Franchise Pundit franchise opinion and research

Chipotle’s new fast mexican asian concept dubbed ShopHouse has only been open a few months in Washington DC. Their menu consists of Banh Mi sandwiches and rice or noodle bowls with meats. The reviews on Yelp vary, with an average of 3 out of 5 stars. On the negative side, comments seem to congregate on the odd combinations of tastes, ... Read More »

The trend has been for franchisors, especially for publicly traded ones, to sell more and more of their corporate owned stores. Why? The financial argument has been that earnings are stabilized by managing a franchise operation (simple income streams) rather than managing the nuances of local operating businesses. And, for the most part that makes sense both financial and practically. ... Read More »

You’re a franchisee and your financial and operational problems are snowballing out of control.  The result is you’re not operating in compliance and you’re late on payments to the franchisor, and the franchisor decides that you need to stop operating.   How does the franchisor shut down your store using the courts? See Krispy Kreme v Satellite Donuts (franchisee) Read More »

The marketing function performed by most franchisors can mean the difference between a flat year-over-year sales, and 13% year-over-year decrease in sales.   For Pizza Hut’s largest franchisee, NPC, that difference in sales a massive amount of money.  Hypothetically, if the average Pizza Hut does $1.5 million in sales, then we are talking about a $195,000 difference per store.  With 1,150 ... Read More »

Burger King franchisees are suing their franchisor over being forced to price the double cheeseburger at maximum of $1.  Franchisees’ problem is that it costs more than $1 to make and sell.  I’m sure Burger King corporate response to the loss argument is that the total average sale involving the $1 double cheeseburger turns a profit, because on average people also buy ... Read More »

I was browsing a few blogs and surprised at how many “we just make simple great burgers, fries and shakes” restaurant and franchises were popping up.  Some are going all-organic, most aren’t.  McDonald’s new higher-priced Angus beef burger is considered a response to the better burger trend. Most everyone likes a good burger and are willing to pay up to ... Read More »

A recent study lumps tanning in tanning beds in the same caustic category as arsenic and mustard gas. The tanning industry is simply a rental business, and the rental business can be very lucrative.  Just ask my hero Wayne Huizenga who made billions from starting integrated rental businesses Waste Management, Blockbuster Video, and partly Autonation. The franchise tanning industry has ... Read More »

From Krispy Kreme’s 10-K…, focusing on smaller stores with lower overhead. I guess it took them a while to learn from Dunkin’ Donuts that selling only $.50 donuts and coffee doesnt add up to enough revenue for a large store. The Company is working to refine its domestic store operating model to focus on small retail concept shops, including both ... Read More »

If you own a wing restaurant, like Wing Stop, and your in the middle of the $540k average store sales (see Item 19 of their FDD) for Wing Stop, then your costs went up $44,226 in December.  Why?  The price of wings has increased 39% since December 2008.  Read More »

You’ve probably heard about the cost savings of prefabricated modular building.  Church’s Chicken is going with a new prefab building to reduce startup costs, hopefully attracting new franchisees. …Church’s Chicken estimates that the pre-fabricated buildings will cost 25 percent less than its traditional stand-alone structure, Brown said. The low-end of pricing for a traditional structure is about $660,000. The modular ... Read More »

As if the sub sandwich category wasn’t crowded enough, Domino’s Pizza is adding sub sandwiches to its menu and delivery service.  The $4.99 oven-baked sub sandwiches will include classic favorites like Philly Cheese Steak and Chicken Bacon Ranch. The move comes five months after Pizza Hut began delivering baked pasta dishes as well as pizzas. And it will be a ... Read More »

I’m sure they have research to support this effort, but the Better Home & Garden is expanding its brand to include real estate brokerages.I found this comment humorous considering he is the very first operating unit: Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate unveiled its new Web site, www.bhgrealestate.com.Wilkins hopes to benefit from Better Homes and Gardens’ technology, business systems and advanced ... Read More »

When I lived in Cincinnati, First Watch was the place for the “power breakfast”, where movers and shakers would gather to strategize over coffee and omletes.  Meeting with a venture capitalist or political insider?  You would likely meet them at First Watch.  There is no First Watch where I live in Chicago, but here to breakfast is big deal for ... Read More »

From the Phoenix Business Journal: Fifteen of the fast-casual [Corner Bakery Cafe] restaurants are planned in the state under an agreement between franchisee Roland Spongberg and WKS Bakery Cafe Inc. The chain, which serves breakfast items, salads, sandwiches and desserts, has more than 100 locations in nine cities across the country. Spongberg’s WKS Restaurant Group expects to open its first ... Read More »

I know a few people who have attended BNI meetings in Chicago, and have had a positive experience.  There is a lot of niche competition in this arena, but it could make a mildly profitable side business if you are passionate about networking, like calling and staying on top of people, and love socializing. Read More »

Soup Kitchen International, the creators of the Zagat-rated soups of Al Yeganeh, the legendary soup man who inspired the “Soup Episode” on Seinfeld, and Cold Stone Creamery, today announced the grand opening of the first The Original SoupMan/Cold Stone Creamery at 2 Astor Place in New York, NY in early November. Recent Penn State graduate Daniel Petryszyn is opening the ... Read More »