More and more, those who have a desire to open a small business of their own are finding that opening a restaurant franchise is quite profitable. It really is predicted that restaurant sales will reach $577 billion in sales by 2010. The restaurant business industry now employs 8% of most workers employed in the United States. That comes to about 11 million people, and makes them the largest employer next to the government.

Restaurants have already been satisfying the hunger of people for a long time, and restaurant franchising is just about to add to the growth of the industry. In 1950, Colonel Harlan Sanders introduced his Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise and built a chain of over 600 restaurants by 1960. McDonalds was franchised in 1955, therefore were House of Pancakes, Tastee Freeze, Dairy Queen, and Dunkin Donuts.

Seniors (people born between 1946 and 1964) tend to be the people opening new restaurants and fast food establishments. They have sophisticated tastes and the amount of money to make their ideas possible. Grillades portugaises demand fresher ingredients, healthier dishes, and vegetarian options. Baby boomers are credited with setting the pace for what does and doesn?t work when it comes to successful restaurants. If they dine out they want high quality, no matter where they are eating.

More and more people are holding regular jobs, leaving little time to get ready meals at home. Quick serve restaurants continue to be fueled by the buyer?s ever increasing dependence on convenience. More than half of most adults say they’re busy, and convenience is really a critical part of their lives.

While older consumers demand quality, younger customers want convenience. 55% of consumers between your ages of 25 and 34 admit they’re usually in a hurry and want fast service. This sparks the growing dependence on quick service restaurants. Takeout restaurants may also be a growing trend. 78% of most households in america use take out or delivery service at least once a month. These folks consider themselves very value conscious.

Many investors are buying into co-branded franchises. Co-branding identifies franchising two or more different brands in a single location (Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, & Kentucky Fried Chicken). All three are housed in a single building, instead of building three different restaurants. These restaurants are responsible for more than 29,000 restaurants, and much more are popping up on a regular basis. There are also multiple franchising concepts with Dunkin Donuts and Baskin Robbins in the same building.

Some franchisors take their products overseas. Subway has nearly 800 international franchises (not counting Canada). If you add Canada they number around 2,000. The size of the company has contributed to their popularity far away.

Whether you’re selling sandwiches over the sea, or have an upscale dining establishment uptown. The outlook looks strong for food franchising in the next ten years. Given that consumers continue to eat at restaurants, the franchise opportunity is a gainful one.