FAQ
Here are some answers to questions our franchisees get asked:
Q. What are the minimum requirements to open a Pizza Pie Cafe restaurant?
A. You will need to have at least a net worth of $350,000 and liquid assets of $80,000 (in cash and marketable securities). Remember this is the absolute minimum to owning a single PPC location. If you are looking to be an area developer the requirements may be higher.
Q. How much does it cost to open a location?
A. Currently, the cost of building out a Pizza Pie Cafe location, including the $35,000 franchise fee and working capital, ranges between $479,000-$607,998. A full breakdown of the cost is provided in Item 7 of our Franchise Disclosure Document. One thing to keep in mind is that Tenant Improvement money can usually be negotiated into the lease. This will lower your initial start-up costs by whatever is negotiated. The bulk of that cost can usually be financed, but lenders will generally require a cash injection of 20-30%. Franchisees will need to meet lenders’ qualifications for financing.
Q. Does Pizza Pie Cafe offer financing?
A. Like most franchise companies, we do not offer any type of financing. We can recommend preferred lenders that have worked with our Franchisees in the past.
Q. How much can I make from a Pizza Pie Cafe location?
A. Pizza Pie Cafe provides a financial performance representation in our FDD (item 19). While it is our hope that your location will do as well as the best of our current locations, your profitability depends considerably on your ability to manage the day-to-day operations, finances, local store marketing, labor and food costs, and building your business by giving the best service to your guests.
Q. What is your ongoing royalty fee?
A. Our royalty fee is 5% of weekly net sales. This royalty is pulled out weekly by direct deposit.
Q. What is the typical store size?
A. One of our proven processes at Pizza Pie Cafe is to have a large enough store to have provide the volume needed to make a buffet profitable. We have found over many years of experience that the location needs to be between 4,500 and 6,500 square feet in size. There are many things to consider when looking at sizes of restaurants, but this is a general rule we go by when looking for locations.
Q. Do I have to train in Provo, Utah?
A. Yes, you do. Trust me, it is a nice place to visit. We require that the person running the location be trained at our corporate location in Utah. It is near our headquarters in Lehi, Utah and has the size and room for proper training. In order to do thorough competency training this is a must. We can’t emphasize enough that the proper training makes all the difference in your profitability.
Q. How does my territory work?
A. When signing the Franchise Agreement (FA), you will be given an agreed upon territory to build your first location in. Depending on the size of the territory, the traffic patterns, shopping centers, and the geographical boundaries involved with it you may be able to build a second location or possibly a third location within your territory. The FA will spell out a certain time frame that this area is protected for you to grow your business into multiply locations. After the agreed upon time has expired the territory become salable again and can be further developed with more locations given the proximity to your currently location is suitable. You will need to see the FA for further explanation about protected areas.
Q. How many company owned stores do you have?
A. We currently have 5 company owned locations. Two in Utah and three in Idaho.
Q. Am I responsible to locate a site/store location by myself?
A. Although you are responsible for choosing your site, you will work with our real estate team to find a location. The site location has to be recommended by you, then approved by our executive team. Our real estate team will scout locations based upon the territory you establish in your Franchise Agreement. You will have the option to accept or pass any proposed location.