Samil PwC to host franchise growth and investment strategy seminar on 13 November

Samil PwC will host ‘Franchise Growth Solution 2026’ at 2pm on 13 November in Sejong Hall, on the 17th floor of its headquarters in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. The event will share growth, investment and operational strategies with franchisors. Alongside brand sales performance and network expansion, the programme will cover the management structures needed to attract external investment, data-driven site selection, and accounting and tax considerations.

Eight sessions addressing franchisors’ growth challenges

Samil PwC announced plans for the event on 23 October. Its first specialist seminar for the franchise community will carry the subtitle ‘Growth, Investment and Operational Insights for Franchisors’. The event will take place in person, with registration open on the Samil PwC website until 10 November.

The programme comprises eight sessions. Two will focus on AI-enabled business operations and workforce and systems strategies, while another two will address mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and investor communications. These will be complemented by one session on data-driven trading-area analysis and three on accounting and tax for franchisors.

The central theme is how to develop a strong-selling brand into a business ready for external investment and M&A. The programme brings together investment strategies for different stages of growth, access to capital, operational innovation and practical financial matters. Unlike events introducing new brands or franchise opportunities, it focuses on the management challenges facing established franchisors.

Franchisors considering attending should bear this focus in mind. Rather than concentrating solely on ways to recruit new franchisees, participants would benefit from preparing questions about the operating structures and investment readiness their business needs at its current stage of growth. Investment, operations and accounting teams could also divide up the topics they want to explore.

M&A and investment: assessing business value beyond the brand

In the growth and investment sessions, partner Lee Jun-sik will present franchise M&A trends and exit strategies. Kim Seung-cheol, head of PwC Business Services, will discuss investor relations and corporate communications under the theme ‘From a Strong-Selling Brand to an Investable Business’. The two presentations will focus on enhancing business value, attracting investment and securing growth capital.

A notable feature is the distinction between a brand’s sales strength and its readiness for investment. The seminar will go beyond increasing revenue to examine how businesses communicate with investors and explain their growth plans. A separate presentation on M&A and exits will bring financing and transaction strategies into the discussion.

However, the announcement does not report any specific company securing investment or completing a sale. Nor does it provide valuations or transaction terms for individual brands. The strategies discussed at the event should therefore be distinguished from actual deal outcomes. Presentation titles alone do not establish that a particular approach to growth is effective.

Whether or not they are currently seeking investment, franchisors could use the event to review how they explain their business to external audiences. A practical starting point would be to identify which growth objectives and operational information they want to communicate to investors, then assess whether the approaches presented suit their circumstances.

AI-enabled operations and data-driven site selection

In the operational innovation sessions, partner Cho Hong-rae will present strategies for making AI a core part of business operations. Partner Lee Chang-hoon will address workforce and systems management during the transition to AI. The sessions will explore ways to integrate the technology across business operations, rather than limiting its use to automating individual tasks.

The decision to separate these subjects into two sessions is also noteworthy. One will examine the direction of AI adoption, while the other will focus on managing people and systems. This structure encourages participants to consider not only where to apply new technology, but also the organisation and working practices needed to use it. The event announcement does not, however, provide specific implementation costs or projected savings.

On network expansion, partner Lee Seung-wook will introduce ways to maximise profitability through data-driven trading-area analysis. Focusing on ‘location intelligence’ — the analysis of location-related information — the session will examine how data can support site selection and new openings, improve outlet sales and make expansion more efficient.

This is a session on data strategies, not a guarantee of profitability in any particular trading area. Since site-selection decisions directly affect day-to-day outlet operations across franchise networks, participants should focus on which data informs which decisions.

In practical terms, it would help to define the questions their business wants to answer in advance. For example, they could distinguish between questions about selecting new sites and those about understanding sales at individual outlets. Similarly, separating questions about AI adoption from those about workforce and systems management should make it easier to apply the presentations to internal discussions.

Accounting and tax sessions, plus a business guide

Three speakers will cover accounting and tax. Partner Kim Han-nae will discuss accounting issues specific to franchisors, while partner Kim Chan-gyu will explain transfer pricing issues for franchise businesses. Partner Nam Woo-seok will address key tax matters that practitioners need to understand. Together, these sessions will examine issues arising in franchisors’ day-to-day operations and ways to respond.

These presentations offer practical topics to consider alongside growth and investment strategies. Participants primarily interested in attracting investment or improving operations may also find it useful to review the accounting and tax agenda. The seminar announcement does not, however, indicate any new accounting standards or changes to tax law. How any guidance applies to an individual business will depend on its specific transactions and operating circumstances.

Ahead of the event, Samil PwC has also published a business guide using case studies to examine structural changes in South Korea’s franchise sector, prospects by business type, accounting and tax issues, and recent M&A trends. Both the seminar and the guide cover operational and financial practice as well as growth strategy.

Registration closes on 10 November, and the event starts at 2pm on 13 November. To get the most from the seminar, franchisors should first identify their most pressing priority — investment, site selection, operations or accounting — and prepare relevant questions. A useful starting point is to distinguish between the strategies presented and the measures that can realistically be applied to their own business.