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FRANCHISE vs. CHAIN: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Many people think of franchises and chains as synonymous, but they’re not. Learn the major differences between franchise vs. chain and which one allows you to be the owner of your shop. WHAT MAKES A CHAIN A chain business is comprised of a group of stores (two or more) that possess the same brand name, [...] Continue reading

The Top Hamburger Franchises All Do These 6 Things

All burger franchises are NOT created equally. Learn about the benefits and types of support the top hamburger franchises serve up for their franchisees. A WINNING CONCEPT Burger restaurants make up one of the largest segments of franchise restaurants in North America. The global restaurant market is flooded with hundreds, if not thousands, of different [...] Continue reading

OWNING A SANDWICH FRANCHISE: 6 TIPS TO STACK UP SUCCESS

When considering a franchise purchase, make sure to do your homework. With so many quick-service restaurant (QSR) brands to choose from, it can be overwhelming to know what to look for in a promising investment. Find out these must-do things to be successful in owning a sandwich franchise. A WINNING PRODUCT The ubiquity of the [...] Continue reading

BRAND AWARENESS & FRANCHISE OWNERSHIP: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Brand awareness is key to promoting your business and being successful. Learn why it’s so important and what to look for as a potential business owner. THE IMPORTANCE OF A STRONG FRANCHISE BRAND There are numerous advantages to franchising, not least of which is the benefit of representing a nationally recognized brand name. A powerful [...] Continue reading

Jimmy Johns Franchise vs. Wayback Burgers: What’s the Better Buy?

When buying a fast-food franchise, make sure you’ve done your due diligence. Learn how a Jimmy John’s franchise compares to other sandwich shop options so you can make the best decision for your future. JIMMY JOHN’S STORY Jimmy John Liautaud opened his first sandwich shop in 1983 and has been building his business ever since. [...] Continue reading

FAST FOOD FRANCHISE STARTUP COSTS: IS CHEAPER REALLY BETTER?

Fast-food franchise startup costs can vary greatly, but don’t be fooled. Some big names are offered at a low cost, but with hidden fees and unmentioned obligations, they may not be the best option for you. BREAKING IT DOWN Folks are drawn to the world of franchising for a number of reasons. If you want [...] Continue reading

HAMBURGER FRANCHISES FOR SALE: WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING

Interested in buying a hamburger franchise? Be informed before you buy. Learn what you should look for when considering burger franchises that are for sale. FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY All franchisors are required to provide a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) to potential franchisees at least 14 days prior to signing contracts or collecting any payments. The FDD [...] Continue reading

WHAT DO FRANCHISES COST? PRICE TIERS AND WHERE YOU FIT IN

Owning a restaurant franchise can be an exciting and lucrative business, but the investment costs vary based on a number of factors. Learn more about different types of franchises and their costs now — so you can make the best decision for your future.A MEASURED APPROACH Franchising is perfect for individuals who want to enjoy the freedom of being their [...] Continue reading

BUYING A GHOST KITCHEN FRANCHISE? THE PROFIT IS HARD TO SEE

There’s no denying that customers who dine in spend more. Learn why a ghost kitchen franchise might sound easier to own but is less profitable for most. THE RISE OF THE GHOST KITCHEN The concept of a ghost kitchen or “virtual restaurant” is fairly new to the dining lexicon. Essentially, they are fully functional restaurants [...] Continue reading

Best Burger Franchises: How They’re Cooking Up Success

Burgers are one of Americans’ most beloved foods. Enjoyed by folks on almost any occasion, the burger industry makes $100 billion in revenue annually. Even within such a broad and varied marketplace, some franchises manage to stand out from the pack both in terms of guest appeal and franchisee success. Trying to find out what [...] Continue reading

BurgerFi Franchise Cost vs. Competition

If you’re looking for the best investment when starting your burger restaurant, take a look at how BurgerFi stacks up next to its competitors in terms of cost and profitability. Affordable franchises in fast-casual burger businesses are an attractive choice, enabling entrepreneurs to open rising brands with growth potential while enjoying the satisfaction of knowing [...] Continue reading

