Kuala Lumpur, 21 April 2018,
The government intends to make Malaysia a regional franchise hub in Southeast Asia by 2020. Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin said the franchise industry in Malaysia was on track towards contributing RM35 billion to the national gross domestic product (GDP) by 2020 on sustained strong growth.
“In 2017, the industry contributed RM27 billion to Malaysia’s GDP. This year we are expecting a five per cent growth,” he said when opening Franchise International Malaysia 2018 (FIM2018) here today.
Hamzah said the halal franchise business offered good prospects based on the strong demand abroad and Malaysia had developed expertise in this field.
Therefore, he said, the government was targeting potential business opportunities in 50 countries with the highest percentage of Muslim population, including Azerbaijan, Turkey, Indonesia and Bangladesh.
“Countries like Japan were very hard to break into; yet we did it because of our halal industry. We are looking into South Korea and India next. We need to understand the culture and move in,” he added.
Hamzah said the 25th edition of the franchise event this year saw the participation of more than 100 local and international franchise companies from 12 countries, with an anticipated potential franchise investment of RM370 million.
FIM2017 recorded a total of RM373 million in potential investments, he noted, adding that 65 Malaysian franchise brands had penetrated more than 66 countries with the number of outlets reaching 4,271.
— BERNAMA
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