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Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Around Town Community Magazine vs Adventures in Advertising including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.
Start-Up Costs and Fees |
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Investment | $37,600 - $54,800 | $35,000 |
Franchise Fee | $25,000 | $30,000 |
Royalty Fee | 5% | 6-8% |
Advertising Fee | - | - |
Year Founded | 1996 | 1980 |
Year Franchised | 2003 | 1994 |
Term Of Agreement | 5 years | - |
Term Of Agreement | 5 years | - |
Renewal Fee | - | - |
Business Experience Requirements |
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Experience | - | - |
Financing Options |
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In-House/3rd Party | In-House/3rd Party | |
Franchise Fees | No/No | Yes/No |
Start-up Costs | No/No | No/No |
Equipment | No/No | No/No |
Inventory | No/No | No/No |
Receivables | No/No | No/No |
Payroll | No/No | No/No |
Training & Support |
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Training | - | - |
Support | Meetings, Internet, Field operations/evaluations | - |
Marketing | - | - |
Operations |
Franchise can be run from home. 100% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 2 Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators) | - |
Expansion Plans |
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US Expansion | Yes | - |
Canada Expansion | No | No |
International Expansion | No | No |
Around Town Community Magazine, Inc. ("Around Town") began franchise operations in September 2002 in Woodstock, Georgia. Around Town franchises niche community magazines, each has a goal of "strengthening communities."Around Town was founded by Gina Carr and Don Kyle. Gina has a BA from Georgia Tech in Industrial Engineering and an MBA from Harvard. Don has a BS in Accounting from Florida State University and also is a CPA. Together they started The TowneLaker magazine in June 1996 and Sixes Living magazine in June 2000. After many years of practice, they decided to franchise the niche community magazine concept through Around Town Community Magazine, Inc.
Dan Carlson started Adventures in Advertising in 1982 in Seattle. The company acted as an independent distributor of logo merchandise, but soon moved into the design and consulting side of the promotional products business. Adventures in Advertising franchisees work with organizations and corporations, helping them put together marketing programs involving promotional items such as T-shirts, mouse pads and pens bearing their logos. Franchisees can run the business out of their homes, in an office or as an add-on to another business.