Last Updated on July 22, 2012 by DeanR
Applegate Franchise
Applegate was founded in1848; at the time the ‘Apple Gate’ was the name of a farm. Frank Oliver and Julian Tinkham had the idea of introducing ice cream to the ‘Apple Gate’. The idea was very sucessful and grew rapidly.
Over time Applegates expanded and it first started offereing franchises in 2002. Although offereing many foods the speciality of Applegates remains ice cream.
Set up of the Applegate franchisor
The franchisor has four employees in the franchise department. They have a separate franchise department dedicated to their franchisees and aims to help them through out the life of the franchise.
The Applegate franchise provides you with an opportunity to run your own Applegate store. Applegate store sell ice cream which is home made, and other sweet products, such as candies, cookies, cakes, frozen and fresh desserts, toppings etc.
Training and Support at Applegate
Intensive training is provided; the initial training course is for around two weeks. At the start the training will emphasize in the managerial areas. After managerial training has been completed there will follow two other kinds of training: on site training; and class room training.
Applegate provides very strong support during the start up of the franchise; they will send representatives who are responsible for helping in the initial operations. Further to this operational assistance is provided through out the life of the franchise. Guidance would also be provided in different area of the business.
Additionally, there are a few anti-competition measures in place; two Applegate franchise can not be opened in the same location, also there can not be more than one Applegate store per 60,000 people. These measures prevent over crowding and wastage of money.
Costs and Requirements of an Applegate Franchise
The initial total investment required for the franchise is around $137,700 to $322,200. The franchise fee is $25,000 and ongoing royalty fee is 5% of gross sales. The term of agreement is 5 years renewable.
The ongoing royalty fee gives the franchisee the right to use Applegate trademarks, consultancy, marketing help, etc. These things make it easier for the franchisee to expand and grow their business.
According to the Applegate franchise agreement you will need to spend at least $6,000 on advertising in the first three months; this is inclusive of advertising costs associated with the grand opening. After the initial three month period, the franchisee has to spend 2% of the gross sales on advertising every month. Additionally a further two percent of gross weekly sales needs to go towards the Applegate’s advertising fund.
Applegate believes that advertising is an essential apart of their business and that is why such a large amount of resources are given to this medium.
In order to qualify for an Applegate franchise it is an advantage to have prior business experience and also to have good marketing skills. However as Applegates offer full training support this can be overlooked for suitaboe candidates.
Contact Address
The address to reach Applegate for more information is 616 Grove St, Upper Montclair, New Jersey 07043 and phone number: (973) 744 7000.