young entrepreneurs – At 24, Kugan Suppiah chose months of persuading his parents over the corporate ladder—then opened a Bang Cookies franchise in Oklahoma City and is already scouting a second location. Across the restaurant world, younger entrepreneurs are increasingly treating
When Kugan Suppiah walked through the early grind of launching a Bang Cookies franchise, he wasn’t chasing a corporate title. He was chasing cookies—and a kind of ownership that felt within reach.
At 24. the University of Oklahoma graduate spent months persuading his parents to invest with him in a Bang Cookies franchise in Oklahoma City after he became convinced the gourmet cookie chain could succeed there. Now 25. he’s already scouting locations for a second store. even as he doesn’t treat baked goods as his final destination.
“I’ve always been business-minded, so this was something that I’ve always wanted to get into,” Suppiah said. “I’m definitely interested, down the line, in opening something of my own.”
For him, franchising is the bridge. It’s a middle ground between the traditional comfort of corporate jobs and the gamble of starting a business from scratch.
Franchise brands say the trend is spreading. They’re seeing increased interest from millennials and Gen Z buyers who want freedom and ownership, but also value the training, support, and established customer base that comes with a corporate connection.
At Chicken Salad Chick. executives say they’re seeing a surge in younger franchise candidates who frequently cite stability. structure. and built-in support as key reasons for exploring ownership. Gong Cha, the bubble tea franchise, said it has also seen growing interest from younger prospects. At 16 Handles, executives said more than half of current and incoming franchisees are millennials.
Two of those franchisees are 30-year-old finance professionals in Brooklyn. They opened a 16 Handles location last summer while keeping their day jobs, and they’re already preparing to open a second store.
Andrew Titus, president of United Franchise Group, said the shift is noticeable. Historically, he said, many franchisees were in their 40s or 50s. These days, he increasingly encounters owners closer to his own age—29.
“I’ve definitely seen more and more millennials, Gen Zs getting into business ownership,” Titus said. He underscored that franchising offers a level of certainty younger entrepreneurs find appealing, because franchisees receive support, training, and a proven playbook for operating the business.
For younger operators, the logic isn’t only about independence—it’s also about risk. The model offers the opportunity to own a business, build equity, and make independent decisions without having to build a brand, operating system, and customer base from the ground up.
For some, it’s not the first step—it’s the continuation of an earlier plan.
Amaan Bhanji, now 22, began planning his Graze Craze franchise during his senior year of high school. After two years spent finding a location, coordinating a buildout, and completing franchise training, he opened the Arlington, Virginia, business in 2024.
“I knew in my gut that I needed to build something of my own,” Bhanji said. “Attending university and working for someone else just did not appeal to me.”
He said franchise ownership offered something he felt he lacked at the time: structure.
“I had no experience with building, opening, and launching a successful business,” Bhanji said, adding that collaborating with United Franchise Group, which owns and manages the charcuterie board franchise Graze Craze, offered him the tools and hands-on training to support his venture.
That desire for guidance shows up repeatedly. For many younger franchisees, the appeal isn’t simply ownership—it’s learning how to operate a business while still having the chance to shape parts of it.
Suppiah’s Bang Cookies experience reflects that. He said he was drawn to the brand not only because he liked the product. but because it was still young enough for franchisees to influence its direction. He pitched adding a curbside pickup window to his Oklahoma City store; the executives loved it. and Suppiah worked with them to refine its design and marketing strategy.
Franchisors can benefit too. Several executives told Business Insider that younger operators often bring fresh ideas around social media, community engagement, and customer engagement. At 16 Handles. executives said millennial and Gen Z franchisees have been particularly effective at turning online buzz and viral menu items into store traffic.
Not every young entrepreneur can make the jump easily, though. Ashleigh Ewald, a 23-year-old public policy graduate student and entrepreneur, said many of her peers are interested in entrepreneurship, but startup costs remain a major obstacle.
Titus said the high startup costs associated with larger. household-name chains such as McDonald’s often put them out of reach for first-time operators. That pushes many younger entrepreneurs toward smaller. faster-growing concepts with lower barriers to entry—and more opportunities to help shape the business.
Bhanji said he used savings from jobs he’d held since middle school, support from family members, and financing to launch his Graze Craze franchise. It was worth the risk, he said, to have a proven framework to follow while learning how to run a business.
Suppiah sees the learning curve as part of the point. Running his Bang Cookies location has given him a crash course in operations. marketing. site selection. hiring. and securing an SBA loan. He said he hopes to apply those skills to future ventures. including potentially launching a Malaysian-inspired concept rooted in his family’s background.
Like Suppiah, Bhanji described franchising as a beginning rather than an endpoint.
“I have many aspirations and am open to continuing with franchise ownership as well as other ventures,” Bhanji said. “I’m not closing any doors.”
In a generation often associated with side hustles, creator businesses, and multiple income streams, franchising is increasingly being viewed not as a retirement plan or a fallback career, but as an entry point into entrepreneurship.
franchising restaurant franchises young entrepreneurs millennials Gen Z ownership Chicken Salad Chick Gong Cha 16 Handles Bang Cookies Graze Craze United Franchise Group SBA loan Oklahoma City Arlington Virginia