This book is not completely uninformative. The problem with it is that you could write the book in about 10 pages. The author fills in the other 170 pages with fluff. He goes into extensive dialog about things that dont have anything to do with franchising or that could have been summarized and saved a few pages. Of course, I dont think anyone would buy a 10 page book. Another problem with this book is that hes an "outsider". He decided to do his thesis on this topic and thats all the book is. He goes around and talks to franchisees in three (and only three) franchises and gives you his findings in that book. So the book is full of observations with no answers. He cant tell you how to overcome the problems hes finding because he has no experience being a franchisee. For example, he makes the observation that social capital (networking with other franchisees) is critical to the success and prosperity. He takes about 12 pages to tell you this, but doesnt tell you one thing about how or in what way the successful franchisees networked with others. Did they just talk on the phone, did they set up a softball team, what?
Probably the most common type of franchises are restaurants, yet he does not visit a single restaurant franchise. And, as Brazos49 stated, three franchises is too small a section to draw any sound conclusions. This is even more true if you consider that he left out restaurant franchising.
I would recommend that you read Newchapters review. Youll learn all you can from this book by reading that review and youll save yourself 180 pages of really dry reading.
