Super Suppers franchises

[lucy]

I'm currently looking at the Super Suppers franchise.  Does anyone have any information on them, feedback, etc? They have only been offering franchises since 2004 and there is little history to go by in the UFOC. They don't give you sales production of current stores open. While I have a list of all the current franchise owners, almost everyone is brand new so there isn't much to go on. They are selling the franchises well and just by a strong gut feeling and knowing my local market, I think the concept will go over well here with the right marketing and management on my part. Any info anybody has on them would be greatly appreciated!

[Franchise Pundit]

I've never heard of Super Suppers and I doubt any of your customers have.  So the Super Suppers brand name is not worth anything right now and you are paying only for their training.  So why pay to build the Super Suppers brand name?  Use the franchise fee and advertising to build your own brand name, then you won't be bound by all the franchise's restrictive covenants and agreements that can come back to haunt you.

What is the franchise fee?  What is the royalty and required advertising fees?

You'll find a lot of good advice in this post:
http://franchisepundit.com/index.php/2005/06/09/alternative-to-buying-a-franchise/

I don't know about the idea.  Is it cheaper to use Super Suppers than have a meal delivered from a restaurant?  I'm not sure how many people would want to travel to Super Suppers, get all your recipe and ingredients ready, prepare and cook and pack up the meal.  Many grocery stores now are selling gourmet prepared foods in the deli section.

The advantage of doing the idea yourself is you'll have the flexibility to change your offering based on customer feedback.  For example, if people find it takes too much time to use your business, you can offer semi-prepared meals where most of the major cooking is already done.  You'll have more control over promotions, marketing, prices, and other things.

[Franchise Pundit]

I agree with Debbie.  I'd be skeptical of paying for an unknown brand.  But, if you know that several are going to be opening up in your city soon, then maybe it is worth it because several franchisees will be contributing to the same local advertising fund (assuming they have such a fund).

If you do it on your own and business is bad, you can change the format to include special meals like or Low-carb/Atkins or the Zone, or you can augment your business by using the kitchen in your off hours to prepare and deliver those low-carb/zone meals to the local community.

[Robert S. Boulter]

I recently reviewed a similar, relatively new, system called Dream Dinners.  The concept was interesting but there are a lot of considerations in the food business such local ordinances and health regulations.  This particular agreement was rather one-sided ( e.g had a single source supplier agreement whose prices could change at any time, could require unlimited spending to upgrade facility on renewal).  As with any franchise, the devil is in the details.  Accurate pro forma's and a good accountant and good market analysis are essential so that you can estimate the viability of the opportunity.  Good Luck.

[Franchise Pundit]

Hi Lucy, I'm also looking into purchasing a Super Suppers franchise in the metro Atlanta area. I'm curious as to what discussion you made given the infancy of this industry?

[Franchise Pundit]

There's been a lot of press on these franchises in the past month:

http://washingtontimes.com/familytimes/20050903-092811-7717r.htm
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0819/p11s01-lifo.html
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050816/LIVING/508160371/1079/ENTERTAINMENT02

[Franchise Pundit]

I am also interested in the Super Supper franchise and would love to see current run rate / income / cost numbers from any existing franchise.

I also agree that with a new name, there is risk and, unless you can share that risk with others to achieve name recognition in your market, if one depends on the corporation to market to your customers is not realistic.   The first one in a new area usually has to pay to build the bridge so unless you already have an established network, name recognition may be a substantial liability.

Frankly, I think the business concept is great.  Especially today when even stay at home dad's and mom's maintain such busy lifestyles.  It would seem to be a great gathering event (draw) and social interaction opportunity for the potential customer while providing an economical twist.  Participants could actually tailor the meals to their families likes and dislikes and still maintain the air of I made it myself (homemade v. homemade) while saving time (valuable) and getting their meals fresh from their own oven.  Leftovers provide a bridge and an occasional night out would balance out the meals for the month.   A healthy twist of a salad with each meal and ease of managing proportions would increase value to the health minded.

[Franchise Pundit]

I am also interested in the Super Supper franchise and would love to see current run rate / income / cost numbers from any existing franchise.

I also agree that with a new name, there is risk and, unless you can share that risk with others to achieve name recognition in your market, if one depends on the corporation to market to your customers is not realistic.   The first one in a new area usually has to pay to build the bridge so unless you already have an established network, name recognition may be a substantial liability.

Frankly, I think the business concept is great.  Especially today when even stay at home dad's and mom's maintain such busy lifestyles.  It would seem to be a great gathering event (draw) and social interaction opportunity for the potential customer while providing an economical twist.  Participants could actually tailor the meals to their families likes and dislikes and still maintain the air of I made it myself (homemade v. homemade) while saving time (valuable) and getting their meals fresh from their own oven.  Leftovers provide a bridge and an occasional night out would balance out the meals for the month.   A healthy twist of a salad with each meal and ease of managing proportions would increase value to the health minded.

I work and live near grocery stores that have very high quality "hot bars" and "cold bars".  The food is as good as it is in your typical restaurant.  My question is, why would a significant portion of people choose to cook a meal at someone else's kitchen and pay extra for the privilege?  I can understand maybe if a family has special dietary needs, but with Whole Foods and other "organic" grocers offering all-natural foods already prepared, I'm shaky on this idea.  The cost must be similar to take-out from a gourmet grocer or restaurant (if not, the volume needs to be VERY high).  Spending time at home cooking is also time that is in the presence of family too.