Average Cost of a Franchise: How the Top Restaurants Compare

How much does it cost to open a franchise restaurant? Here’s what some of the most popular restaurants cost, what is included in the price tag, and how they stack up against the competition. JERSEY MIKE’S SUBS The Jersey Mike’s franchise is a leader in the fast-casual sandwich sector. The franchise fee to open a [...] Continue reading

What We Learned During the Pandemic

The COVID-19 crisis brought about a mountain of unforeseen challenges to the restaurant industry, across all sectors. While closures and restrictions at the start of the pandemic were devastating in many ways, it also presented us with an opportunity to reflect and learn how we could adapt and improve our practices as we moved forward [...] Continue reading

Fast Casual Restaurant Design: How Smart Design Turns Profits

Opening a fast-casual restaurant can be costly, but don’t overlook the value of investing in smart design for aesthetics and functionality. Here’s how the right design can boost your profits.WHY DESIGN MATTERS The fast-casual category has evolved into one of the restaurant industry’s dominant forces. Bridging the gap between traditional fast food and fine dining, [...] Continue reading

Restaurant Revenue Per Square Foot: How to Estimate Profits

The size of a brick-and-mortar location, often referred to simply as “square footage,” is a key factor in the success of a business. This line item makes up a considerable percentage of your fixed costs, ultimately impacting your bottom line.WHAT IS SALES PER SQUARE FOOT? The dollar value of sales per square foot is often [...] Continue reading

STARTING A FAST-CASUAL RESTAURANT: A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

It takes a lot of work to open a restaurant. Use our helpful guide to ensure that you get everything accomplished and set yourself up for success. MAKE A PLAN Whether you intend to open an independent business or buy a franchise, a clear and informed business plan will lay out your mission and objectives [...] Continue reading

The Evolution of Curbside Pickup

It’s easy for restaurant owners to become discouraged right now, but this has never been an industry for the faint of heart. The restaurant industry often has endured tough times, and from my perspective, the pandemic has changed our way of doing business. The coronavirus has forced business owners to innovate on the fly, and [...] Continue reading

BENEFITS OF BEING PART OF A FRANCHISE DURING A CRISIS/RECESSION

It’s no secret that the restaurant world has faced some unprecedented challenges this year. With the emergence of Covid-19, the restaurant has felt all of the repercussions of the various stages of lockdown and quarantine and the financial recession that has resulted from all of it.Still, for many folks who were well-imbedded in the restaurant [...] Continue reading

HOW TO PROMOTE A NEW RESTAURANT: COST-EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES THAT WORK

Effectively promoting a new restaurant requires a lot of creativity and a comprehensive marketing plan. We’ve lined up some strategies to help you make the most of your time and budget. MAKE A GRAND ENTRANCE You’ve put in all of the due diligence to get your business up and running, so Opening Day should be [...] Continue reading

What We Learned from Third-Party Delivery

With frequent and sometimes lengthy stay-at-home orders put in place during 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions, dine-in restaurant experiences were largely limited across the board, and meal delivery became a major staple in how Americans put dinner on the table. Since food delivery services have become an essential part of running a successful restaurant business, [...] Continue reading

International Women’s Month

March is International Women’s Month. To honor our hardworking women, we are sharing the inspiring stories of our Team Members, Managers, and Franchisees. Franchisee Spotlight Last year was challenging for many of us, but we pulled through because together as a team, community, and a brand, we can do anything. During the few first month [...] Continue reading

Food Truck Failure Rate vs. Restaurants: Reliable Low-Cost Options

FOOD TRUCK FAILURE RATE vs. RESTAURANTS: RELIABLE LOW-COST OPTIONS If you are considering opening a restaurant at a low cost that will make the most long-term financial sense for you, be sure to look beyond the trendy food truck and consider investing in a franchise. FOOD TRUCK FREEWAY If you’re thinking of opening a restaurant, [...] Continue reading

