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Updated RecentlyFriendly's Restaurants vs Western Sizzlin Franchise Comparison
Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Friendly's Restaurants vs Western Sizzlin including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.
Start-Up Costs and Fees |
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| Investment | $498,500 - $1,950,000 | $811,000 - $2,300,000 |
| Franchise Fee | $30,000 - $35,000 | $30,000 |
| Royalty Fee | 4% | 3% |
| Advertising Fee | 3.5% | - |
| Year Founded | 1935 | 1962 |
| Year Franchised | 1996 | 1965 |
| Term Of Agreement | 20 years | 20 years |
| Term Of Agreement | 20 years | 20 years |
| Renewal Fee | $5K | - |
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 | No/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 | Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations | Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperatives |
| Marketing | Ad slicks, National media | Ad slicks |
| Operations |
Franchisees required to buy multiple units/master licenses; 62% of all franchisees own more than one unit
Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators) |
20% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 40 Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (90% of current franchisees are owner/operators) |
Expansion Plans |
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| US Expansion | Yes | Yes |
| Canada Expansion | No | No |
| International Expansion | No | No |
Company Overviews
About Friendly's Restaurants
In Springfield, Massachusetts at the height of the Great Depression in 1935, 20 year-old Prestley Blake and his 18 year-old brother Curtis opened an ice cream shop called 'Friendly' that served double-dip cones for 5 cents. The brothers opened a second shop five years later in West Springfield, Massachusetts and added food to the menu. Within a decade, locations opened throughout western Massachusetts and Connecticut. In 1988 Donald N. Smith, the company's current CEO, purchased the company and a year later added an 's' to the name, making it 'Friendly's.'
In May 2000, Friendly's introduced a new food and dessert menu featuring colossal burgers, sandwich wraps, splits, sundaes and Cyclones. Friendly's produces 10 million snack cups and 230,000 gallons of fudge every year. In addition to its restaurants and cafes, Friendly's manufactures a complete line of frozen desserts.
About Western Sizzlin
WesterN SizzliN serves only the finest steaks. In the cooking process, our steaks are specially seasoned with Gold Dust, a WesterN SizzliN proprietary recipe. The combination of the Pascarellas original cooking technique and one-of-a-kind seasoning brought Nick and his wife Nora, an impeccable reputation for serving the most succulent tasting steak around. As one of our franchisees says, "We've got a special juicy flavor that only WesterN SizzliN has!" But don't just take our word for it, ask anyone who has ever had one, and they'll tell you about it. Nick's concept was just too good to keep to himself. In 1966 he responded to requests and began selling franchises nationally. By 1988, Nick's "steakhouse" had grown into a national chain with yearly sales of nearly half a billion dollars!