Founded in 2011 by Elise and Rick Wetzel of Wetzel’s Pretzels, Blaze Pizza was modeled after the Chipotle concept as a made-to-order approach to serving customers.
The made to order pizza market has become a big test case for pizza, attempting to move into the fast casual space. Blaze Pizza’s name was derived from how quickly a pizza can be “Fast Fire’d” in a high temperature oven – an average cook time of 3 minutes. The ovens cook pizzas at average temperatures of 700 to 800 degrees according to the company’s chef.
The franchise is still early in its days, reporting 224 franchised units at the end of 2017. This was up from 163 in 2016. Average sales for a franchised store were $1,424,218 in 2017.
If you want to participate in one of the hottest pizza concepts, maybe you are interested to see what a Blaze restaurant franchise would cost. We reviewed the Blaze Franchise Disclosure Document and found that the typical restaurant investment is between 2,000-3,000 square feet and is estimated to cost between $454,000 to $1,100,000. This includes an initial franchise fee of $30,000.
Click here to see Domino’s Pizza Franchise Cost.
Click here to see Papa John’s Franchise Cost.
How Much Money can you Make as a Blaze Pizza Franchisee?
Well, let’s say you decide to pursue a Blaze Franchise location and are ready to spend $800,000. What kind of profit / earnings can you expect from your investment? According to numerous reports, the average Blaze Restaurant brings in about $1,400,000 in sales. On that level of sales, we would expect 15% EBITDA margins for in-line units or roughly $210,000 in profits per store.
Is that a good return? Well, if you make $210,000 and you spend $800,000, your return on a Blaze franchise location will be about 26%. Like many other pizza concepts, returns can be high when average or better volumes occur. You will need to compare this to other investment opportunities to see if this is a good return for you.
The franchise also wants to ensure that there is an operational partner in each restaurant. This “Operating Principal” must manage day-to-day operations and have at least a 10% equity stake, so expect to share some of those profits with your operator.
Blaze Pizza Estimated Initial Investment Cost
As mentioned, the average Blaze location will cost between $454k – $1.1M. Below is how the initial investment breaks down:
- Initial Franchise fee: $30,000
- Architech: $15,000-$27,000
- Permits: $1,000-$13,000
- Leasehold improvements: $158,000-$543,000
- Equipment: $144,000-$169,000
- Furniture & Fixtures: $14,000-$83,000
- Smallwares: $10,000-$25,000
- Signage and Graphics: $11,000-$42,000
- Grand Opening Kit, Menu Boards: $5,400-$6,000
- Computer Equipment & Information: $18,500-$21,000
- Uniforms: $1,000-$4,000
- Initial Inventory and Supplies: $10,000-$21,000
- Pre-Opening Advertising: $3,000-$22,000
- Grand Opening Free Pizzas: $3,000-$5,000
- Insurance Deposits: $500-$5,000
- First Month’s Rent: $3,000-$24,000
- Initial Training: $5,000
- Liquor Licensing: $0-$6,000
- Misc Opening Costs: $1,000-$30,000
- Professional Fees: $1,000-$5,000
- Additional Funds – 3 Months: $20,000-$45,000
- Total Estimated Initial Investment: $454,400-$1,131,000
Blaze Pizza Net Worth Requirement
Maybe you can find the money to build a new Blaze Pizza, but along with that Blaze Pizza is also going to check out your net worth. The current net worth requirement to become a Blaze Pizza franchisee is a liquidity requirement of $250,000 with net worth of $500,000.
Royalties, Advertising Rates, and Other Ongoing Costs
In addition to the upfront investment, it is important to understand the ongoing expenses paid to the franchise company. At Blaze Pizza, some of the other ongoing fees include:
- Continuing Royalty: 5% of gross sales
- Creative Fund Contribution: 2% of gross sales
- Tablet Software License: $90/month
- Registration for annual convention: $1000 + $250-$500 per attendee