RESTAURANT TECHNOLOGY: BREAKTHROUGH ADVANCES IN 2021

The restaurant industry has long been at the forefront of new, cutting-edge technologies to boost sales while delivering convenience and ease of service. This past year brought on some unforeseen challenges, and the industry had to adapt quickly and effectively. With dine-in service still unavailable in many states, restaurant owners have changed how they operate [...] Continue reading

Food Service Trends: Top Restaurant Changes Coming in 2021

The restaurant industry is constantly evolving. This past year has seen us face many unforeseeable challenges and adapt accordingly. Many of the lessons we’ve learned will continue to serve us well moving forward. Here’s how restaurant technology, delivery, and food service will continue to shift and grow in 2021 to meet customer demands.ONLINE ORDERING While [...] Continue reading

Smashburger Franchise Cost vs. Competition

The Fast-Casual Burger Market Entrepreneurs find it easy to understand the logic of entering the burger restaurant industry. The market size of the segment is $130 billion and is expected to grow by 0.6 percent in the United States in 2020. Looking beyond the end of the year, the fast casual restaurant market is estimated [...] Continue reading

In-N-Out Burger Franchise Alternatives

The Burger Business is Hot Entrepreneurs considering opening a burger restaurant are onto something. Foodservice industry research firm Datassential found that 85% of consumers love or like burgers, QSR Magazine reports. Furthermore, burgers outrank 99% of the thousands of other foods in Datassential’s FLAVOR database. It’s why the restaurant industry has produced so many brands [...] Continue reading

Fast Casual Restaurant Business Plan: A Step-by-Step Guide

A juicy, succulent burger that guests crave isn’t enough to make a fast-casual burger business thrive. It all begins, not just with the concept and the dream, but with the fast-casual restaurant business plan. This document will be your high-level roadmap for how you plan to succeed—not just to guide your business, but to demonstrate [...] Continue reading

Wayback Burgers’ Innovation and Adaptability Keeps Franchisees Strong During COVID-19 Crisis

Innovation and adaptability are two of the most important aspects of survival and growth in business. Franchisors, with teams dedicated to these very critical aspects, have been able to provide reliability and stability for franchisees during the COVID-19 crisis. For many brands and their network of franchisees, franchisor support has been a key factor in [...] Continue reading

Five Guys Franchise: Fees and Costs vs. Competition

Burger Franchises and the Fast-Casual Sector The decision to start a business is not one that is made lightly. While owning a business provides entrepreneurs an excellent opportunity for personal, brand, and financial growth, there are many factors to consider before deciding which avenue works best for you. Particularly in the ever-changing landscape of 2020, [...] Continue reading

Whataburger Franchise Cost vs. Competition

Fast-casual restaurants fall between “fast food” and a full-service experience. The hallmarks of fast-casual dining typically include food of a higher quality than fast food places offer, as well as a better grade of dine-in experience. Fast-casual concepts are leading growth in the restaurant industry, per a 2018 study by foodservice research firm Technomic. Additionally, [...] Continue reading

Environmentally Friendly Restaurant: 10 Ways to Go Green

Going green benefits not only the environment but also the bottom line of restaurant businesses, since usually, it means improving efficiency. Restaurants can see savings in energy, water, and food costs among other savings while doing their part for the environment. Many consumers even consider a company’s environmental impact when making purchase decisions. Running a [...] Continue reading

Steps to Opening a Restaurant: Your Complete To-Do List

Having a great idea or concept for a menu or a restaurant is only the very first piece of the restaurant success puzzle. It is merely the beginning of the journey. Planning is essential for any serious undertaking, and the best plans are broken down into steps to opening a restaurant. Consider this to-do list [...] Continue reading

Restaurant Site Selection Criteria: What You Should Look For

The No. 1 reason restaurants fail or perform poorly is a bad location, according to Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield, co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals for Dummies. For franchise operators, franchisors often assist with market analysis and strategic site selection. For independents, some advice is helpful because new challenges await. As Restaurant Development [...] Continue reading

