This is the second part of the CFA’s interview with Erica Gale, Senior Vice President of Franchising and Brand Development, at Bento Sushi (Bento). Read Part One here.

Rebranding is nothing new in franchising. In fact, constantly revitalizing your brand is essential in a market where trends are always evolving.

For the first time in 10 years, Bento has redesigned its branding, but what does that mean for franchisees?

According to Senior VP of Franchising and Brand Development Erica Gale, explaining the reason behind a brand’s change to franchisees—rather than simply enforcing a new rule—is critical in brand consistency and sustainability. She provides the example of changing a uniform. A franchisee may be hesitant to make this change, as it requires them to invest in new uniforms for the entire team. They may see the change as unnecessary, if the current uniforms are still functional.

To counteract this perspective, Bento creates training videos that are “shared with [their] franchisees so that they could understand why [the franchisor was] making this change.” For the marketing team, a rebrand may seem obvious, but to those not privy to months of preparation and market research supporting the new look, a rebrand may seem unnecessary. Franchisors need to invite franchisees into the process, showing them the reasoning behind changes in branding and marketing decision.

Branding is partially how a brand communicates its values and can be part of what drew a franchisee to the system in the first place. Another aspect of maintaining brand identity, Gale explains, is “continually talking about internal branding to ensure the franchisees understand why they chose to work with your brand.”

Secret shoppers are a policing solution, not a sustainable one

It’s common for brands to send out secret shoppers to locations to see if franchisees are abiding by the new guidelines. For Bento, however, Gale says, “secret shoppers are more of a policing solution. It’s more of a, ‘We told you what to do, you’re not doing it, and we’re checking up and you’re not doing it,’ as opposed to a more of a coaching approach.”

This coaching approach, she says, focuses on explaining change and new guidelines to franchisees, answering the questions, “Why are we doing this? Why is it important?”

Secret shoppers also may not represent a full picture of the franchisee’s location, Gale explains, noting that a single visit may not show whether the location is run well day-to-day.

To get a better sense of ongoing issues, she adds, “You can look at your Google reviews. You can look at your customer feedback.”

But what happens when you look at a location’s reviews and see a franchisee is choosing not to comply?

Resolving non-compliance in franchisees

When a franchisee doesn’t comply with clearly communicated guidelines, it’s more often than not done with the intention of enhancing customer experience. Gale says, “the thing about non-compliance with franchisees is I don’t think a franchisee purposely tries not to comply… They have a reason why they don’t want to comply.” Consider this problem: A franchisee is giving more than the allocated amount of salmon in a poke bowl. The franchisee says their customer enjoy it, but this creates a difference of expectations among locations. For this kind of situation, Gale lays out a two-step solution.

1. Make it personal.

Explain to the franchisee that non-compliance is detrimental to their location and themselves. Gale says, “in their mind, they think they’re doing a great job: ‘Oh I’m just going to give them a little extra salmon.’ But then 10 minutes later, [they’re] commenting about food costs and [they’re] saying ingredient costs are going up.” While a franchisee may want to satisfy their customers, even small costs can add up and harm their business. The benefit of a franchise system is that guidelines have been tried and tested to optimize profit and customer experience.

2. Listen, acknowledge, explain.

The next step is to listen to the franchisee’s reasoning for non-compliance, acknowledging their motivations, and offer other options. Gale says It’s important to approach the conversation with openness, explaining the reasoning to the franchisee, rather than telling them what they can’t do and making them feel as though they’re in trouble. “It’s saying, ‘Don’t do it because of this, and here’s how we can help you,’” Gale says.

Internal branding isn’t just marketing, it’s brand values

It’s easy to delegate the responsibility of upholding brand identity to the marketing team, but it’s more than that, according to Gale. “Branding isn’t just a logo,” she says, “branding is what we stand for, why we’re doing what we’re doing, and how we operate.”

Internal branding goes beyond one department. It’s the small things such as using the same letterhead, presentation templates, and business cards throughout departments. Gale emphasizes that “internal branding is something that every department in a franchising system needs to be aware of.”

Internal branding creates a strong brand culture by fostering a sense of solidarity, Gale adds. Internal branding provides “clarity for everybody, common goals, and explanations for why we do things,” she says. From franchisees to head office, maintaining internal branding is essential to brand definition, sustainability, and success.

Erica Gale is Senior Vice President, Franchising & Brand Development at Bento Inc., where she leads franchising, brand strategy, marketing, and ESG across Canada’s largest sushi franchise system. With extensive experience in franchise operations and brand development, Erica is passionate about helping organizations build strong cultures through authentic internal branding, clear communication, and employee engagement. She believes that when franchisees and team members understand and embrace a brand’s purpose and values, they become its most powerful ambassadors—creating stronger customer experiences and more successful franchise systems.