International Strategic Management · EU Business School · Prof. Joad Lopez
Weeks 5–6 · Midterm group case
Global Systemization Matrix™ · Case Lab

Is this brand ready to cross the border?

Every franchise deal looks good at the signing dinner. Your job is to find out what the brand can actually prove about one specific city, pillar by pillar, and then recommend how it should enter, or whether it should wait.

  1. 01Pick your group's case below and read the brief.
  2. 02Research the brand and the target city. Start with the sources, then go further.
  3. 03Score all 24 questions and write the evidence behind each score.
  4. 04Recommend an entry mode and defend it with course concepts.
  5. 05Copy your group sheet and submit it during the Week 6 midterm assessment.
How to score · you are an outside analyst, so score the evidence, not the promise
0
No evidence

You found nothing public on this.

1
Claimed

Only press releases, interviews or the brand's own marketing.

2
Documented

Independent data, reports, registrations or credible coverage.

3
Proven

Results in this city or a genuinely comparable one.

Step 1

Choose your case

Case brief · Food · gourmet empanadas

Las Muns

  • Founded in Barcelona in 2013 by Mariano Najles and Diego Rojas, specialising only in premium empanadas.
  • About 55 stores, 10 of them company-owned. A central kitchen near Barcelona ships frozen product to Europe and the Middle East.
  • Abroad: Portugal, Andorra, Milan, Switzerland, Abu Dhabi, and Toronto with its own production facility.
  • Signed a master franchise for Germany; the partner starts in Stuttgart and Munich. Raised €1.85M in March 2026.

Facts as reported in 2025–26 press. Verify and update them.

Target cityMunich

A master franchise hands an entire country to one partner. German consumers barely know the empanada. Does the system travel, or does it depend on people who already understand the product?

Start your research here
IPMARK: Las Muns enters Germany with a master franchiseRestauración News: interview with the founder, May 2026
0 of 24 scored
P1 · 4 questions

Market Fit

Is there a commercial case in Munich, or only an emotional one?

Is there evidence of recurring demand for Las Muns's product in Munich itself, not only in the country?
Can the unit economics be built from local costs in Munich: rent, labour, suppliers?
Are there clear criteria for where the first site in Munich should be?
Are there numbers that would define success for a pilot in Munich?
P2 · 4 questions

System Architecture

Could a partner run Las Muns to standard without the founders in the room?

Is there evidence that Las Muns's standards are documented well enough to be replicated?
Have operators who did not build the concept already run it successfully?
Is it clear what is non-negotiable in Las Muns and what may adapt locally?
Is there a mechanism that protects critical standards from partner shortcuts: supply, audits, training?
P3 · 4 questions

Partner Selection

Would Las Muns pick the right partner in Munich, or the fastest one?

Does Las Muns publish a clear profile of the partner it wants: experience, capital, fit?
Is there evidence of how Las Muns vetted its existing international partners?
Do current franchisees or partners speak about the relationship in public?
Does the deal structure you would expect include a pilot before full commitment?
P4 · 4 questions

Cultural Translation

What of Las Muns travels to Munich, and what has to be rebuilt?

Can you state Las Muns's brand essence in a few clear behaviours?
Have you mapped how Munich differs from the home market for this category?
Has Las Muns adapted successfully in a culturally distant market before?
Would the service, product or teaching model need changes for Munich before opening?
P5 · 4 questions

Deal Architecture

When the relationship is tested, does the deal protect Las Muns?

Is Las Muns's trademark registered in the country Munich is in? (Check EUIPO, WIPO or the national office.)
Is it clear who would own local IP, recipes, content or customer data?
Are withholding tax, profit repatriation and currency risk manageable for this country?
Is there evidence Las Muns has handled a partner exit or dispute before?
P6 · 4 questions

Launch & Momentum

Would Las Muns hold on opening day in Munich, and for the 90 days after?

Is there evidence of a structured launch process in previous international openings?
Does Las Muns control or approve site selection and the fit-out?
Is the supply chain for Munich clear: local sourcing, imports, or central production?
Is there evidence of support after opening: field visits, marketing, performance reviews?
0%
GSM™ readiness · Las Muns in Munich
Not scored yet

Score the questions above and your result builds here.

Market Fit
·
System Architecture
·
Partner Selection
·
Cultural Translation
·
Deal Architecture
·
Launch & Momentum
·
Weakest pillar

Waiting for scores

Complete at least one pillar to see where this deal is most likely to break.

Stop signs

None flagged yet.

Step 4 · Your recommendation

Your answers stay in this browser only. Nobody else sees them until you submit the sheet.

About the matrix

The Global Systemization Matrix™ (GSM™) was developed by Joad Lopez from 47 cross-border franchise deals across 8 countries. Six pillars describe what has to be proven before a brand signs an international agreement. Case facts are drawn from press coverage in 2025 and 2026 and are a starting point only. Check them, update them and cite your own sources in Harvard style.