There are many restaurant franchises located throughout the country and even the world. Opening your own restaurant can be exciting, scary and a wonderful investment. Restaurants offer a great way to make money as well as provide people with something that they need, food. There are several types of restaurant franchises from which to choose.
Full Service Restaurants
A full service restaurant typically offers complete table service. This includes service personnel, such as hosts and hostesses, as well as a wait staff. The full service restaurant is a good choice for investors that have a higher investment range. This is because the start up costs for a full service restaurant is typically higher than a casual or fast food restaurant.
Fast Food Restaurants
The fast food restaurant typically offers counter service and a drive through option. Pizza places that offer delivery and carryout options are considered fast food restaurants as well. These types of restaurants are also referred to as quick service restaurants or QSR within the industry.
The fast casual restaurant is a slight variation on the fast food restaurant. The fast casual restaurant will typically offer a higher quality menu than the typical quick service restaurant. Fast casual restaurant franchises will often have a more nutritional menu than the standard fast food restaurant.
Franchise Programs
There are several franchise programs available for individuals looking into purchasing a restaurant franchise. The first type is the single unit franchise. This is a great option for individuals that plan on being very hands on in the operation. The single unit franchise is typically an owner operator style of business, where the owner also functions as the manager or operator of the business. It should be noted that single unit franchises are not typically offered for some of the more established brands of restaurant franchises as it is not a very efficient franchise model.
The multi-unit franchise offers an individual the right to develop and own a number of the restaurant franchise within a specific area. The owner works less in the day to day operation and focuses on running many units more efficiently. The biggest benefit of the multi-unit franchise is the financial gains produced through owning multiple units.
The other type of major franchise program that is an option is the master franchise. This type of franchise allows the individual or group to purchase the rights to develop a specific territory, which is most often a major region or market. The owner is then allowed to sell parts of the territory to new franchisers. Essentially the master franchise owners are “sub-franchisors,” splitting the roles and the responsibilities, the franchise fees, and the royalties, with franchisors.
Owning a master franchise can be extremely beneficial financially. This is because in the beginning it is possible to run a master franchise from a small office and with few employees. Developing the area for the restaurants will be a large part of the job, but once you sell the franchise, the individuals will be your only customers to deal with.