunity to make it up the ladder.” One of the chief goals of the Council will be to encourage more LGBTQ entrepreneurship and make business ownership a more attainable goal for the members of this important community.

Executive Vice President of Franchise Development at FASTSIGNS® and Council Chairman Mark Jameson said, “diversity is a key part of franchising and I believe this Council is such a big step towards expanding that hallmark of our business model to the LGBTQ community.”

Stay tuned for our March issue where we will feature members of the LGBTQ community to highlight why this is such an important step in the franchising industry.

The International Franchise Association is the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. IFA works through its government relations and public policy, media relations and educational programs to protect, enhance and promote franchising and the more than 733,000 franchise establishments that support nearly 7.6 million direct jobs, $674.3 billion of economic output for the U.S. economy and 2.5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). For more information, visit www.franchise.org