Wild Bird Centers of America vs EarthWise Pets Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Wild Bird Centers of America vs EarthWise Pets including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees

 
Wild Bird Centers of America Franchise
EarthWise Pets Franchise
Investment $120,250 - $195,350$233,000 - $568,000
Franchise Fee $25,000$39,500
Royalty Fee 4.5%6%
Advertising Fee -1%
Year Founded 19852005
Year Franchised 19902008
Term Of Agreement 5 years-
Term Of Agreement 5 years-
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements

 
Wild Bird Centers of America Franchise
EarthWise Pets Franchise
Experience
  • Birding hobby knowledge
  • -

    Financing Options

     
    Wild Bird Centers of America Franchise
    EarthWise Pets Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees No/NoYes/Yes
    Start-up Costs No/No-/Yes
    Equipment No/No-/Yes
    Inventory No/No-/Yes
    Receivables No/No-/Yes
    Payroll No/No-/Yes

    Training & Support

     
    Wild Bird Centers of America Franchise
    EarthWise Pets Franchise
    Training - On-The-Job Training: 40 hours Classroom Training: 80 hours Additional Training: Ongoing
    Support Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, 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 slicks, National media, Regional advertisingCo-op Advertising Ad Templates Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app
    Operations 3% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 3 - 5

    Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

    -

    Expansion Plans

     
    Wild Bird Centers of America Franchise
    EarthWise Pets Franchise
    US Expansion -Yes
    Canada Expansion No-
    International Expansion Yes-

    Company Overviews

    About Wild Bird Centers of America

    Longtime bird-watching enthusiast George H. Petrides Sr. opened his first Wild Bird store in 1985 in Cabin John, Maryland. In 1990 the company began franchising. In addition to its Wild Bird Centers of America Inc., the company also offers Wild Bird Crossing stores designed for smaller markets.

    Besides selling bird watching and feeding equipment and gifts, Wild Bird Centers and Wild Bird Crossings provide demonstrations, kids' programs and other educational events.

    Wild Bird Centers has locations throughout the United States and Canada and is now based in Glen Echo, Maryland.

    About EarthWise Pets

    The very first thing you should understand about EarthWise Pet and its family of brands: We don’t sell pets. We never did.

    We are a coalition of locally-owned and operated pet nutrition stores and pet wellness spas striving to accomplish a unified mission to better the lives of our furry family members. Our first family owned store was opened in 1977 in Westminster, California and Huntington Beach, California.

    Now, with over 150 locations and 40 years of experience, we have developed a service that provides a truly unique pet store experience.

    At EarthWise Pets, we pride ourselves in striving to be the most innovative pet supply, grooming, and self wash retail chain in America. This allows our franchisees to have peace of mind in knowing that their franchise company is constantly working on developing creative new ways to keep them growing each and every year.  What we have in store next is revolutionary!
    Veteran Incentives  First-year ad royalty waived, 2-day training with CEO, free business plan