Franchise Ideas
- Thread starter Craig41
- Start date
I never realized so many people hated Runza.
We like them for something different than a burger every now and then when we are driving through Nebraska. We also like their fries and onion rings.
We like them for something different than a burger every now and then when we are driving through Nebraska. We also like their fries and onion rings.
I understand the desire for variety, but the one time I had it, it tasted awful.
You can't have people shoving their arms into a 600 degree oven!
(I can't believe no one has gotten that yet)
I've never been as disappointed by a burger as I have w/Steak and Shake.
I agree that chains should be avoided. Bring something different to Ames. I think something like the Rutgers grease trucks, or a good Meditarranean place (like Oasis in IC) would do well. Especially if open late.
I just read through 12 pages of the same four replies, all of which blatantly ignore the OP's guidelines, and can't believe only one person has mentioned frozen yogurt (which was inexplicably coupled with Chinese food).
Orange Leaf is a very trendy self-serve frozen yogurt chain (fastest-growing in the country, according to their site). They have 50 locations in 18 states, covering every region of the country except for the northern Rocky Mountains, and "expanding rapidly, targeting to open 100 new stores within a year." (Midwest: 6 in Kansas, 2 in Missouri, 11 in Oklahoma.) Customers go in and serve themselves, choosing from a ridiculous number of flavors of frozen yogurt (18-20, or something like that) and then put on their own toppings. They pay by weight at the cash register.
As it pertains to you as a potential franchise owner, two of their top five selling points sound like they fit exactly what you're looking for:
1. Affordable- Orange Leaf self serve frozen yogurt is one of the most attractive franchises in the industry.
4. No experience needed - You don't have any restaurant experience? Don't worry about it! We will train you in a very simple and easy way.
I'm living in Chapel Hill, NC for the summer and had the local franchise here recommended to me. I tried it once and was completely hooked. I've been going on a regular basis all summer, bringing friends with me every time, and driving all the way across the city to get there. It's extremely popular with locals despite being tucked into an out-of-the-way neighborhood strip mall. Chapel Hill has about as many ice-cream and frozen yogurt places as Ames does pizza places, and Orange Leaf still makes a killing; it's been packed every time I've gone. As far as I can tell, the entire place is run with two employees: one at the register, and one in the back to maintain the yogurt machines and topping bar. That's it. 2 employees can easily serve 200 customers per hour, and probably more.
Phew, I wouldn't have written all that if I didn't think it was something that would do very well in Ames. There's plenty of strip mall space (Lincoln Plaza next to East Hy-Vee) and similarly-sized locations (the former Archie's Shoe Shop on Welch Ave, next to Copyworks) that could accommodate this, and there are basically no competitors. If people want ice cream, they can go to Dairy Queen or Cold Stone. If they want frozen yogurt, they can go to the freezer section of Hy-Vee. That's it. Easy pickings. Here is their franchise information.
Orange Leaf is a very trendy self-serve frozen yogurt chain (fastest-growing in the country, according to their site). They have 50 locations in 18 states, covering every region of the country except for the northern Rocky Mountains, and "expanding rapidly, targeting to open 100 new stores within a year." (Midwest: 6 in Kansas, 2 in Missouri, 11 in Oklahoma.) Customers go in and serve themselves, choosing from a ridiculous number of flavors of frozen yogurt (18-20, or something like that) and then put on their own toppings. They pay by weight at the cash register.
As it pertains to you as a potential franchise owner, two of their top five selling points sound like they fit exactly what you're looking for:
1. Affordable- Orange Leaf self serve frozen yogurt is one of the most attractive franchises in the industry.
4. No experience needed - You don't have any restaurant experience? Don't worry about it! We will train you in a very simple and easy way.
I'm living in Chapel Hill, NC for the summer and had the local franchise here recommended to me. I tried it once and was completely hooked. I've been going on a regular basis all summer, bringing friends with me every time, and driving all the way across the city to get there. It's extremely popular with locals despite being tucked into an out-of-the-way neighborhood strip mall. Chapel Hill has about as many ice-cream and frozen yogurt places as Ames does pizza places, and Orange Leaf still makes a killing; it's been packed every time I've gone. As far as I can tell, the entire place is run with two employees: one at the register, and one in the back to maintain the yogurt machines and topping bar. That's it. 2 employees can easily serve 200 customers per hour, and probably more.
Phew, I wouldn't have written all that if I didn't think it was something that would do very well in Ames. There's plenty of strip mall space (Lincoln Plaza next to East Hy-Vee) and similarly-sized locations (the former Archie's Shoe Shop on Welch Ave, next to Copyworks) that could accommodate this, and there are basically no competitors. If people want ice cream, they can go to Dairy Queen or Cold Stone. If they want frozen yogurt, they can go to the freezer section of Hy-Vee. That's it. Easy pickings. Here is their franchise information.
There used to be a Zoey's Pizza in Iowa City, near Sycamore Mall, on the lot now occupied by Dr. Bradford J. Stiles, DDS. It was good pizza...
CycloneErik
Well-Known Member
When they started the new food court, it was made up mostly (if not entirely) of independent restaurants. It was a really cool deal.
As long as I've been alive, that place was called Mazzio's. My family used to meet friends there pretty often for lunch on Sundays. It closed down when I was a kid, but they had pretty good pizza as far as I can recall. There was a little arched-glass 'greenhouse' on the north side of the building that was kind of a cool place to sit and eat your pizza. If I recall correctly, there was some other short-lived (less than a year) restaurant in there after Mazzio's closed, but it went under quickly. Everybody missed Mazzio's, so nobody went there. It must have been Zoey's before that.
Oh, that side of town was such a mixed bag back in the day. Mazzio's was right next door to a Long John Silver's, until their kitchen caught on fire. The building was fine but the owners didn't want to rebuild the restaurant. It sat empty for a couple years and then some godawful place called Platters opened up. I never went to Platters, but even my grandmother (who literally has no functioning taste buds thanks to a flu that put her in the hospital) said it was one of the worst places she'd ever been to. The location is now Jimmy Jack's Rib Shack, which is fantastic BBQ. There was also the Dill Pickle burger joint a block down the street, where the apartment buildings next to Eastdale Plaza are now. That was a decent place, too- seemed like it should have been a franchise, but I can't find a single mention of it anywhere on the internet, so maybe not.
Yeah, until McDonald's decided to be morons about it. I watched them go down in their own blaze of idiotic management decisions during my freshman year; going out of business was entirely their fault.
