In short, starting a new business is extremely hard, particularly in the current economic climate.

With approximately 60% of Australian businesses failing within their first 3 years, buying a franchise can in many cases offer a safer path to owning your own business, due to the fact that franchisees are typically buying into a proven business model with established systems, processes and procedures.

For example, while not every store has SpudBAR store has been a success over our 25 year journey, we have an extensive track record of delivering exceptional results when we get the mix of location and franchisee right.

Having been in operation for over 25 years, the success of the SpudBAR brand is underpinned by a very established, very loyal customer base.

This rich history has also seen us build and refine a suite of best-in-class processes, procedures and systems that make the SpudBAR model incredibly straightforward to operate.

In short, the operation is incredibly simple, you can lean on the extensive experience of the support office team, and there is minimal cooking equipment required.

This not only makes it accessible to those transitioning into the hospitality space for the first time, but it also keeps the setup costs low.

While prior experience in hospitality or franchising would be ideal, we certainly don’t see it as a requirement.

Having been in operation for over 25 years, we have built and refined our “system” to the point where we believe any one with the right attitude can succeed. With this in mind, your passion, alignment with our core values and willingness to work both in and on your business are by far the most important factors in the selection process.

If successful in your application to become a SpudBAR franchisee, we will run a comprehensive 3-week training program with you.

This training will provide you with the theoretical knowledge and hands on skills to successfully run your SpudBAR store.

On top of this, the Support Office Team will provide you with up-to-date learning and development content for you to effectively train your team.

If you don’t already hold a Food Safety Supervisor Certificate, you will need to complete a 4 hour online course that qualifies you in this role.

You only need one registered supervisor per store, and this is something that must be obtained in order to gain training approval from Spudbar, as well as your food service registration permit with the local council.

Being part of a franchise system is often described as “being in business for yourself, not by yourself”.

In addition to training, SpudBAR provides assistance in setting you up for success by supporting with site selection, lease negotiations, store design and the organisation of your fit-out.

At opening, we provide in store support and manage your launch marketing campaign.

Once your store is open, you’ll also benefit from in-store support during your opening week, local area & group-wide marketing activities, centralised supply chain management and ongoing operational guidance.

In short, yes; having seen franchisees approach their store ownership in many varying ways over the years, we can very confidently say that the most successful SpudBARs are those where the franchisee works in the store.

Nothing can replace the dedication and passion that an owner has for their own business, particularly when you first open.

With this in mind, SpudBAR requires all franchisees to work as a full-time employee in their store for the first 6 months of being open.

To get a new SpudBAR store open and fully operational, we estimate that you would need approximately $275,000 - $375,000 (+GST) of working capital.

This would cover the cost of having the site sourced, leasing terms negotiated, shop designed, built and fitted out with required equipment, opening stock, training and all upfront fees from SpudBAR.

Please note that this is only an estimate and build costs will vary due to a range of factors, including but not limited to the size of the site, accessibility to the site, the cost of building materials, labour and additional works required to meet council restrictions. This number should be taken as an indicative guide only.

The additional costs associated with the opening of a store, that are not included in the above are:

• The bank guarantee and the first month’s rent (both of which are not finalised until the negotiation of the lease is complete)

• The cost of independent accounting, legal advice and financing advice

• Public Liability Insurance

• Council fees and/or registrations

The opening of your SpudBAR store will depend on a number of factors, including the timeliness of completing your application, paperwork and site negotiations.

The application process should take approximately 4-7 weeks, and once an appropriate site is sourced, the store development process should take about 12-16 weeks.

The cost of taking over the operations and ownership of an existing SpudBAR store varies greatly, depending on a range of different factors. The asking price is ultimately set by the current franchise partner that is looking to sell.

On top of the sale price there are also some other costs that need to be factored into the purchase of a store, including: the bond/bank guarantee on the store (dictated in the lease by the landlord), the legal fees to generate necessary documentation and your site success fee.

For some older sites, we may also require a site refurbishment to be completed as part of the takeover, but this is assessed on a case-by-case basis.

Outside of standard business operating costs like rent, wages, utilities etc, the ongoing charges payable to SpudBAR are as follows:

• 7% royalty fee, paid to SpudBAR weekly

• 3% marketing fee, paid to SpudBAR weekly

• Monthly Tech Stack fee of $355 + GST

There are so many variables that can impact the success of a SpudBAR store that we are not able to estimate the turnover or results of any location.

Your input, operational standards, economic conditions, local area factors, staff, and service standards are just a few of the factors that influence the success or otherwise of your SpudBAR store.

There are risks involved in starting any new business and accordingly earnings are not predictable. Throughout the application process we will provide you with an assortment of information that will assist you in preparing a business plan and you are encouraged to seek independent legal and financial advice.

Absolutely - we love muti-site owners who are fully invested in the SpudBAR brand.

With this in mind, if you do a great job of making your first store a success and have an appetite for further growth, we would love to explore this with you.

Please note that second and subsequent stores are not normally approved until you’ve been running your first store for a minimum of 6 months.