Promotion of Pak franchises urged

KARACHI: The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (Unisame) has approached Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (Smeda), seeking promotion of franchising of Pakistani and multinational brands across the country, a statement said on Tuesday.

Unisame President Zulfikar Thaver urged Smeda to study the subject and contact the big and popular brand makers to offer franchises to the SMEs after training sessions, it added.

The Unisame chief said as a second step it would approach commercial banks through the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for developing franchise financing products for SMEs to enable them set up outlets for food, fruits, clothing, footwear and general merchandise under franchise of leading Pakistani and international brands.

Many Pakistani brands have become very popular because of their quality and excellent customer care and need to spread their outlets across Pakistan, the statement said.

The SMEs after training could be best suited to expand their trade lines under their umbrella, it added.