How to Choose the Food Franchise That's Right for You

The food industry is vast and diverse. From Italian restaurants to Mexican takeaways, we’re spoilt for choice and it isn’t always easy to decide. If you’re looking to run your own food franchise, here’s how to choose the right one for you.

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The UK food industry is one of the biggest contributing sectors to the economy. Even during the pandemic, us Brits spent a huge £103 billion pounds to make sure we were getting the food we craved [Statista].

With that amount of money being spent every year, it’s no surprise there are countless opportunities open to ambitious potential franchisees. But how do you choose the right option for you?

Depending on what your personal tastes are, you’ll have three main options:

1. A sit-in restaurant

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We may have had to pause on visits for a while, but sit-in restaurants have, for a long time, made up the overwhelming majority of the food and restaurant sector. Unfortunately, these restaurants were amongst the hardest hit of the pandemic.

But, since being able to open again (and soon with no restrictions), these more traditional restaurants have thrived, with many seeing record levels of demand, as people look to reunite over food and drinks and make up for lost time. If running a beautiful, sit-in restaurant sounds like the right thing for you, you could be looking at potential franchises such as Centenary Lounge, who specialised in unique sit-in dining.

Choosing the Right restaurant franchise

If you’re looking to open a restaurant franchise, you’re in good company. As mentioned above, there are plenty of potential options for you as you can find these restaurants anywhere in the UK. Although this makes restaurants a very competitive sector, you’ll also have plenty of choice. So, how do you pick the right restaurant franchise?

First of all, you’ll need to make a minimum investment. The good news is that many restaurant franchises have different minimum investment thresholds, so you can pick and choose which is right for you. For example, to open your own Centenary Lounge franchise, you’ll need to make a minimum investment of £75,000.

As this is a competitive sector, you’ll be up against some stiff opposition. So, to make sure your business has the best chance of succeeding, you should remember to:

• Do your research

• Prepare your business plan

• Know your budget

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>> Read more:

• Top 7 fast food franchises
• 8 Tips for Building a Business Plan for a Successful Sandwich Franchise
• Top 4 Burger Franchises in the UK
• The Yummy Truth About Running a Fast Food Franchise
• American Burger: How To Start Your Own American Burger Restaurant

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2. A Takeaway Franchise

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With many sit-in restaurants forced to close during the pandemic, the UK food sector saw a big increase in the amount of food businesses willing to operate on a takeaway model. Although far from ideal for many, some of the businesses were able to reach new customers, meaning takeaways are here to stay.

But with takeaways booming in recent months, making a fresh start as a takeaway business will be difficult. As part of a franchise though, you’ll be able to call on the support, networking, marketing and financial support of your franchisor, meaning you can get straight to work.

Choosing the Right takeaway Franchise

Running a takeaway franchise comes with lots of benefits. Firstly, you’ll be able to capitalise on the heavy demand currently in this sector. And, with your franchisor at your back, you’ll already be operating to a tried-and-tested business model. You’ll also:

• Have the support to grow rapidly

• Have an already established customer base

• Have dedicated business mentors and development managers

Depending on what kind of takeaway you want to open, you could consider opening a Caprinos Pizza franchise, where your total investment will be £65,000 and you can expect a revenue of £500,000 after two years. Or, if you’d prefer to work for a franchise with a large sustainability focus, you could try Camile Thai Kitchen franchise.

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>> Read more:

• 12 Things to Consider When Identifying the Right Location for Your Restaurant Franchise
• 3 Ways to Get Funding For Your Restaurant Franchise
• Regulations and Licences Required to Open a Restaurant
• 14 Tips for Defining and Reaching Your Restaurant's Target Customers
• Hiring Employees for Your Restaurant
• Choosing a Concept for Your Restaurant

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3. Mobile and van-based restaurants

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Food businesses have had to innovate to survive, and as a result, many have started operating their food businesses from vans. As well as being able to provide more authentic street food, mobile and van-based franchises also benefit from:

• Reduced overheads

• Location flexibility

• Improved working independence

Mobile restaurants, kiosks and temporary stalls are allowing food businesses to innovate and find new customers, and you can expect to see many more of these kinds of food franchises.

Choosing the Right Mobile or Van-Based franchise

If you’re looking to get in on this new trend, there are a number of exciting options for you to consider. For example, you could consider opening your new franchise as a Cafe2u franchisee. This franchise serves award-winning blended coffee from state-of-the-art vans and offers unrivalled support to all its network.

You could also try Coffee Blue where you’ll be able to provide industry-standard catering to events and communities around the country.

Start your food franchise and join the food industry today

The food industry is a multi-billion pound industry and as a franchisee for a major food franchise, you’ll be at the heart of it. Although starting your own business is never easy, being a part of a national franchise is a fantastic way to carve out a section of this market for yourself.

If you’re interested in starting your own food business, you can see more opportunities by clicking on the pages of any of the franchises listed above. Or, if you’d like to see a complete list of franchise opportunities in the UK, you can see the UK franchise directory page to explore other sectors.