Pizza Hotline vs Cottage Inn Pizza Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Pizza Hotline vs Cottage Inn Pizza including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees

 
Pizza Hotline Franchise
Cottage Inn Pizza Franchise
Investment $100,000 - And Up$200,000 - $350,000
Franchise Fee $30,000$15,000
Royalty Fee 6%5%
Advertising Fee 6%3%
Year Founded -1948
Year Franchised -1986
Term Of Agreement --
Term Of Agreement --
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements

 
Pizza Hotline Franchise
Cottage Inn Pizza Franchise
Experience Most importantly, we look for people who see the value in their personal involvement in a franchise. We want owner operators, not part-time managers. We look for an outgoing personality, superb communication skills, an ability to be a team player, a positive attitude geared toward success, a strong work ethic, and a commitment to community. We choose franchisees selectively based on a formalized interview process. We know what it takes to succeed and we ensure that each and every member of the Pizza Hotline team has those qualities.

A minimum net worth of $100,000 A minimum of $60,000 in liquid assets or financing or a combination thereof Five Star Customer Service for staff and customers alike Product Quality — using only approved ingredients and the amounts set forth by the Cottage Inn Standard Operating Procedures Professional Image — uniforms should be clean and pressed, and employees should be well-groomed at all times. The Right Personality As a member of the food service industry, our franchisees must have the right personality, too. We look for clean-cut professionals who will take pride in being a Cottage Inn franchisee. We also look for candidates who are strong leaders, can motivate a staff, and treat customers with the utmost care and respect. In the food service industry, it’s important that your store pass the white glove test every day. Safety is always a concern when it comes to proper food handling. To be a successful Cottage Inn franchisee you must also understand profit and loss statements. You need to input tools to measure your expenses on an on-going basis. We lay out what has been successful for Cottage Inn throughout our corporate stores and we want to make sure each franchisee who joins the Cottage Inn family follows the same equation to success.


Financing Options

 
Pizza Hotline Franchise
Cottage Inn Pizza Franchise
  In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
Franchise Fees -/Yes-/-
Start-up Costs -/Yes-/-
Equipment -/Yes-/-
Inventory -/Yes-/-
Receivables -/Yes-/-
Payroll -/Yes-/-

Training & Support

 
Pizza Hotline Franchise
Cottage Inn Pizza Franchise
Training We provide an extensive training program based on years of experience. Potential franchisees train onsite alongside seasoned company veterans and we provide manuals and ongoing training where required.

Cottage Inn offers a world-class training program

On-The-Job Training: 240 hours Classroom Training: 6 hours

Support Once a franchise is up and running, our team of professionals is always just a phone call away � and available with information, advice and tips on how to make a franchise run as smoothly as possible.

On-going support to keep your store running successfully and smoothly. We want you to succeed, which is why we offer our support and advice gained from years of experience in the pizza industry. We’ve been in the business since 1948 and operate 40 locations in two states, so it’s safe to say we know how to run a business. 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 -

We collaborate with a digital marketing agency to help make Cottage Inn the top-ranked pizza company in relevant markets across Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. Cottage Inn employs an in-house creative team and offsite agency to produce a myriad of digital marketing vehicles, including e-blasts, mobile CRM, social media (Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, FourSquare, Instagram). We also leverage traditional print solutions such as bulk mail menus, EDDM (every day direct mail) cards, magnets, box toppers and door hangers. We also invest in branding the Cottage Inn name, making us more desirable across all relevant markets. Cottage Inn is the Preferred Pizza Provider at MIS (Michigan International Speedway) where we serve over 100,000 guests at NASCAR events and the Country Music Festival. Cottage Inn engages franchisees in strategic marketing meetings to receive their input on marketing campaigns and new product development. We also help franchisees market their specific stores via community fairs, business expos, entertainment venues and more. We are family first at Cottage Inn, having been owned by the same family for over 65 years! How we market each of our franchises: Dynamic corporate website with pages dedicated to each franchise location Convenient online ordering A loyalty program to attract and retain customers Mobile marketing to engage with the on-the-go world E-marketing to offer the best deals to our dedicated customers Traditional print marketing menus, direct mail, door hangers, box toppers, magnets and specialty pieces Social media to engage our most dedicated consumers. Branding by way of special event sponsorships

Operations -

Cottage Inn maintains control of its product and distribution by operating a 22,000 square foot commissary in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Fresh products are delivered weekly and our warehouse staff is always on call in case of emergency. Cottage Inn produces fresh dough daily. For locations more than 200 miles away from Ann Arbor, we encourage and assist franchisees with setting up their own dough production. This assures a fresh, high-quality product and will help you secure a customer for life.

Absentee Ownership Allowed

Number of Employees Required to Run: 15


Expansion Plans

 
Pizza Hotline Franchise
Cottage Inn Pizza Franchise
US Expansion YesYes
Canada Expansion YesYes
International Expansion --

Company Overviews

About Pizza Hotline

Why Pizza Hotline? Speedy take-out/delivery Because when it comes to pizza franchises, we're in the upper crust. If you have the interest, the commitment, and the drive to make a Pizza Hotline or Cafe 22 franchise a success, we will make it happen for you - we've spent over 30 years honing our concept. We've done all the homework, we know the market inside out and now we want to share our insights with you. Companies from virtually all industry sectors regularly use Winnipeg as a test market. Some even say that Winnipeg is the New York of the North - "if you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere". We started in Winnipeg, we're thriving in Winnipeg, and now we're ready to expand our success into new markets. We can talk with you about which franchise option - Pizza Hotline or Cafe 22 - would work best in your desired location. Most suburban neighbourhoods are served best by a Pizza Hotline take-out and delivery location, but in other areas, Cafe 22 is a perfect fit, offering a casual, relaxed environment where people can gather with friends and enjoy the Pizza Hotline menu - and more. If you think you have what it takes to run a successful Pizza Hotline franchise, we'd like to talk to you.

About Cottage Inn Pizza

At Cottage Inn we believe that if you're going to craft a pizza, it should be to a certain degree of perfection and that you should never skimp on the quality of your ingredients. It's these two simple statements that drive our process for constructing truly gourmet pizzas.

Veteran Incentives  10% off franchise fee