| ||||
Updated RecentlyIcebox/Soupbox vs sweetFrog Franchise Comparison
Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Icebox/Soupbox vs sweetFrog including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.
Start-Up Costs and Fees |
||
| Investment | $69,500 - $174,500 | $95,600 - $477,500 |
| Franchise Fee | $14,000 - $20,000 | $15,000 - $30,000 |
| Royalty Fee | 4% | 5% |
| Advertising Fee | - | 1.5% |
| Year Founded | 1995 | 2009 |
| Year Franchised | 1998 | 2012 |
| Term Of Agreement | 10 years | 10 years |
| Term Of Agreement | 10 years | 10 years |
| Renewal Fee | Negotiable | - |
Business Experience Requirements |
||
| Experience | - | |
Financing Options |
||
| In-House/3rd Party | In-House/3rd Party | |
| Franchise Fees | No/No | -/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 |
||
| Training | - | On-The-Job Training: 24 hours Classroom Training: 24 hours Additional Training: As needed |
| Support | Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperatives | Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings/Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security/Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Franchisee Intranet Platform |
| Marketing | Co-op advertising, Ad slicks, Regional advertising | Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app |
| Operations |
0% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 10 Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators) | 50% of all franchisees own more than one unit. Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 2 - 4. Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (50% of current franchisees are owner/operators). |
Expansion Plans |
||
| US Expansion | - | No |
| Canada Expansion | No | No |
| International Expansion | Yes | No |
Company Overviews
About Icebox/Soupbox
Before opening his first store, Jamie Taerbaum stood outside a Baskin-Robbins store to figure out how many customers an ice cream store could expect at different times of day, on different days of the week, and in different weather conditions. Armed with this research, the young business school graduate opened the original Icebox/Soupbox store in 1995 in Chicago.
In the spring and summer, Icebox operates as a retailer of Icyfruit, a mixture of fruit juice, sugar, water and chunks of fruit that comes in 20 flavors. Throughout the fall and winter, it becomes a Soupbox store, offering a wide variety of soups.
About sweetFrog
#23 on Entrepreneur's ranking of the top 150 franchises offering incentives and other programs to help veterans become franchisees
Seeking new franchise units throughout the U.S., Africa, Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, Central America, Eastern Europe, Middle East, Mexico, Philippines, South America and Western Europe