[Franchise Pundit]

I work and live near grocery stores that have very high quality "hot bars" and "cold bars".  The food is as good as it is in your typical restaurant.  My question is, why would a significant portion of people choose to cook a meal at someone else's kitchen and pay extra for the privilege?  I can understand maybe if a family has special dietary needs, but with Whole Foods and other "organic" grocers offering all-natural foods already prepared, I'm shaky on this idea.  The cost must be similar to take-out from a gourmet grocer or restaurant (if not, the volume needs to be VERY high).  Spending time at home cooking is also time that is in the presence of family too.

The prices don't look too high to me...compared to Whole Foods prepped foods, which usually cost around $7.00 a pound or more (the salad bar at the whole foods near me is $7/lb).

I'm not sure how they make a profit, but as a consumer, if I was a mom (esp a single mom) with a full-time job I would probably give this a try.  Just the fact that you don't have to worry about shopping for ingredients or cleaning up a messy kitchen - the time saved would definitely be worth it.

Checked the Dream Dinners site and they charge $120 for 6 dinners - which have 4-6 servings - that's $20 a dinner or $4-5 a serving.  Not a bad deal!

[Smilin']

At last check there were close to 500 of these meal assembly kitchens according to easymealprep.com. I think the concept, although new, is going to be around for a while. My concern is the level of support a franchisor is going to be able to provide when they are selling these franchises all over the states. Think about it...that must be awfully expensive to put someone on a plane and fly them to 15 different states and visit the store and stop in to lend support. I live on the east coast and I have my eye on a store called Plate Escapes - the only one I could find that is franchising on the East Coast. Their website states that they will be expanding regionally with no plans to locate stores all over the country. That makes me feel good from the support side. If you live in PA, NJ, DE, or MD check out www.plateescapes.com

[Franchise Pundit]

At last check there were close to 500 of these meal assembly kitchens according to easymealprep.com. I think the concept, although new, is going to be around for a while. My concern is the level of support a franchisor is going to be able to provide when they are selling these franchises all over the states. Think about it...that must be awfully expensive to put someone on a plane and fly them to 15 different states and visit the store and stop in to lend support. I live on the east coast and I have my eye on a store called Plate Escapes - the only one I could find that is franchising on the East Coast. Their website states that they will be expanding regionally with no plans to locate stores all over the country. That makes me feel good from the support side. If you live in PA, NJ, DE, or MD check out www.plateescapes.com

I may be a bit naive in this area of level of in-person support provided by franchisors, but why do you need face-to-face interaction?  What cannot be solved by a telephone conversation but requires you looking at the person?

[Smilin']

I agree with you in that things are easily handled by phone. In looking at a number of differnet franchises, I called many franchisees and asked them a number of questions. The most important one was 'how supportive is the corporate office?'. It seems the smaller the franchise, the level of comfort the franchisor gives to its franchisees, is increased by their proximity to their store. I didn't get that same feeling when talking to a franchisee of a Subway. These are my discoveries for what their worth.

[Franchise Pundit]

I agree with you in that things are easily handled by phone. In looking at a number of differnet franchises, I called many franchisees and asked them a number of questions. The most important one was 'how supportive is the corporate office?'. It seems the smaller the franchise, the level of comfort the franchisor gives to its franchisees, is increased by their proximity to their store. I didn't get that same feeling when talking to a franchisee of a Subway. These are my discoveries for what their worth.

Interesting.  Please post more on your observations and experience if you have time.  Were they receptive to your questions?  What did they say besides "Yes, we fully support our franchisees in every way we can."

[Franchise Pundit]

I agree with you in that things are easily handled by phone. In looking at a number of differnet franchises, I called many franchisees and asked them a number of questions. The most important one was 'how supportive is the corporate office?'. It seems the smaller the franchise, the level of comfort the franchisor gives to its franchisees, is increased by their proximity to their store. I didn't get that same feeling when talking to a franchisee of a Subway. These are my discoveries for what their worth.

Interesting.  Please post more on your observations and experience if you have time.  Were they receptive to your questions?  What did they say besides "Yes, we fully support our franchisees in every way we can."

Ditto.  Do tell!

[Franchise Pundit]

Just an update on this subject.
The Meal Assemblt/preparation businesses/franchises are listed on MSNBC, CN & AOL Money as the #1 hottest franchise opportunity (still).
Their businesses here locally (Omaha, NE), Washington (Mostly Dream Dinners franchises there), and several other states/cities across the US have positively thrived.

The prices that are charged to customers vary between the franchises greatly, the average total start-up cost is $115K - $200K including the franchise fee (normally $35K).

I have compared 4-5 of these various franchises and I would recommend checking out their menus, the local eating habits in your paticular area & base your decision largely on that.

Super Suppers is the only one I have found so far that gives the franchisee total control over the costs of their meals to the public, and their menus will go over very well here in the midwest.

Entree Vous's meals are VERY fitting for several east & west coast cities, etc.
There are dozens of these places right now, so be suer to check total start-up costs, the amount of control you have over your menus and prices, etc.

Good Luck!! (I'm 1/3 of the way through the SBA Loan program preparations right now).