Franchise Business Plan Template: Get Your Plan in Shape

As you look to obtain financing for a prospective franchise purchase, one crucial component a lender will require is a business plan. In your plan, you will set forth your projections and expectations for the franchise business and outline potential challenges and how you’ll meet them. As the U.S. Small Business Administration notes, creating a [...] Continue reading

How Wayback Burgers Has Executed a Strong Operational Pivot in Response to COVID-19

COVID-19 has changed, for now, the fast food and fast-casual industry and, moreover, the entire guest experience. Leaders in the fast-casual segment have jumped into action to ensure that their franchisees are able to maximize sales to guests and customers who still want to enjoy their favorite restaurant meals. As if technology and artificial intelligence [...] Continue reading

Finding the Right QSR Franchise Opportunity for You

If you’re reading this, it’s likely that you’ve already narrowed the massive field of franchise options to the specific QSR (quick-service restaurant) segment, which, even by itself, includes an overwhelming number of brands. If you have dug even deeper into the QSR world, you might know that fast-casual concepts are leading growth in the industry. [...] Continue reading

First Time Franchise Owners: 7 Tips to Succeed in a Franchise

Becoming a first-time franchise owner is in an incredibly exciting time. It also can be very daunting — but that’s part of what fuels the excitement, so embrace it. By being prepared and confident, an entrepreneur new to the world of franchising can take their latest venture by the horns.Here are a few tips to [...] Continue reading

Franchise Partnerships: Building a Partnership that Works

Much as is the case in launching any other type of small business, one person acting alone may not possess a dynamic enough skillset — or may simply not have the time to devote to the daily operation of the business—to drive the success of a franchise. For myriad reasons, entrepreneurs who invest in opening [...] Continue reading

9 Small Restaurant Business Ideas

Small restaurants give operators the opportunity to trim away excess and overhead while focusing on serving a great product. Chefs can flex their culinary creativity with fewer distractions and more freedom. But the motivation doesn’t just come from the operator side; small restaurant business concepts answer consumer demand. How customers interact with restaurants has progressed. [...] Continue reading

Opening a Restaurant Checklist: The Essential Steps

For many, the difference between the dream of opening your own business and making it a reality is small — but significant. The very nature of taking on a challenge outside of your comfort level, while nerve-wracking, is exciting, but having a map to help guide you is a must. An opening-a-restaurant checklist can help [...] Continue reading

Fast-Casual vs. Fast-Food: The Real Differences

Long ago, fast-food was on the far end of the spectrum from fine dining, and it still is. There is a vast difference between, say, Ruth’s Chris Steak House and McDonald’s. But in more recent years, a new trend among restaurant chains has emerged to answer consumer demand for something in the middle. Think of [...] Continue reading

Fast-Food Business Plan: Essential Ingredients for Success

Though what’s on the plate in a fast food or fast-casual business may not seem like it requires rocket science to execute, a multitude of considerations go into getting it in front of the customer — and even more go into making sure the restaurant not only survives but thrives. A smart fast food business [...] Continue reading

How to Greet Customers in a Restaurant: 5 Essential Tips

When formulating a plan for success in opening a new fast-casual restaurant, priorities tend to lean toward recipes, kitchen, processes, ordering strategies, branding, social media promotion, and more. Creating a script, strategy and training component for how to greet customers when they enter your restaurant often ends up somewhere at the bottom of the list [...] Continue reading

How to Handle Restaurant Customer Complaints

Regardless of how unique a restaurant’s value proposition is, how great its menu may be, and how standardized its execution is, everyone makes mistakes. In some cases, a restaurant (or its employees) might not even make a mistake, and yet a customer with an ax to grind, for whatever reason, may decide to take out [...] Continue reading

How to Start a Burger Business That Stands Apart

Business is booming between the buns. Eighty-five percent of customers love or like burgers, according to foodservice industry research firm Datassential, QSR Magazine reports. And, get this: this recent research also found that burgers outrank 99 percent of the thousands of other foods in the firm’s FLAVOR database. It is no wonder, then, that over [...] Continue reading

