White Hen Pantry vs Symposium Cafe Franchise Comparison

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

Start-Up Costs and Fees

 
White Hen Pantry Franchise
Symposium Cafe Franchise
Investment $52,400 - $225,200$625,000 - $675,000
Franchise Fee $30,000$40,000
Royalty Fee Varies4%
Advertising Fee -1%
Year Founded 19651996
Year Franchised 19652004
Term Of Agreement 10 years-
Term Of Agreement 10 years-
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements

 
White Hen Pantry Franchise
Symposium Cafe Franchise
Experience
  • Industry experience
  • General business experience
  • -

    Financing Options

     
    White Hen Pantry Franchise
    Symposium Cafe Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees Yes/No-/-
    Start-up Costs Yes/No-/-
    Equipment No/No-/-
    Inventory Yes/No-/-
    Receivables No/No-/-
    Payroll No/No-/-

    Training & Support

     
    White Hen Pantry Franchise
    Symposium Cafe Franchise
    Training -3 full months of training for up to three individuals at an existing Symposium Cafe location.
    Support Newsletter, Meetings, Grand opening, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperativesA transition tutor is assigned to directly assist you on a regular basis in your restaurant franchise for a period of 10 weeks. This tutor works closely with you through the opening stages of your cafe, the day-to-day operating systems and procedures to ensure a successful start-up of your restaurant. This program is designed to strengthen and build the Franchise operators commitment to our proven systems. Our unique 10 weeks in-store program is crucial to building your team, establishing a strong customer base, growing restaurant sales and operating a successful Symposium Cafe franchise. The field consulting team provides ongoing support and training through restaurant visits and coaching. They ensure all Symposium Cafe systems, specifications and standards are in place to drive consistent operations and profitable sales. Professional operations staff makes ongoing visits to your restaurant to hear any concerns you may have. They'll also conduct restaurant audits, which expose areas of concern within your operation. Our regional managers work with our Franchisees to develop action plans to correct and eliminate any problems uncovered.
    Marketing --
    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.

    -

    Expansion Plans

     
    White Hen Pantry Franchise
    Symposium Cafe Franchise
    US Expansion Yes-
    Canada Expansion NoYes
    International Expansion No-

    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 Symposium Cafe

    The Symposium Cafe Restaurant - a unique cafe and restaurant franchising opportunity, that is both challenging and rewarding and is redefining the cafe experience. Our competitive advantages stem from the foundation of our gourmet restaurant franchises through to the corporate infrastructure, operational systems and support, and our supplier partnerships. Our franchise system guides each of the franchisees through every facet of the restaurant operation. Upon becoming familiar with our system each franchisee will be able to train and develop each of their associates in all areas of the restaurant business. Our system revolves around the philosophy of "Continued Training" to guarantee our team meets and exceeds our dining patrons expectations. All positional training techniques are clearly outlined in our restaurant manuals with easy to implement instructions. Our restaurant cost management system, indexed in our operations manual, is designed to provide you with the necessary tools to completely analyze and understand your restaurant franchises business both from a sale and cost perspective. Informative and educational restaurant symposiums are held with the main focus and discussion revolving around driving and developing our restaurant and patio sales while controlling costs using our proven cafe systems. All of these elements make The Symposium Cafe franchise a successful, rewarding restaurant franchises opportunity.