How to Start Your Own Fast Food Franchise

Running a franchise is a great way to combine business ownership with franchisor support, and this is particularly true in the fast-paced, highly competitive and highly profitable world of fast food. In this industry, running your own business all by yourself would expose you to high levels of risk. But running a fast food franchise? You’d have a proven business model, an existing brand name, and a much higher chance of success!

If you’ve ever wanted to make a career change with a fast food franchise, there’s never been a better time to get started. Despite the impact of the pandemic, the industry is projected to perform extremely well across the next five years [IBISWorld], and could be a highly profitable option. Read on, and find out how to start your own fast food franchise off on the right foot...

What does a fast food business do?

Fast food businesses serve food within their specialism (and there are many, many specialisms) to hungry customers all over the UK. It should speak for itself that fast food and QSR locations are most often associated with the franchise business model, as it’s clear evidence of how much success you can attain running your own fast food franchise. On a day to day basis, your responsibilities running a fast food franchise will include:

• Maintaining consistent, high-quality food and service standards
• Recruiting, managing and retaining a team of trusted employees
• Managing your franchise’s day-to-day operations/finances/supplier relationships
• Marketing and promoting your franchise to new customers (while retaining existing customers)
• Shifting your franchise’s offerings as consumer demand shifts
• Maintaining an awareness of the current trends/developments in the QSR sector

Why consider running a fast food franchise?

There are many advantages, generally speaking, to franchising - such as the immediate access to franchisor support and guidance, and the access to a proven business model/blueprint for success. But in a specific sense, there are even more advantages to running a fast food franchise. Advantages such as:

• The ease with which you can market a fast food franchise (as they’re so popular) 
• The ability to pivot offerings simply and quickly (e.g. by changing menu items)
• The continued and seemingly ceaseless growth of the wider fast food industry
• The huge amount of room to find the perfect specialism/niche for you
• The range of affordable investment options accessible to you

How to start a fast food franchise

1. Do lots of research and find your place in the fast food sector

The fast food sector is a big one, and there are many different areas of specialism worthy of your consideration. Do you love all things desserts? If so, serving pretzels to the public with Auntie Anne’s might be ideal? Or is pizza - and cooking it on the doorstep in seconds with Mostro Pizza - more your style? The choice is yours, and you need to have a full picture of the industry before you decide where you should fit into it.

2. Ensure the fast food restaurant you invest in is a financial match

The worst thing you can do, heading into the world of franchising, is overinvest. When you overinvest, your franchise and your finances suffer as a result, and everything has the potential to completely blow up in your face. Plus, with so many amazing low-cost but high-return opportunities available in the fast food industry, it simply shouldn’t be necessary to franchise outside of your realistic means (accounting for not just initial fees, but ongoing fees and running costs).

3. Do your due diligence prior to signing a franchise agreement

Doing your due diligence means ensuring you’re actually getting what you pay for. It spans all the way from reviewing the FDD and assessing the opportunity in full to speaking with your franchisor and existing franchisees, getting answers to any and all of the questions you have ahead of starting your food franchise.

Fast food franchise opportunities

1. Robunmo

Robunmo is a Chinese street food franchise, offering authentic and tasty dishes from bao buns to gyozas and spring rolls. Since its inception, Robunmo has developed delivery partnerships with major brands such as Just Eat, Deliveroo and UberEats.

• Becoming a Robunmo franchisee: You won’t need previous experience in hospitality or food service to invest, but you will need to be business-minded and demonstrate a love of the Robunmo concept. You’ll also need to be outgoing, a lover of food and a hard worker.
• How much you need to invest: You’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £15,000, with a total investment cost of £25,000. 
• What you get for your investment: In return for your investment, you’ll receive a comprehensive training programme and a franchise operations manual. You’ll also be fully supported by your franchisor and offered marketing assistance as required.

2. Rooster Shack

Rooster Shack is a sleek, unique quick-service chicken shop which first sprang into life in Surrey in 2016 as the brainchild of Imran Mamud and his father. The franchise has been expanding ever since, and won the Good Food Award for its takeaway services in 2020.

• Becoming a Rooster Shack franchisee: You’ll need experience running a business, either in or out of food service. You should also be committed, hard-working and positive, with the determination to achieve long-term franchise success.
• How much you need to invest: You’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £75,000, with franchise fees of £17,500, a total investment cost of £150,000 and advertising and royalty fees charged at 2% and 5% respectively.
• What you get for your investment: You’ll receive plenty of training and support, including continuous menu and product development, introduction to nominated suppliers, regular franchisor visits for review and planning and much, much more.

3. Shoryu Ramen

Shoryu Ramen sells authentic Japanese ramen in a fast casual setting, and has been popular since its inception in 2012. It’s since become the UK’s favourite ramen bar, and there are over 15 active franchise locations up and down the country.

• Becoming a Shoryu Ramen franchisee: You should be hard-working and motivated, with the experience and resources required to launch, support and develop a successful Shoryu Ramen location in accordance with an agreed schedule.
• How much you need to invest: You’ll need to make a minimum initial investment of £450,000, with franchise fees of £25,000, a total investment cost of £550,000 and advertising and royalty fees charged at 2% and 6% respectively.
• What you get for your investment: You’ll receive four weeks of training at an existing branch and three weeks on home turf. You’ll then receive set-up, launch and marketing support, menu development guidance and a franchise operations manual.

Why not become a franchisee with a fast food business?

Hopefully, you’re leaving this article having confirmed whether you’d like to start a fast food franchise or not, and with a much better idea of how to go about it if it does seem right for you. Stay on Point Franchise if you’d like to widen your research. Discover some of the biggest restaurant trends of 2021 and find out, once and for all, how to choose the food franchise that’s 100% right for you.