Great Harvest vs Bread Poets Baking Company Franchise Comparison

Pete Wakeman had been baking bread most of his life. As a child, he would help his aunt. In high school, he baked for his friends. During summer vacations, he sold bread from the roadside. In 1976, when Wakeman heard about a bakery in Great Falls, Montana, that was going under, he bought it. With the help of his wife, Laura, Wakeman established the Great Harvest Bread Co. and set about baking loaves for people in the Great Falls community. Soon, people from neighboring communities starting asking about setting up their own Great Harvest locations. The first franchise opened in Kalispell, Montana. In 1983, the Wakemans converted their Great Falls bakery into a franchise and moved company headquarters to Dillon, Montana, so they could concentrate on the franchising end of their business. Great Harvest bakeries serve a variety of breads each day including honey whole wheat, white cheddar garlic, sunflower and cranberry orange.

The total investment necessary to begin operation of a Great Harvest bakery cafe franchise in a “Hub” location is $144,100 to $704,873. This includes $35,000 that must be paid to the franchisor or affiliate.

The total investment necessary to begin operation of a Great Harvest bakery cafe franchise in a “Spoke” location is $69,613 to $447,536. This includes $15,000 that must be paid to the franchisor or affiliate.

If you want development rights, you must pay the franchisor a development fee equal to the full initial franchise fee for the first bakery cafe ($35,000) plus a deposit of $7,500 (of the $15,000 initial franchise fee) for each additional bakery cafe you agree to develop. The total investment necessary to begin operation if you acquire development rights is $151,600 to $712,373. This includes $42,500 that must be paid to the franchisor or affiliate.

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Bread Poets provides a unique opportunity to make an incredible tangible product and immediately see the fruits of your labor. Sure it’s hard work but having been in this business for almost 15 years, we can honestly say that it is extremely gratifying!

We take the franchising end of our business very seriously and are committed to giving our franchisees all the tools necessary to succeed. However, with any business venture, the recipe for success falls squarely on the shoulders of the individuals running each location. There’s an old adage in the franchise business: "You’re in business for yourself but not by yourself”. Therein lies the strength of a franchise system. We’ve been through many hardships, constantly refined our systems and recipes, and basically know this business inside and out. You not only invest in the name Bread Poets and our products, but you benefit from the lessons we’ve already learned - giving you the advantage to hit the ground running with a tried and true system that works and a product that will simply amaze your customers!

We hope you’ve had the chance to visit Bread Poets - soaking in the atmosphere of busy bakers hoppin’ around the bakery to an upbeat melody as the fresh bread is being pulled from the oven. The sight, the sound, the smell and the taste leave an indelible impression on all who walk through our doors. The products are unique only to us and the chatter at the bread board affirms that there is nothing quite like Bread Poets bread.

If you should be among the chosen to open a Bread Poets you will spend time in our Bismarck location learning how to run a bakery - from doing the doughs, to baking, to customer service up at the counter. We will cover it all. There will also be office training that covers bookkeeping, recordkeeping, ordering and staffing.