Marugame Udon franchise

Marugame Udon - Authentic Japanese Quick-Service

Marugame Udon is an established Japanese restaurant concept that brings some of the best and most mouth-watering Asian dishes to people across the world. Serving freshly-made udon noodles, tempura and omusubi rice balls from an open kitchen and in a casual setting, this self-service food outlet attracts customers looking for their Asian food fix. It’s unsurprising that hundreds of thousands of customers enjoy Marugame Udon’s delicious food every day in over 1,000 restaurants in Japan, throughout South-East Asia, Australia and across the Pacific in California.

What’s more, there are no lengthy queuing times for the restaurant’s customers, as orders can be served in as little as 30 seconds and the restaurant can serve up to 256 customers per hour, thanks to Marugame Udon’s seamless system. The restaurant franchise strives to ensure that no one is left waiting for more than two minutes between ordering and paying, and works to build a strong relationship with customers by upgrading their dishes with a range of free toppings, including grated ginger, green onion and sesame seeds. The combination of generous portions and affordable price points make Marugame Udon a great value proposition within the quick casual segment.

Now the successful restaurant franchise is on the lookout for qualified franchisees in the UK to expand its business to even more locations.

Training and UK-Based Operational Support

Once a motivated partner with relevant experience and the right resources has been found, they will be allocated their own exclusive territory and gain access to the brand’s extensive training programme. Marugame Udon has also set up a local support structure staffed with operators with over 100 years’ experience in the industry: franchisees will benefit from ongoing operational advice and regular store appraisals, as well as Marugame Udon’s rigorous approach to brand development, which includes the frequent updating of the operations manual, website and branded promotional materials. Available to franchisees are also strong property contacts and experience in location selection, as well as finance options in collaboration with industry-leading UK lenders.

Franchise criteria

Marugame Udon is looking for area development franchisees able to commit to developing a cluster of at least 5 locations. Marugame Udon offers flexibility in its franchising options, giving investors the choice to open any model withion its portfolio: food court (500+ square feet), street-front (1,500+ square feet) or a stand-alone (2,500 square feet). These models will require investments ranging from £225,000, to £500,000+, allowing franchisees to seize multiple location opportunities.

Prospective franchisees should be business-orientated, have a forward-thinking attitude and be prepared to be responsible for the regional success of this growing brand. Previous successful track-record in restaurant or retail multi-unit operations is essential.

Prospective franchisees should be business-orientated, have a forward-thinking attitude and be prepared to be responsible for the regional success of this growing brand. The right person will be able to establish their franchise as a food outlet that is exciting, with speedy but exceptional service; affordable, with food averaging $6 in LA, placing it between Wendy’s at $4.99 and Chipotle at $6.50; and relevant, drawing a young customer base, 80 percent of which is between the ages of 15 and 35.

Franchising Track-Record

Marugame Udon has a successful track-record of developing area development franchisees outside of Japan, with all of its franchisees operating multiple restaurants and having appetite for more.

The brand has worked with local consultants to localise its restaurant design to achieve relevance to the UK consumer and its local structure has been active in building local supply chain for ingredients and equipment, de facto making the franchise “plug and play” for any qualified franchisees to come on board. Such commitment is revealing of the supportive attitude of this successful company towards its franchise partners.