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Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Sonitrol vs Signature Alert Security including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.
Start-Up Costs and Fees |
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Investment | $148,000 - $474,000 | $22,000 - $42,000 |
Franchise Fee | $20,000 - $50,000 | $10,000 - $19,000 |
Royalty Fee | 2.5% | 10% |
Advertising Fee | - | - |
Year Founded | 1964 | 1999 |
Year Franchised | 1965 | 2003 |
Term Of Agreement | 10 years | 10 years |
Term Of Agreement | 10 years | 10 years |
Renewal Fee | - | $3K |
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, Internet, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperatives | Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperatives |
Marketing | Ad slicks | Co-op advertising |
Operations |
15% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 20 Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (90% of current franchisees are owner/operators) |
Franchise can be run from home.
Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators) |
Expansion Plans |
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US Expansion | - | - |
Canada Expansion | No | No |
International Expansion | Yes | No |
Robert Baxter originally founded Sonitrol in 1960 as a company that would incorporate his various sound-related inventions. Everything changed when police officer and alarm company owner Al Cronk hired Baxter to manage his company's equipment. Baxter's innovations proved so successful that Sonitrol soon evolved from an invention company into a security franchise opportunity in 1965. A subsidiary of Tyco International Ltd., the Sonitrol Network has franchisees in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
Signature Alert’s Philosophy of their company is simple which is to provide state of the art equipment, with the highest quality installation, at competitive prices, and provide gold-medal service after the installation.” They install GE (General Electric) and Honeywell equipment which are the highest quality, most user friendly, on the market today. Their installers have an average of 15 years of installation and service experience. After their system is installed, they offer a 24-hour service response guarantee.