Alternative modes of entry and unexpected events in franchising

Abstract

Store-in-store franchising or corner franchising is the application of a franchise format within another business, such as big box retailers, supermarkets, and gas stations; and pop-up stores are temporary store formats opened in shopping malls or other venues for a short period. Despite the regular application of these strategies by franchisers, the academic literature on store-in-store franchising and pop-up stores is relatively limited. There is a particular need after the COVID-19 outbreak to construct new lenses through which to explore how these modes of entry adapt to the new environment of business interruptions and border closures. Motivated by this research gap, this paper explores the implementation and application of store-in-store and pop-up franchising in the retail industry before COVID-19. The paper thereby consolidates the research into stores-in-stores and pop-up stores and provides a disaster studies-based research framework, a set of theoretical propositions, and some managerial implications.