Golden Corral vs Hard Rock Cafe Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Golden Corral vs Hard Rock Cafe including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
 
Golden Corral Franchise
Hard Rock Cafe Franchise
Investment $2,700,795 - $7,037,915$2,995,000 - $4,910,000
Franchise Fee $50,000$350,000 - $750,000
Royalty Fee 4%-
Advertising Fee 2.4%-
Year Founded 1973-
Year Franchised 1986-
Term Of Agreement 15 years-
Term Of Agreement 15 years-
Renewal Fee 15 years (plus two, 5-year renewal options)-


Business Experience Requirements
 
Golden Corral Franchise
Hard Rock Cafe Franchise
Experience
  • Industry experience
  • (or must have partner with industry experience.)
    		• -

    Financing Options
     
    Golden Corral Franchise
    Hard Rock Cafe Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees No/No-/-
    Start-up Costs No/Yes-/-
    Equipment No/Yes-/-
    Inventory No/No-/-
    Receivables No/No-/-
    Payroll No/No-/-

    Training & Support
     
    Golden Corral Franchise
    Hard Rock Cafe Franchise
    Training On-The-Job Training: 665 hours Classroom Training: 8.5 hours Additional Training: At company training location-
    Support Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform-
    Marketing National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app-
    Operations International franchisees required to buy multiple units/master licenses; 80% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 100

    Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (90% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

    		-

    Expansion Plans
     
    Golden Corral Franchise
    Hard Rock Cafe Franchise
    US Expansion Yes-
    Canada Expansion NoNo
    International Expansion YesNo

    Company Overviews

    About Golden Corral

    Golden Corral restaurants began as budget steakhouses located principally in small cities from Virginia to Texas. In the mid-1980s, guest requests prompted Golden Corral to reinvent itself by introducing the Buffet & Grill Metro unit that features 160 hot and cold items, a carving station, and the Brass Bell Bakery, which offers rolls, muffins, cookies, pies and pizza made from scratch. The buffet was expanded in 2001 to include cooked-to-order sirloin steaks.

    The total investment necessary to begin operation of a restaurant ranges from $2,700,795 to $5,340,215 for the less expensive restaurant design, and from $3,453,379 to $7,037,915 for the more expensive restaurant design. This amount includes $51,400 to $4,482,285 that must or may be paid to the franchisor or its affiliates.

    #90 in Franchise 500 for 2020.

    About Hard Rock Cafe

    You can buy an international Hard Rock Cafe franchise in Canada, Asia, Europe, the Caribbean, South America or South Africa. However, the chain is not expanding in the United States at the time of publication. The company franchises to other companies with substantial assets, as it estimates a new Hard Rock Cafe has initial costs of about $3 million to $5 million depending on size and location. Merchandise sales account for more than 40 percent of franchise income.