Franchise Application: The Process to Become a Franchisee

You’ve spent an unbelievable number of hours researching your options, and now you’re ready to become a franchisee of an established, growing restaurant brand. So, how do you do it? What Is the Process for Becoming a Franchisee? The first step is what you’re doing right this minute, as you read this article: research. Your [...] Continue reading

National French Fry Day: Where to Get Your Fries

Some say there is a holiday now for just about everything. And that fact is a boon for restaurant brands, providing a myriad of opportunities to create special limited time offers and promotions to help franchise owners boost sales dramatically. This week, it’s time for America’s favorite culinary sidekick to slide out of the shadows [...] Continue reading

Fast Food Franchise Costs Compared

Whether an entrepreneur has amassed a substantial war chest of capital or has a smaller budget, the franchise world is their oyster, with a plethora of concepts to choose from. Understanding the initial investment level and financial requirements of different franchise brands is a great starting point and a way to narrow the vast choices [...] Continue reading

Cheap Burger Franchises and How Much They Cost

Budding entrepreneurs start their paths by looking for unique opportunities. Perhaps they scour the internet with a keen eye, discerning various sources of information on startup costs. Or they may pick the brains of friends, associates, and thought leaders for insight and ideas on what type of business they could open that would meet a [...] Continue reading

Fast-Casual Franchise: Quick, High-Quality, Comfortable Food

Fast-casual dining thrives in the sweet spot of the restaurant landscape, blending the best aspects of quick-serve restaurants (QSR or “fast food”) and casual dining (think full-service concepts such as Chili’s or P. F. Chang’s). This segment marries the ease and convenience of fast food with a more enticing atmosphere for dining in and better, [...] Continue reading

Millennial Entrepreneurs See a Great Fit in Fast-Casual Franchises

Fast-casual franchises are an attractive fit for millennial entrepreneurs for a simple reason: these dining concepts reflect what millennials as consumers themselves want, so, as operators, they get that. Millennials favor convenience and quality — the hallmarks of fast-casual dining — so offering that to like-minded consumers comes naturally. Inc.com reported that millennial spending power [...] Continue reading

Most Profitable Franchises: Five Franchises with a Great Bottom Line

Every business owner wants to maximize profit, and it is natural for anyone contemplating opening a franchise concept to seek out a brand with a lower cost of entry and high revenues. A number of chain brands have proven that this paradigm is attainable, making success a more efficient proposition for franchisees. Here are a [...] Continue reading

Franchise vs. Independent Business: Which is Right for You?

Let’s start by talking about entrepreneurs. There are those that see themselves as entrepreneurial; the often self-proclaimed entrepreneurs who take risks and either find success or find failure. And others who possess all the characteristics of an entrepreneur but have not quite taken the leap into entrepreneurship. Many may not even realize they are true [...] Continue reading

Franchise Restaurant Costs: What You Can Expect to Pay

In January, Entrepreneur released its 2019 Top 500 Franchise Ranking. At the top of the list, with over 37,000 locations worldwide, is arguably the most famous burger franchise in history: McDonald’s. But not everyone who has the desire to purchase or start their own McDonald’s franchise will have the financial ability or opportunity to own [...] Continue reading

Restaurant Labor Costs: What Percent Should Labor Costs Be?

Whether you are an entrepreneur pondering your first, fifth or fifteenth small business venture, many of the considerations remain the same. Naturally, you will first need to decide what kind of business to open. Are you interested in a retail or a service-based business? Do you see yourself in a childcare setting or does running [...] Continue reading

Finding the best franchise location: 5 can’t miss tips

We have all heard the well-known adage that the three things that matter most when it comes to property are location, location, location. This rings particularly true for anyone thinking about starting a business. You may not have decided what kind of business to pursue, but whether you are leaning toward opening a small independent [...] Continue reading

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