Sonic Drive In vs Bar-B-Cutie Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Sonic Drive In vs Bar-B-Cutie including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
 
Sonic Drive In Franchise
Bar-B-Cutie Franchise
Investment $1,242,000 - $3,523,300$266,986 - $2,080,491
Franchise Fee $45,000$35,000
Royalty Fee 2.45-5%5%
Advertising Fee 3%2%
Year Founded 19541950
Year Franchised 19592003
Term Of Agreement 20 years10 years
Term Of Agreement 20 years10 years
Renewal Fee 10 years for $6K$5K


Business Experience Requirements
 
Sonic Drive In Franchise
Bar-B-Cutie Franchise
Experience
  • Industry experience
  • General business experience
  • If no industry experience, must have an operating equity partner

  • General business experience
    		•

    Financing Options
     
    Sonic Drive In Franchise
    Bar-B-Cutie Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees No/YesNo/No
    Start-up Costs No/YesNo/Yes
    Equipment No/YesNo/Yes
    Inventory No/YesNo/Yes
    Receivables No/YesNo/No
    Payroll No/YesNo/No

    Training & Support
     
    Sonic Drive In Franchise
    Bar-B-Cutie Franchise
    Training On-The-Job Training: 400 hours Classroom Training: 24 hours Additional Training: At existing franchise location On-The-Job Training: 250 hours Classroom Training: 50 hours
    Support Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Franchisee Intranet Platform Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Field Operations Site Selection
    Marketing Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO Email marketing Loyalty program/app Ad Templates Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app
    Operations International franchisees required to buy multiple units/master licenses; 60% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 25

    Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed.

    		 0% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 20

    Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

    Expansion Plans
     
    Sonic Drive In Franchise
    Bar-B-Cutie Franchise
    US Expansion YesNo
    Canada Expansion NoNo
    International Expansion NoNo

    Company Overviews

    About Sonic Drive In

    Sonic Industries Inc. was founded in 1973. In 1974, Sonic acquired the name 'Sonic Drive-In' from Troy Smith, Sr., and began franchising. Smith used his more than 15 years of experience in the restaurant business to develop and operate the Sonic franchise program. A wholly owned subsidiary of Sonic Corp., the company is based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and has locations throughout the United States. The company's storefronts recently got a facelift to give them a 'retro-futuristic' look.

    Your estimated initial investment necessary to begin operation of a Traditional Sonic Drive-In franchise ranges from approximately $1,242,200 to $3,537,700 plus land costs and includes the $45,000 franchise fee that must be paid to Sonic.
    Your estimated initial investment necessary to begin operation of a Non-Traditional Sonic franchise ranges from approximately $361,900 to $978,700 and includes the $22,500 franchise fee that must be paid to Sonic.

    "franchiserankingscom"     "Entrepreneur
    #91 on Franchise Rankings.com
    #4 in Franchise 500 for 2020.
    #28 in Franchise 500 for 2021.




    About Bar-B-Cutie

    For over seven decades, Bar-B-Cutie SmokeHouse has been on an incredible journey. Having opened our first Bar-B-Cutie restaurant in Nashville in 1950, Bar-B-Cutie is certainly part of Nashville's history and is making history in other places like Georgia and Texas. In fact, South Texas hosts more Bar-B-Cutie locations than any other BBQ restaurant.Our track record of serving delicious Baby Back Ribs, Mouth Watering Grilled Mesquite Chicken and of course "The Worlds Best Barbecue Since 1950" speaks for itself.
    Bar-B-Cutie is in it's third and fourth generation of family ownership. After being in business successfully for over 50 years we are now offering opportunities to entrepreneurs who want to own and operate their own Bar-B-Cutie restaurant. We now are poised to grow our BRAND in the U.S. as well as Internationally. We know this because our food is great and our pricing is reasonable and when you put that in a clean and comfortable atmosphere coupled with superb service you have a winner. We truly care about our franchisees as well as our combined customers. We welcome you to take a closer look at our franchise opportunity. We have evolved into a more updated looking store but we always will keep the local community look and feel. We will continue to evolve as we along with our franchise family grows.

    Seeking new franchise units in Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah    
    Veteran Incentives  20% off franchise fee