Franchising USA

Food For ThoughT:

Often times when someone hears the word “franchise” the first thing that comes to mind is food, and reasonably so! With thousands upon thousands of food franchises in many different shapes and sizes, the options are endless.From fast food monsters to fine dining gems, the diversity in food franchises is just as diverse as the food itself. Seeing as food is a major part of every culture, it’s simple to see why there is such diversity in the various types of food franchises available today. So if food is your passion and you’re looking to start a career in it, you’ve chosen the right industry.

Food franchises became popular in the mid-1900s with the dawn of the baby boomers, which was around the same time

that people began moving to the suburbs. Lacking restaurants in these remote areas, fast food chains began moving outside of the cities to develop in the newly populated areas- and thus, food franchises came to be.

While it may seem like an easy win to invest in a food franchise considering society’s universal love for food and the vast number of restaurants available, it’s important to consider what type of food franchise is first, of interest to yourself, and second, going to thrive in your area. Just because you think it’d be great to have an all-you-can-eat Asian restaurant in the middle of Little Italy, or a Vegan Bistro in rural Texas, doesn’t mean the market is right.

Nonetheless, if you find a niche and the right location there are some wonderful advantages to owning a food franchise, the first being that your customers come to you. Also, since food franchises have been around for over 60 years, many times multi-unit companies will have a track record available detailing their highs and lows. Through due diligence it should be easy to see if your concept is a winning

Welcome to the Food SUpplement, pArt 1

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Food For ThoughT: one, or if your dream job is likely going to follow suite of the seventeen predecessors that have been there, done that… and it didn’t work.

Another highlight of buying a food franchise is that often times the process will run like a well-oiled machine. In many cases franchisors invite new franchisees to train in an existing location, providing them with a step-by-step hands on experience. Here they will also learn the equipment and business operations, all the while able to ask their questions as they arise.

While it’s also important to consider the initial investment, overhead costs, zoning codes, labor laws, and cost of goods; one of the best things about food franchises is that if plan A. doesn’t fit your budget there are infinite other options available to you, so surely you’ll find something to call your own. The costs of owning a food franchise will vary widely depending on the restaurant, its location and the physical materials needed. A big brand could set you back millions of dollars, while a newer or smaller chain could cost substantially less, weighing in at a few hundred thousand.

Taking a look at some of the different kinds of food franchises on the market today, these can be broken down into four general categories: fast food (or, quick service), causal dining, fine dining, and mobile. Different types of food, customer bases, atmospheres, and hours of operation can then break down these categories further.

For example, quick service food franchises can include anything from the corporate monsters that clutter highways, to convenience stores selling taquitos, your morning coffee shop or favorite deli market. Typically serving foods such as burgers, pizzas, and sandwiches, these franchises can then be broken down

further into niche groups such as take-out, drive thru or serve yourself.

To paint the picture further for you, causal-dining franchises could be considered anything from a local sports bar, to seat-yourself diner, while fine dining is usually associated with champagne glasses and hefty bills. Mobile food franchises may opt to serve the standard fries or shawarmas from their food trucks in a busy parking lot, or perhaps they choose to set up shop in central park, serving pretzels or bibimbap. A rising trend in the mobile sector is food kiosks. Found in shopping centers, hospitals and airports, while many franchises refer to these locations an “non-traditional” units, the flexibility and ease of operating a this kind of franchise has its benefits.

While food franchise categories sound straightforward there are many types of businesses that can fit in several of these depending on their product. Catering companies for example, or wedding cake parlors, where do these fit in? To complicate the matter even further, these categories can overlap. For example, the concept of fusion menus featuring dishes that marries two or more ingredients, from various different cuisines to create a new dish, is exploding across North America. Or, as recognized by Forbes, the category of fast-causal niche restaurants is on the rise.

The ideal situation, and perhaps recipe for success, is to choose a category that not

only suites your needs and your markets needs, but also serves a unique niche. This may sound like a mission but in today’s evolving society niches can be found from street corner to street corner. If you want to buy a pizza place, make sure it serves gluten-free, or if you’re thinking about a frozen yogurt shop, why not look into a DIY concept? These tailored franchises may seem tedious and over zealous but how are you going to stand out in a hungry metro area if you don’t offer something different, something special. Yes, you could buy into a monster chain with a proven success rate, but if you don’t have the means in which to buy the billion-dollar-brand, what is your plan? After all, you’re the new kid on the block and if you’re not giving your potential customers a reason to leave their favorite burger joint to try yours, how do you expect to generate business?

At the end of the day, the most important thing to be sure of before you sign the papers and choose your site, is that you are happy. Asides from investing a large sum of money into your new business, you’re also going to be investing your time, hard work and dedication to the brand. Make sure this is what you want to do, because the saying goes, “Money can’t buy you happiness.”

Stay tuned for The Food Supplement, Part 2 coming in our December issue!

Jessica Spoto Editor, Franchising USA

“the ideal situation, and perhaps recipe for success, is to choose a category that not only suites your needs and your markets needs, but also serves a unique niche.”