Wetzel's Pretzels vs Don Pan Bakeries Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Wetzel's Pretzels vs Don Pan Bakeries including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
	Wetzel's Pretzels Franchise	Don Pan Bakeries Franchise
Investment	$126,600 - $405,850	$150,000 - $800,000
Franchise Fee	$35,000	$35,000 - $58,750
Royalty Fee	7%	6%
Advertising Fee	1%	2%
Year Founded	1994	1995
Year Franchised	1996	2001
Term Of Agreement	10 years	-
Term Of Agreement	10 years	-
Renewal Fee	-	-
Business Experience Requirements
	Wetzel's Pretzels Franchise	Don Pan Bakeries Franchise
Experience	General business experience	-
Financing Options
	Wetzel's Pretzels Franchise	Don Pan Bakeries Franchise
	In-House/3rd Party	In-House/3rd Party
Franchise Fees	No/Yes	-/-
Start-up Costs	No/Yes	-/-
Equipment	Yes/Yes	-/-
Inventory	No/Yes	-/-
Receivables	No/No	-/-
Payroll	No/No	-/-
Training & Support
	Wetzel's Pretzels Franchise	Don Pan Bakeries Franchise
Training	On-The-Job Training: 40 hours Classroom Training: 40 hours	-
Support	Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Franchisee Intranet Platform	-
Marketing	Ad Templates Social media SEO Email marketing Loyalty program/app	-
Operations	20% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 10 Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)	-
Expansion Plans
	Wetzel's Pretzels Franchise	Don Pan Bakeries Franchise
US Expansion	Yes	Yes
Canada Expansion	No	-
International Expansion	Yes	-

Company Overviews

About Wetzel's Pretzels

Wetzel's Pretzels founded by Rick Wetzel & Bill Phelps, former marketing executives in 1994. 1st Wetzel's Pretzels located in South Bay Galleria in Southern California. First store was opened in 1995 Century City, Hollywood.
In 1996 Wetzel's Pretzels began franchising. Currently they have locations across United States (Universal City, Staples Center, Dodgers Stadium, Disneyland, Disney world) & internationally. Currently co-branding relationship with Cold Stone Creamery, Swensen's, Juice It Up and more.
Beginning of 2016 Wetzel's franchise fast food restaurants had 298 locations out of them 269 US locations; 2 in Canada; 19 worldwide; and 8 owned by the company itself.

The franchisor offers 3 franchise programs:

1. A single Wetzel's Pretzels Bakery. The total investment necessary to begin operation of a Wetzel's Pretzels Bakery ranges from $164,950 to $405,850. This includes approximately between $42,350 and $50,750 that must be paid to the franchisor. If Wetzel's Pretzels grants you a license to operate a Remote Mobile Unit under a Remote Mobile Unit Addendum to your Franchise Agreement, you will also pay it a fee of $5,000 for a Remote Mobile Unit.
2. Multiple Wetzel's Pretzels Bakeries within a defined area pursuant to a Multi-Unit Development Agreement. There is an initial development fee of $15,000 multiplied by the number of Bakeries which you must open, plus the balance of the initial franchise fee ($20,000) for your first Franchise Agreement. You will pay an initial franchise fee of $35,000 for each Bakery ($22,500 for a second Bakery in the same mall). However, the franchisor will credit the development fee against the initial franchise fees (at the rate of $15,000 for the second and each subsequent Franchise Agreement).
3. A single Wetzel's Pretzels Concession Truck or Trailer. The total investment necessary to begin operation of a Wetzel's Pretzels Concession Truck or Trailer ranges from $126,600 to $275,850. This includes approximately between $9,000 and $14,750 that must be paid to the franchisor.

About Don Pan Bakeries

The benefits of Don Pan International Bakery extend beyond the exclusive recipes that we offer. The added value of the brand is the benefit of the experience, knowledge and strategy that we offer you.

Among the advantages is the one that, with adequate opportunity, adopts a method of operations that would take years to develop independently. The opportunity that offers Don Pan International Bakery gives you the scheme needed to undertake a successful business.

The recognition of the brand and an extensive network of support will grant you an immediate and distinguished competitive power against other independent businesses. Partners frequently avoid that expensive period of trial and error that causes many problems for small businesses. A survey by the Department of Labor of the United States suggests that approximately 35% of the independent businesses achieve to overcome that period compared to an index of over 90% for franchise businesses or a multiplied concept such as Don Pan.

 You can be part of this history of growth and development if you decide to become a partner of Don Pan International Bakery® We will take your order

More than a bakery or a concept of natural and fresh pastries, the concept of Don Pan International Bakery attracts a wide range of clients from all ages, communities and socio-economic situations.

If you want to succeed in the business world, then go with the victors.

We want people to understand that operating a bakery is a complex dynamics and a job that requires love, because we believe that we must love what is being done to achieve success. This idea includes both the ingredients as the business philosophy and the desire to offer a product of excellent quality, always with a commitment to working hard to achieve those goals.

We know our business and we want to help our partners in every way possible. We know what works: from the location and training to process our recipes, going through the selection of products through our network of suppliers and centralized until the recruitment process for staff in service, reaching a final product that is excellent along with satisfied customers.

We are committed to providing the support you need to manage your business effectively and efficiently. This includes a program of initial training, assistance in the place and telephone consultations. The commitment of Don Pan International Bakery does not end when signing the contract: it is just the beginning.