What FRANdata Thinks

The Franchise Registry: Get Your Brand In Front of The Right Lenders

January 26th, 2018 by Edith Wiseman

Why Should You Care?

If your franchisees or prospects need financing, you should care.

The SBA Directory helps lenders check if a brand CAN obtain SBA financing, while the Franchise Registry is utilized by lenders to see if brands SHOULD obtain financing.

 

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We use the umbrella term “lenders” but, in reality, a loan does not pass through just one set of hands – the potential borrower needs to be identified and developed into a loan opportunity that needs to be analyzed, verified and approved/denied by different people in a lending organization.  A portfolio team needs to determine if another loan to the same franchise system can be made again. Additionally, there are multiple types of lenders depending on their loan specialization, whether it be equipment, SBA, conventional or alternative lenders. The Franchise Registry’s information and service is vital to so many functions in a lending organization that it plays an essential role for the more than 8,900 lenders who access the website and seek our help.

The lenders of the Franchise Registry are those who have a vested interest in franchise lending. They approve or deny the loans to your franchisees, and they decide what loan terms to offer, and they actively seek out partnerships with high performing brands.  Franchise Registry lenders leverage the service to find new brands to keep an eye on, access documents or credit scores when underwriting a loan, get educated on franchising, and find brand contacts when they have a question that needs answering.  In short, they rely on the Franchise Registry as an integral part of their franchise lending process.

The Franchise Registry has evolved to have the sole purpose of bridging the gap between a franchise system and information a lender needs to put a loan on the books. The SBA’s Franchise Directory’s is simply a list designed to answer one question:  Is a franchise system eligible?  The wide breadth of information and services that the Franchise Registry offers to lenders means that more lenders from all tiers and departments use the Franchise Registry when it comes to franchise lending.

 Some of the most active members are also the largest franchise lenders in the United States:

Celtic Bank Corporation

Byline Bank

BankUnited, National Association

JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association

Stearns Bank National Association

Wells Fargo Bank, National Association

 

More than 8,900 lenders from 2,200 banks/lending institutions expect brands whose loans they are working on, or researching to do business with, to be on the Franchise Registry.

A franchisor has multiple audiences to consider, end-consumers, prospective franchisees and franchisees, to name a few –  it is important to remember that lenders are an audience you cannot afford to disregard. The Franchise Registry is the only platform where a franchise can take control of their lender perception by reaching most of the franchise lenders in the United States. For you folks who are concerned solely about SBA loans, then you should care about the Franchise Directory and the Franchisor Registry.  For those of you graduating out of SBA or don’t want to deal with the SBA, you should care about the Franchise Registry.

Simply said, the SBA Franchise Directory is a pdf list that the SBA maintains and lender eligibility officers and closers check to confirm eligibility.  The Franchise Registry is a website and service that offers information and analysis supported by expert staff which is accessed by multiple functions in a lending organization to decide whether your franchisees should obtain financing and, if so, on what terms.

If you don’t have a Verified Membership, and want to learn more we are here to help.  Verified Franchise Registry members are better performers than the those that aren’t.  Make that statement to your franchisees and to lenders! Click here to learn more about the membership.

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