If starting your own business is at the top of the list of financial goals that you have four 2014 but you don’t have the patience or capital to start a business from scratch, one of your best options is franchising.
With that in mind we looked through the data provided by Bond’s Franchise Guide on 110 of the most established names and franchising to bring you the Top 5 franchises for the money that are being offered today. Following the guide we looked at the most important variables including the initial investment cost, the number of total locations that a franchise had, the number of closings that were reported in the last 3 years, the US growth in the last 3 years and finally the number of training hours needed in order to get started.
Of course all of the information that were going to present to you can also be found in the franchise disclosure document that each of these companies are required to give you before you say “yes” to any new franchise. They are about 400 pages long and will take quite a bit of time to go through but it’s vital information that you’ll need before you can make an educated decision. With that in mind, here are the Top 5.
#1 / Snap-On Tools of Kenosha, Wisconsin.
These ubiquitous “stores on wheels” sell top-of-the-line tools that are used by professional mechanics all over the country. Every truck that Snap-on sells comes equipped with not only wireless Internet access but a computer and DVD player so that the franchise owner can give product demonstrations on the go.
The average initial investment to open a franchise is $135,000 approximately and as of the end of 2012 there were almost 3500 locations across the United States. In the last 3 fiscal years they have had Zero closures and their hours of training amount to approximately 191.
#2 / 7-Eleven of Dallas, Texas.
The largest franchisor in terms of outlets in the entire world, 7-Eleven is open 24 hours and is the home of the famous Slurpee. For US military veterans they give an initial franchise fee discount of 10% and out of over 6300 locations 90 have been closed in the last 3 fiscal years. The average initial investment to open one of their stores is just over $390,000 and the training hours that they offer are just over 300.
#3 / Aaron’s of Atlanta, Georgia.
Aaron’s is a chain that sells and/or leases furniture, household appliances, televisions and so forth. Depending on when a franchise is purchased and how well business is doing, they will offer up to $450,000 in credit for the franchisor to purchase inventory.
They have an initial investment of approximately $420,000 and nearly 1800 locations across the United States. In the last 3 years they have had only 12 closings and they offer the 3rd most hours of training among the Top 5 at 701.
#4 / Panera Bread of St. Louis, Missouri.
Panera is a “fast casual” restaurant chain that uses their homemade bread to make made-to-order sandwiches as well as salads. With an initial investment just shy of $1.5 million they have almost 1400 US locations and have only closed 6 of those in the last 3 years. Panera also offers just over 1100 hrs. of training in order to make sure that franchisors are successful right from the start.
#5 / Servpro of Gallatin, Tennessee
Located in all 48 contiguous United States, Servpro is one of the leading companies when it comes to cleaning buildings and homes after natural disasters like floods as well as after fires. They were on the scene after the terrorist attacks of September 11 as well as hurricane Katrina and when needed can put together “elite large-loss specialists” that handle extra-large cleanup problems that might be found at municipalities or universities.
The initial investment to open a Servpro is just over $156,000 and they have approximately 1600 locations across the US. With 22 closings in the last 3 fiscal years their percentage is quite low and their training hours are low as well at 226.