Emerald City Smoothie vs Cold Stone Creamery Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Emerald City Smoothie vs Cold Stone Creamery including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees

  Emerald City Smoothie Cold Stone Creamery
Investment 75250 - 286900 50200 - 467525
Franchise Fee 0
Royalty Fee 6% 6%
Advertising Fee 2% 3%
Year Founded 2005 1988
Year Franchised 2005 1994
Term Of Agreement
Term Of Agreement
Renewal Fee


Business Experience Requirements

  Emerald City Smoothie Cold Stone Creamery
Experience

Financing Options

  Emerald City Smoothie Cold Stone Creamery
 
Franchise Fees No
Start-up Costs No
Equipment No
Inventory No
Receivables No
Payroll No

Training & Support

  Emerald City Smoothie Cold Stone Creamery
Training Franchising with Cold Stone Creamery means you ll never be alone in your business. As one of the world s premier ice cream franchises, Cold Stone Creamery s support network has launched hundreds of entrepreneurs without any experience in either the service industry or the restaurant industry into growing businesses in communities across the country and around the world. --Cold Stone Creamery has one of the most robust training platforms in the entire franchise industry,-- says John Wuycheck, SVP of Franchise Development. --Our franchisees make real investments of both time and money to franchise with Cold Stone Creamery, and we honor that by going above and beyond in providing an exceptional initial and ongoing training platform. We ve been helping entrepreneurs establish new Cold Stone Creamery businesses for a long time, and we ve built an iconic business model that requires no previous experience to become a top performer. As a franchisor, we re honored to report that franchisee satisfaction is at an all-time high.-- Initial New franchisees attend KTEC (Kahala Training and Education Center). In addition, new franchisees spend two weeks in a store where we cover every aspect of their new business, including making the ice cream, preparing and serving Cold Stone Creamery products, managing inventory and supporting their business through savvy marketing. On-The-Job New franchisees spend 80 hours in a store to learn the ins and outs of the business, including how to correctly prepare and serve the brand s products. Cold Stone Creamery also hosts monthly check-ins to help you meet your goals, to offer assistance and to ensure you have all the tools necessary to improve your business every day.
Support * Use of the Emerald City Smoothie brand and all existing and new marketing materials * Assistance with real estate brokers, site selection, lease negotiation and construction based on best practices learned from over 30 store openings * A turn-key system that includes all architectural design, equipment, shelving, graphics, and signage at a reasonable cost * Extensive ECS Experience training for you and one staff member on drink making, developing a customer community, business management and marketing * Grand opening planning and support * "It's my store" customer involvement program * Peer-to-peer problem and solution sharing with other franchise owners * New drink introductions based on successful pilot programs at other franchises * Web presence for easy store location and product and service pre-selection * Periodic, high-return marketing strategies for pilot testing and implementation * Greater buying power for smoothie and health products as a member of our buying cooperative * Periodic visits to assist with general operations, employee training and to help you fine-tune the ECS experience * Analysis of store sales and performance versus system- wide benchmarks Cold Stone Creamery will meet with you regularly to help you and answer any of your questions. Every new franchisee receives monthly check-in calls from a Regional Director of Operations or Area Developer.
Marketing Cold Stone Creamery franchisees have access to in-house marketing and public relations teams, which significantly reduces expenses. These teams help with national, regional and local marketing, along with public relations from the grand opening through the life of the business. We train franchisees to manage their stores social media accounts, including Facebook , Twitter and Instagram -" and newer platforms such as Snapchat
Operations 35% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 15 Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

Expansion Plans

  Emerald City Smoothie Cold Stone Creamery
US Expansion Nationwide, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Canada Expansion 0
International Expansion Worldwide, Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Azores, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bolivia, Bonaire, Bosnia, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Canary Islands, Cape Verde Islands, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Channel Islands, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Curacao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, England, Equitorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Faeroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holland, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kosrae, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Macedonia, Madagascar, Madeira, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norfolk Island, Northern Ireland, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Ponape, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Republic of Yemen, Reunion, Romania, Rota, Russia, Rwanda, Saba, Saipan, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Barthelemy, St. Christopher, St. Croix, St. Eustatius, St. John, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Martin, St. Thomas, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tahiti, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tinian, Togo, Tonga, Tortola, Trinidad & Tobago, Truk, Tunisia, Turkey, Turks & Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Union Island, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, US Virgin Islands, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Virgin Gorda, Wake Island, Wales, Wallis & Futuna Islands, Western Samoa, Yap, Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Start-Up Costs and Fees Mobile

