White Hen Pantry vs Denny's Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of White Hen Pantry vs Denny's including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees

 
White Hen Pantry Franchise
Denny's Franchise
Investment $52,400 - $225,200$305,000 - $2,404,695
Franchise Fee $30,000$10,000 - $30,000
Royalty Fee Varies4.5%-7%
Advertising Fee -3%-3.5%
Year Founded 19651953
Year Franchised 19651984
Term Of Agreement 10 years20 years
Term Of Agreement 10 years20 years
Renewal Fee -$10K for 10 years


Business Experience Requirements

 
White Hen Pantry Franchise
Denny's Franchise
Experience
  • Industry experience
  • General business experience

  • Industry experience
  • General business experience
  • Operations experience

  • Financing Options

     
    White Hen Pantry Franchise
    Denny's Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees Yes/NoNo/Yes
    Start-up Costs Yes/NoNo/Yes
    Equipment No/NoNo/Yes
    Inventory Yes/NoNo/Yes
    Receivables No/NoNo/No
    Payroll No/NoNo/No

    Training & Support

     
    White Hen Pantry Franchise
    Denny's Franchise
    Training -On-The-Job Training: 91 hours Classroom Training: 16 hours Additional Training: At existing Denny's restaurants
    Support Newsletter, Meetings, Grand opening, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperativesPurchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
    Marketing -Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social media Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app
    Operations 10% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 10 - 15

    Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed.

    44% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 80

    Absentee Ownership Allowed


    Expansion Plans

     
    White Hen Pantry Franchise
    Denny's Franchise
    US Expansion YesYes
    Canada Expansion NoNo
    International Expansion NoYes

    Company Overviews

    About White Hen Pantry

    White Hen Pantry Inc. was bought out by 7-Eleven
    White Hen Pantry Inc. was founded in 1965 and began franchising that same year. The Elmhurst, Illinois-based company has more than 280 locations in the United States.

    About Denny's

    In 1953, Harold Butler opened Danny's Donuts, a Lakewood, California, stand that served coffee and doughnuts 24 hours a day. The following year, the stand grew and its name was changed to Danny's Coffee Shops. Five years later, there were 20 shops in the chain, and the company changed its name to Denny's. Denny's locations serve breakfast, lunch and dinner choices 24 hours a day. Denny's New & Emerging Markets incentive program is designed to help us recruit exceptional new franchisees to seize valuable market share in new & emerging markets. Under the program, new franchisees can save up to $1 million by developing 4 new restaurants in new & emerging markets. The estimated savings include reduced: initial fees, royalty rate, marketing fees, market planning fee, store design fees, NRO training, and MGIP (development fees). With a flexible, cost-effective prototype & best-in-class systems, Denny's is positioned for sustained franchise growth.

    The total investment necessary to begin operation of a Denny’s franchise is from $1,330,525.50 to $2,404,695.50 for a Denny’s Heritage facility; from $305,000 to $826,000 for a nontraditional Denny’s, including The Den; and from $1,025,528.50 to $1,659,695.50 for Denny’s within a Travel Center (these numbers exclude real estate). This includes the initial franchise fee of $10,000 to $30,000 and the New Restaurant Opening fee of $0 to $36,000, for a total of $10,000 to $66,000, which must be paid to the franchisor or affiliate.

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