Plural forms are an important subject in the franchising literature. The co-existence of franchised and company-owned outlets in the same chain is well-known fact, deserving the huge attention it received from researches. Nevertheless organizational forms in franchising are more diverse than these studies propose. In this paper we describe three types of franchising contracts, observed in a set of 21 case studies in France and Brazil, that differ in terms of capital requirement, incentives and risk sharing. Franchisors frequently combine company-owned outlets with one or more of these franchising contracts, using a portfolio of organizational forms to govern the transaction with his/her outlets. The multi-case study suggests institutional environment as the main variable to explain the differences in the use of plural forms in France and Brazil. Particularly, we submit that legal system and the uncertainty regarding court decisions are the main reasons why in Brazil franchise chains do not fully explore the diversity of franchising contracts.
plural forms; franchising contracts; institutional environment; brand name value