Investment
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery
Franchise Fee
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery
Royalty Fee
Emerald City Smoothie 6%
Cold Stone Creamery 6%
Advertising Fee
Emerald City Smoothie 2%
Cold Stone Creamery 3%
Year Founded
Emerald City Smoothie 2005
Cold Stone Creamery 1988
Year Franchised
Emerald City Smoothie 2005
Cold Stone Creamery 1994
Term Of Agreement
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery 10 years
Renewal Fee
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery


Business Experience Requirements

Experience
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery

Financing Options

 
Franchise Fees
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery
Start-up Costs
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery
Equipment
Emerald City Smoothie}
Cold Stone Creamery
Inventory
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery
Receivables
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery
Payroll
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery

Training & Support

Training
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery Franchising with Cold Stone Creamery means you ll never be alone in your business. As one of the world s premier ice cream franchises, Cold Stone Creamery s support network has launched hundreds of entrepreneurs without any experience in either the service industry or the restaurant industry into growing businesses in communities across the country and around the world. --Cold Stone Creamery has one of the most robust training platforms in the entire franchise industry,-- says John Wuycheck, SVP of Franchise Development. --Our franchisees make real investments of both time and money to franchise with Cold Stone Creamery, and we honor that by going above and beyond in providing an exceptional initial and ongoing training platform. We ve been helping entrepreneurs establish new Cold Stone Creamery businesses for a long time, and we ve built an iconic business model that requires no previous experience to become a top performer. As a franchisor, we re honored to report that franchisee satisfaction is at an all-time high.-- Initial New franchisees attend KTEC (Kahala Training and Education Center). In addition, new franchisees spend two weeks in a store where we cover every aspect of their new business, including making the ice cream, preparing and serving Cold Stone Creamery products, managing inventory and supporting their business through savvy marketing. On-The-Job New franchisees spend 80 hours in a store to learn the ins and outs of the business, including how to correctly prepare and serve the brand s products. Cold Stone Creamery also hosts monthly check-ins to help you meet your goals, to offer assistance and to ensure you have all the tools necessary to improve your business every day.
Support
Emerald City Smoothie * Use of the Emerald City Smoothie brand and all existing and new marketing materials * Assistance with real estate brokers, site selection, lease negotiation and construction based on best practices learned from over 30 store openings * A turn-key system that includes all architectural design, equipment, shelving, graphics, and signage at a reasonable cost * Extensive ECS Experience training for you and one staff member on drink making, developing a customer community, business management and marketing * Grand opening planning and support * "It's my store" customer involvement program * Peer-to-peer problem and solution sharing with other franchise owners * New drink introductions based on successful pilot programs at other franchises * Web presence for easy store location and product and service pre-selection * Periodic, high-return marketing strategies for pilot testing and implementation * Greater buying power for smoothie and health products as a member of our buying cooperative * Periodic visits to assist with general operations, employee training and to help you fine-tune the ECS experience * Analysis of store sales and performance versus system- wide benchmarks
Cold Stone Creamery Cold Stone Creamery will meet with you regularly to help you and answer any of your questions. Every new franchisee receives monthly check-in calls from a Regional Director of Operations or Area Developer.
Marketing
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery Cold Stone Creamery franchisees have access to in-house marketing and public relations teams, which significantly reduces expenses. These teams help with national, regional and local marketing, along with public relations from the grand opening through the life of the business. We train franchisees to manage their stores social media accounts, including Facebook , Twitter and Instagram -" and newer platforms such as Snapchat
Operations
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery 35% of all franchisees own more than one unit Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 15 Absentee ownership of franchise is NOT allowed. (100% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

Expansion Plans

US Expansion
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery Nationwide, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Canada Expansion
Emerald City Smoothie 0
Cold Stone Creamery
International Expansion
Emerald City Smoothie
Cold Stone Creamery Worldwide, Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Australia, Austria, Azores, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bolivia, Bonaire, Bosnia, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Canary Islands, Cape Verde Islands, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Channel Islands, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Curacao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, England, Equitorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Faeroe Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holland, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kosrae, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Macedonia, Madagascar, Madeira, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norfolk Island, Northern Ireland, Northern Mariana Islands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Ponape, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Republic of Yemen, Reunion, Romania, Rota, Russia, Rwanda, Saba, Saipan, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Barthelemy, St. Christopher, St. Croix, St. Eustatius, St. John, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Martin, St. Thomas, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tahiti, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Tinian, Togo, Tonga, Tortola, Trinidad & Tobago, Truk, Tunisia, Turkey, Turks & Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Union Island, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, US Virgin Islands, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Virgin Gorda, Wake Island, Wales, Wallis & Futuna Islands, Western Samoa, Yap, Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe