Successful fast-food franchising in brazil and the role of culture

SUCCESSFUL FAST-FOOD FRANCHISING IN BRAZIL AND THE ROLE OF CULTURE: FOUR CASES

By MARY E. RISNER

A THESIS PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2001

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Terry McCoy, my thesis committee chair, for being a helpful mentor as I have became more and more involved with the study of business aspects in Brazil. I thank my other committee members, Dr. Ginway and Dr. Perrone, for their scholarly suggestions on the Brazilian cultural issues considered in my research. I also would like to thank the Center for Latin American Studies for its financial support in the form of the Tinker Grant I received in order to conduct my research in Brazil. I sincerely thank Peter Rodenbeck, a kind and helpful businessman in Brazil, whose efforts allowed me to set interviews with key professionals associated with franchising in Brazil. Finally, I thank the all the Brazilian executives that took the time to meet with me for my research.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. ii LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. vi CHAPTERS 1 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................1 Significance of the Study................................................................................................ 2 Franchising...................................................................................................................... 3 Definition .................................................................................................................... 3 Standardization vs. Adaptation