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The aim of this paper is to identify why independent hotels decide to affiliate and give up their highly valued independence. Based on interviews with 12 independently owned hotels and five affiliations active on the Swedish market, it became evident that independence is important, but factors such as development with technical solutions, internet, the use of smart phones, social media, sales and marketing, central purchasing and loyalty cards are difficult to pursue as an independent hotel. The results also showed that marketing organisations and referral chains are the preferred options, as their offerings are more in line with the view of strategic entrepreneurship that the hoteliers expressed. Even agencyrelated aspects such as control rights affected the entrepreneurs' aspiration to affiliate, at the same time as the respondents thought their way of running the business was the most efficient. The results from the research add to the knowledge associated with agency theory, strategic entrepreneurship and resource-based view of the firm. More practically, it gives the independent hoteliers a possibility to assess the current situation and decide what options could be valuable, while the affiliations would be able to better align their offerings to attract new hotels.

The issue of belonging to a chain or affiliation, or indeed the right one, is becoming more and more vital for all participants in this fast moving and highly competitive business and could be a key factor for success or failure. However, how does one choose and in what ways it is possible to get the concept right and in line with trends, cultural and social aspects? And what possibilities are there to keep the concept uniform and easy to relay to current and future participants alike? One factor is what the chain actually offers as possible new outlets. If the chain organization lacks clear models, clear concepts or does not grasp new and important trends evolving on the scene, the outlook for individual members looks less promising. This paper examines how the five aspects meal model, as used in the Department of Restaurant and Culinary Arts at Örebro University (Gustafsson et al. 2006), might be used to better understand chain/franchise operations and the environment in which they work. Hopefully, it could help chain organizations and individual businesses to develop strategies for the future.

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