Why We Partnered With DTI to Bring Franchise Education to Every Region in the Philippines

In thirty years of building franchise systems, I’ve sat across the table from thousands of Filipino entrepreneurs — and I’ve noticed the same pattern over and over. It’s never ambition that’s missing. It’s information, arriving too late to matter.
That’s the gap GMB Franchise Developers is now closing at a national scale. We’ve partnered with the Department of Trade and Industry to launch “Franchise Experts Talk: Smart Franchising 101,” a free webinar series rolling out across all 17 DTI Regional Offices from September through November 2026. Every Monday or Tuesday, from 1:00 to 4:00 PM via Zoom, business owners across the country will get direct access to the same franchise education I’ve spent three decades developing.
This partnership is aligned with Trade Secretary Cristina Roque’s push to position franchising as a real growth engine for MSMEs — and the DTI Regional Operations Group is backing the nationwide rollout to make sure that education isn’t concentrated in Metro Manila, but reaches every region.
Each three-hour session, which Lyndah and I are personally facilitating, covers the pillars of franchising, the real benefits and opportunities it offers, how to evaluate franchisor and franchisee performance, and — critically — the red flags that too many entrepreneurs only recognize after they’ve already signed. I think of it the way I think of any franchise system I’ve helped build over the past 350-plus engagements: the strongest franchises aren’t the ones with the flashiest brand, but the ones where both sides understood exactly what they were entering into before day one.
Sessions will accommodate 10 to 50 participants per region — existing business owners, franchisors, franchisees, and individuals exploring franchise investment. Priority will go to entrepreneurs who’ve been operating for at least six months, are DTI-registered, and are actively considering expansion.
If there’s one thing I want every participant to walk away with, it’s this: the Filipino entrepreneur has never lacked drive. What’s been missing is timing — the right knowledge landing before the decision, not after. This series exists to close that gap, one region at a time.
Interested participants can coordinate through their respective DTI Regional Office for scheduling details. GMB Franchise Developers has been building franchise systems that last since 1991 — and this is one of the proudest extensions of that work yet.

Tags: #GMBFranchise Developers, #DTIPhilippines, #SmartFranchising101, #MSME, #franchiseeducation, #ButzBartolome, #LyndahBartolome, #franchisewebinar

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You may contact Armando “Butz” Bartolome for questions and more information.

By email: [email protected]

FB Page: Armando Bartolome

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franguru/

Website: https://www.gmb.ph