Cold Stone Creamery vs San Gelato Cafe Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Cold Stone Creamery vs San Gelato Cafe including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
	Cold Stone Creamery Franchise	San Gelato Cafe Franchise
Investment	$50,200 - $467,525	$500,000 - $1,400,000
Franchise Fee	$15,000 - $27,000	$25,000
Royalty Fee	6%	-
Advertising Fee	3%	-
Year Founded	1988	-
Year Franchised	1994	-
Term Of Agreement	10 years	-
Term Of Agreement	10 years	-
Renewal Fee	-	-
Business Experience Requirements
	Cold Stone Creamery Franchise	San Gelato Cafe Franchise
Experience	-	-
Financing Options
	Cold Stone Creamery Franchise	San Gelato Cafe Franchise
	In-House/3rd Party	In-House/3rd Party
Franchise Fees	No/Yes	-/-
Start-up Costs	No/Yes	-/-
Equipment	No/Yes	-/-
Inventory	No/Yes	-/-
Receivables	No/Yes	-/-
Payroll	No/Yes	-/-
Training & Support
	Cold Stone Creamery Franchise	San Gelato Cafe Franchise
Training	Franchising with Cold Stone Creamery® means you’ll never be alone in your business. As one of the world’s premier ice cream franchises, Cold Stone Creamery’s support network has launched hundreds of entrepreneurs without any experience in either the service industry or the restaurant industry into growing businesses in communities across the country and around the world. “Cold Stone Creamery has one of the most robust training platforms in the entire franchise industry,” says John Wuycheck, SVP of Franchise Development. “Our franchisees make real investments of both time and money to franchise with Cold Stone Creamery, and we honor that by going above and beyond in providing an exceptional initial and ongoing training platform. We’ve been helping entrepreneurs establish new Cold Stone Creamery businesses for a long time, and we’ve built an iconic business model that requires no previous experience to become a top performer. As a franchisor, we’re honored to report that franchisee satisfaction is at an all-time high.” Initial New franchisees attend KTEC (Kahala Training and Education Center). In addition, new franchisees spend two weeks in a store where we cover every aspect of their new business, including making the ice cream, preparing and serving Cold Stone Creamery products, managing inventory and supporting their business through savvy marketing. On-The-Job New franchisees spend 80 hours in a store to learn the ins and outs of the business, including how to correctly prepare and serve the brand’s products. Cold Stone Creamery also hosts monthly check-ins to help you meet your goals, to offer assistance and to ensure you have all the tools necessary to improve your business every day.	- San Gelato has developed a set of extensive training courses that 15 days taught at out corporate headquarters, as well as in-store training to make sure Franchisees hit the ground running. Post the initial training program, San Gelato also provides 5 days of onsite training during your soft opening and a system of continuous business development training, utilizing Webinars, Web-based distance learning courses covering sales, operations, and marketing training programs.
Support	Cold Stone Creamery will meet with you regularly to help you and answer any of your questions. Every new franchisee receives monthly check-in calls from a Regional Director of Operations or Area Developer.	- We offer a corporate team of specialists that are dedicated to continuously evolving the business model and providing support in product preparation, marketing, sales, advertising and operations to help ensure you stay on track and reach your development goals.
Marketing	Cold Stone Creamery franchisees have access to in-house marketing and public relations teams, which significantly reduces expenses. These teams help with national, regional and local marketing, along with public relations from the grand opening through the life of the business. We train franchisees to manage their stores’ social media accounts, including Facebook®, Twitter® and Instagram® -" and newer platforms such as Snapchat®	- Ongoing promotional marketing support, with tried and true strategies to effectively target your specific consumer for both the Caf�. Everything from networking coupons to community outreach programs; we have the marketing/sales materials to help drive and push sales and create ever increasing brand recognition.
Operations	35% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 15 Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)	-
Expansion Plans
	Cold Stone Creamery Franchise	San Gelato Cafe Franchise
US Expansion	Yes	-
Canada Expansion	No	-
International Expansion	Yes	-

Company Overviews

About Cold Stone Creamery

Founders, Donald and Susan Sutherland, have an energy for frozen yogurt! They scanned wherever for frozen yogurt that was "smooth and rich", instead of the customary hard-pressed or delicate serve assortments. In 1988, in the wake of coming up purge in their hunt, they opened the primary Cold Stone Creamery in Tempe, Arizona. Utilizing just the finest fixings, the Sutherlands delivered the most elevated quality frozen yogurt accessible - making it crisp every day in their store. Each dessert creation was then made to arrange for every client by mixing in blend ins on a solidified rock stone (the Cold Stone!), and served in a crisp prepared waffle cone. Word soon spread far and wide among frozen yogurt significant others that Cold Stone Creamery's dessert was the best, and the upheaval started! In 1995, the main establishment store opened in Tucson, Arizona, trailed by the first out-of-state store in Camarillo, California.

The establishing store of Cold Stone Creamery opened in 1988
We've been granting establishments since 1994
About 1,000 stores working in the U.S. also, almost 300 stores around the world
U.S. Domains Currently Open
Single and Multi-Unit Deals Available
Normal time to open is 6-12 months
Co-marking Opportunities Available

The Numbers You Need to Know

$27,000 establishment fee*
$250,000 total assets
$100,000 fluid, non-financed stores
Add up to beginning speculation - $50,200 - $467,525 *
Sovereignty expense - 6% of gross deals
Publicizing expense - 3% of gross deals

*This charge is for a customary area and does exclude any rebates that might be appropriate. Distinctive expenses may apply for different sorts of areas. More nitty gritty venture data is accessible in the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).

The Buzz About Our Brand

#53 on the 2013 "Establishment 500®" rundown in Entrepreneur® magazine
#19 on the 2013 "Worldwide 30" list in QSR® magazine
#46 on the 2012 "Top Global Franchises" list in Entrepreneur magazine
#49 on QSR magazine's 2011 "QSR Top 50" positioning
#54 on the 2011 "Establishment 500" rundown in Entrepreneur magazine
#49 on Franchise Direct's® "Best 100 Global Franchises" list for 2011

About San Gelato Cafe

When you join our San Gelato Cafe team, you will be a step ahead of other independent business owners. As a franchisee, you not only have the benefit of running your own business but you will also have the assistance of a team of professionals devoted to the success of your San Gelato Cafe. We are committed to the success of each individual franchisee. The collaborative support offered by the San Gelato Cafe team allows for the integration of all the services you will need. We are proud to offer to You, and to share with You, our experience. We are excited about the amazing success of San Gelato Cafe, and we are committed to continue achieving great results. Our relationship with people we work with is based on integrity, dedication, hard work, achieving financial and personal goals through product and excellent service.San Gelato is an exciting new franchise. Do not let the "new" surprise you. Our roots are strong; our passion and commitment even stronger. Franchisor Services - We are committed to the success of each individual Franchisee and Regional Developer. The collaborative support offered by the San Gelato Cafe team allows for the integration of all the services you will need. Typical locations occupy approximately 1,200-1,600 square feet of space. Locations are situated in Upscale Urban Areas, Retail Shopping Centers, Regional Malls, Lifestyle Centers, Resort Areas, all in medium-high income areas. Theme parks, Casinos, Universities, and Upscale Tourist Areas are considered "unique locations" Strong foot traffic count and high visibilities are vital factors. We hope you will be part of our exciting franchise. The possibilities are endless. The sky is the limit. Fly with us...We promise a great ride!