FACTORS OF DEVELOPMENT OF THE FRANCHISING BUSINESS MODEL IN THE DIGITAL ECONOMY: ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

This research investigates the structural reconfiguration of the franchising business model amidst the transition from 20th-century physical globalization to the 21st-century paradigm of digital globalization. While traditional trade in tangible goods and financial flows has flattened since the Great Recession, cross-border data flows have surged, growing 45-fold between 2005 and 2014 and exerting a $2.8 trillion impact on global GDP. This paper identifies the microeconomic and spatial determinants of digital transformation within the franchising sector, focusing on the restaurant and retail industries in Spain and Russia. Utilizing an Ordinal Logit Model (OLM) for the Spanish restaurant sector and linear regression models tested for multicollinearity via the Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) for the Russian retail context, the study identifies human capital as the primary catalyst for digitalization. Findings reveal that while age (H1) is statistically insignificant, university education (H2), opportunity-based motivation (H3), professional development goals (H4), and growth ambition (H5) significantly drive ICT adoption. Furthermore, the analysis highlights the "tourist trap" effect in coastal regions, where physical location reduces the incentive for digital innovation. The study concludes with a discussion of emerging "reverse franchising" models and the integration of blockchain-based platforms like SCALE IT to minimize transactional friction and fraud