Golden Corral vs Applejack's Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Golden Corral vs Applejack's including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
 
Golden Corral Franchise
Applejack's Franchise
Investment $2,700,795 - $7,037,915$250,000 - $275,000
Franchise Fee $50,000$25,000
Royalty Fee 4%4%
Advertising Fee 2.4%2%
Year Founded 19731999
Year Franchised 19862004
Term Of Agreement 15 years10 years
Term Of Agreement 15 years10 years
Renewal Fee 15 years (plus two, 5-year renewal options)-


Business Experience Requirements
 
Golden Corral Franchise
Applejack's Franchise
Experience
  • Industry experience
  • (or must have partner with industry experience.)
    		• -

    Financing Options
     
    Golden Corral Franchise
    Applejack's Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees No/No-/-
    Start-up Costs No/Yes-/-
    Equipment No/Yes-/-
    Inventory No/No-/-
    Receivables No/No-/-
    Payroll No/No-/-

    Training & Support
     
    Golden Corral Franchise
    Applejack's Franchise
    Training On-The-Job Training: 665 hours Classroom Training: 8.5 hours Additional Training: At company training location-
    Support Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform-
    Marketing National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app-
    Operations International franchisees required to buy multiple units/master licenses; 80% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 100

    Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (90% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

    		-

    Expansion Plans
     
    Golden Corral Franchise
    Applejack's Franchise
    US Expansion Yes-
    Canada Expansion No-
    International Expansion Yes-

    Company Overviews

    About Golden Corral

    Golden Corral restaurants began as budget steakhouses located principally in small cities from Virginia to Texas. In the mid-1980s, guest requests prompted Golden Corral to reinvent itself by introducing the Buffet & Grill Metro unit that features 160 hot and cold items, a carving station, and the Brass Bell Bakery, which offers rolls, muffins, cookies, pies and pizza made from scratch. The buffet was expanded in 2001 to include cooked-to-order sirloin steaks.

    The total investment necessary to begin operation of a restaurant ranges from $2,700,795 to $5,340,215 for the less expensive restaurant design, and from $3,453,379 to $7,037,915 for the more expensive restaurant design. This amount includes $51,400 to $4,482,285 that must or may be paid to the franchisor or its affiliates.

    #90 in Franchise 500 for 2020.

    About Applejack's

    As an effective business operator, you wish to minimize risk and maximize profit. That is exactly what successful franchising is all about. Franchised businesses have a higher success rate than independent businesses. This is a fact. It is generally accepted that an estimated 40% of all non-franchised businesses do not make it to the end of their first year of operation, and 80% will fail within their first five years of operation. And even the 20% that do manage to survive are not safe, as 90% of them will fail within the next five years. In most cases this is not due to lack of revenues and its mostly based on lack of experience, support and management skills. By joining a Franchise, franchisees can benefit from the Brand marketing, purchasing power and management expertise offered by well-established franchisors. This is particularly attractive to those persons entering the highly competitive food service industry for the first time. As a result of the positive interaction between franchisee and franchisor, our restaurant owner/operators are much more likely to be financially successful than were they to enter the industry as independent restaurateurs.