Sonic Drive In vs Hot Fries Franchise Comparison

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

Start-Up Costs and Fees
 
Sonic Drive In Franchise
Hot Fries Franchise
Investment $1,242,000 - $3,523,300$166,997 - $374,900
Franchise Fee $45,000$30,000
Royalty Fee 2.45-5%-
Advertising Fee 3%-
Year Founded 1954-
Year Franchised 1959-
Term Of Agreement 20 years-
Term Of Agreement 20 years-
Renewal Fee 10 years for $6K-


Business Experience Requirements
 
Sonic Drive In Franchise
Hot Fries Franchise
Experience
  • Industry experience
  • General business experience
  • If no industry experience, must have an operating equity partner
    		• Strong Sales and Client Service Abilities • Good with Timing and Schedule Management • High Personal Standards • Able to Meet Initial Investment Requirements • Strong Sense of Integrity in Corporate and Client Relationships • A Willingness and Commitment to Excellent Service Targeted experiences for potential franchise owners may include: • Franchise Operations or Hospitality Service Industry Experience • Business Owner and/or Managerial Experience • Entrepreneurial team who wants to start a business

    Financing Options
     
    Sonic Drive In Franchise
    Hot Fries Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-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
     
    Sonic Drive In Franchise
    Hot Fries Franchise
    Training On-The-Job Training: 400 hours Classroom Training: 24 hours Additional Training: At existing franchise location 2-3 Weeks of training at Hot Fries HQ in Southern California beginning approximately 8 weeks before the franchise is scheduled to open for business • 1 week of training at your location to get your business started • 2 sessions per year, which can be up to 2 days of refresher/update training or meetings in each session • Ongoing support and guidance in building and operating your business
    Support Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Franchisee Intranet Platform When you join the Hot Fries team as a franchise owner, you will receive outstanding support in a number of different exciting areas: • Operational Support • Marketing Support • Purchasing Support • Accounting and Legal Support • Ongoing Research and Development
    Marketing Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO 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.

    		-

    Expansion Plans
     
    Sonic Drive In Franchise
    Hot Fries Franchise
    US Expansion YesYes
    Canada Expansion No-
    International Expansion No-

    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 Hot Fries

    Never heard “gooder” before? That’s okay, you’ve never seen an opportunity like this before, either. Maybe we’ve let all that seasonings go to our heads, but we like to stay on top of the trends by offering an extensive menu with a local edge that includes regionalized fries, chicken and drinks. Hot Fries is hot because we’re everything that mega corporations aren’t. Passionate people instead of cold-hearted committees. Cooked-with-care instead of made-by-
    machine. Got-your-back instead of stab-in-the-back. If this sounds like your kind of business, we’ll be proud to have you.

    We start with the finest potatoes, slice them for maximum crispiness, flash-fry them to a perfect golden brown, and hand-season them while they’re hot.
    That’s what turns regular fries into Hot Fries!

    Hot Fries came into existence in order to offer to the world the best potatoes ever. Beside the fries, we have formulated a variety of special seasonings to enhance your experience when enjoying our fries. Our packaging, in which we serve the fries, has been designed so that you can eat the fries while walking around or enjoy them while sitting. It is our goal that you enjoy the tastes offered by Hot Fries as well as the experience of choosing, ordering and consuming our specialties that feature no trans fat oils & support sustainable farming!