Qdoba

Franchisees are known to worry when their franchisor has multiple and potentially competitive brands in its fold. How do they know the secrets and strengths of their chain won’t be shared with a sister operation, undercutting the distinction of where they’ve plunked considerable money?

Top franchise companies are driving growth, finds researcher Technomic's Top 400 Franchise Report. The 200 largest franchisees grew sales 8.2 percent in 2014, 2.5 times the rate of the Top 500 chains. Unit growth among these companies, too, was three times higher than their franchisors.

One-third of guests who ordered a breakfast item outside of the traditional morning daypart had not visited a McDonald’s at all prior to October.