California Tortilla vs La Bamba Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of California Tortilla vs La Bamba including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees

 
California Tortilla Franchise
La Bamba Franchise
Investment $378,400 - $697,000$187,000 - $335,833
Franchise Fee $40,000$30,000
Royalty Fee 5%-
Advertising Fee .5% local +2% Nat'l-
Year Founded 19951987
Year Franchised 19951989
Term Of Agreement 10 years-
Term Of Agreement 10 years-
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements

 
California Tortilla Franchise
La Bamba Franchise
Experience * A minimum of $1,000,000 net worth and $250,000 of liquid assets to invest in your California Tortilla franchise; * Experience in either the food/restaurant industry; and/or prior franchise experience; and/or prior business or management experience (whew!); * A passionate commitment to customer service; * A sound operating plan to manage your business; * A cultural fit with California Tortilla and a passion for Mexican food; * The willingness to learn and apply the California Tortilla Operating System. -

Financing Options

 
California Tortilla Franchise
La Bamba Franchise
  In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
Franchise Fees -/--/-
Start-up Costs -/--/-
Equipment -/--/-
Inventory -/--/-
Receivables -/--/-
Payroll -/--/-

Training & Support

 
California Tortilla Franchise
La Bamba Franchise
Training On-The-Job Training: 200 hours Classroom Training: 10 hours -
Support Purchasing 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 Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social media SEO Website development Email marketing Loyalty program/app -
Operations Absentee Ownership Allowed Number of Employees Required to Run: 15 -

Expansion Plans

 
California Tortilla Franchise
La Bamba Franchise
US Expansion Yes-
Canada Expansion --
International Expansion --

Company Overviews

About California Tortilla

California Tortilla is Mexican Re-Imagined. From the ingredients to the preparation to customer service, we’ve transformed a "quick bite” into a mouth-watering, crave-inducing, "I can’t wait to come back” experience.

California Tortilla is a unique fast casual Mexican restaurant franchise that serves "California style” Mexican food. We focus on one aspect that many other Fast Casuals continue to ignore; quality. We source the best ingredients from local farm to table purveyors. We use only premium proteins and our salsa, guacamole, queso and sauces are made fresh daily and are never frozen. In fact, there’s no freezer on site at all. Our menu is Chef-Inspired, and while we cater to individual customer needs, we offer bold and exciting flavor profiles in our signature products. Perhaps most importantly, guests aren’t a number at Cal Tort. They are individuals… people that we really like and want to see again and again.

About La Bamba

La Bamba Mexican Restaurants Group is a chain of 20+ concept-based Mexican "fast casual" restaurants serving both college towns and big cities, primarily in the Midwest. With a catchy "Burritos as big as your head" slogan, La Bamba features cooked-to-order Mexican meals in the $6-$7 range as well as a selection of Value Meals. The food is delicious and truly authentic Mexican, the portions are large and the service is quick. Our restaurants are all decorated with a bright, Mexican theme in red, white and green that helps to create a welcoming and relaxed atmosphere. The restaurants begin serving lunch at 11:00 a.m. and stay open late at night to cater to the "after bar-closing"crowd.