FAQ

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HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO OPEN A SMOKE’S POUTINERIE FRANCHISE?

The purchase price will vary depending on the size and the location of your Smoke’s Poutinerie restaurant. The price range is outlined in our FDD. Typically, the cost including inventory, equipment, uniforms, design, signage, POS, menu boards, engineering, construction, etc. is in the $350,000-$450,000 range.

WHAT IS THE FRANCHISE FEE FOR A SMOKE'S POUTINERIE FRANCHISE?

The current Franchise Fee for a single Smoke’s Poutinerie restaurant is $30,000. We do offer a discounted franchise fee for locations after the first, for those who initially enter into a multi-unit or Development Agreement.

WHAT IS THE TERM OF A SMOKE'S POUTINERIE BRAND FRANCHISE?

Our franchise term will be the same as your lease, typical ten years with two option periods of five years.

CAN I SUGGEST THE TERRITORY I WANT TO OPEN IN?

We have targeted areas that we would like to franchise around the World, however, were always excited to discuss and explore any opportunities that come our way!

HOW DO YOU SELECT THE RESTAURANTS LOCATION WITHIN A TERRITORY?

We use a multi-pronged approach for site selection within a territory.

We work with a select team of real estate brokers who are specialists on our Brand.
Our Development team visits the area and literally walk the streets during peak day and late night day-parts using our knowledge of the Brand to target the perfect location.
We use key demographics from our top locations to identify target areas with similar demographics within the territory.
We discuss with the franchisee, if they are familiar with the area and would like to express their view.

HOW LARGE WILL MY TERRITORY BE?

Territories vary in size based on the physical geography and population density of the area. Your territory could be blocks by blocks in the case of a single location to countrywide. Your territory will be mapped out and included in your Franchise Agreement prior to your signing.

WHAT ARE THE ONGOING ROYALTIES?

Our current ongoing royalty fee is 6%

IS THERE AN AD FUND?

Our current Ad Fund rate is 2%. Each Franchisee contributes to this fund that is managed by us but belongs to all Franchisees collectively and therefore is only used on Brand specific national campaigns.

We have also set the requirement for each location to spend a minimum of 1% on local store marketing. This amount is not collected and would be used for campaigns like sponsoring a local sports team, providing free poutine for an event, flyers, and other local store promotion and initiatives.

WHAT QUALIFICATIONS DO I NEED TO OPEN A SMOKE'S POUTINERIE BRAND FRANCHISE?

Our franchise opportunities are open to all regardless of their prior field or training. Our comprehensive training program and our operational system provides the foundation to your success as a Smoke’s Poutinerie Franchisee, not your past history. We do however place a lot of effort on finding Franchisees who are fun, energetic, have drive, ambition and fit our brand. Understanding our branding, marketing, attitude and Smoke himself, is a prerequisite!

DO YOU ALLOW PARTNERSHIPS OR INVESTORS?

We do allow and have many Franchisee groups consisting of partnerships and investors. Each case is looked at separately and approval is based on the group’s strength and business plan.

WHAT IF I AM INTERESTED IN A U.S. OR INTERNATIONAL LOCATION?

Smoke’s Brands franchises are available worldwide! Complete your application or give us a shout to discuss. Global Domination BABY!

WILL I BE REQUIRED TO BE A FULL TIME OPERATOR?

We believe that all franchisees need to be hands-on, to understand and improve service and efficiencies of their restaurants. Saying that we will review cases of multi-unit owners and partnerships, as long as there is a managing partner onsite and we are comfortable with the business model.

WHAT IS YOUR TRAINING PROGRAM?

Our current training program consists of one week in our Global Headquarters in Ajax Ontario, followed by one week in an operational restaurant. Everything is covered from inventory to recipes. We will then spend a minimum of one week in your location when you open for business.

AFTER I AM APPROVED, HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO OPEN MY RESTAURANT?

Timing will depend on when you enter into a lease. From that point, you should usually expect five to six months to launch. Depending on your territory and the Real Estate environment within, a suitable leased space can usually be found within six months. We have had cases though that have ranged from 1 day to over a year.

IS THE INFORMATION ON MY APPLICATION KEPT CONFIDENTIAL?

All information is kept confidential to the Development department. We do not share (without your expressed permission) or sell any information that is entrusted to us.

CAN I USE MY OWN REAL ESTATE BROKER OR GENERAL CONTRACTOR?

No. Smoke’s Poutinerie manages all site evaluation, search, selection and the construction of all locations. In fact, we have approved service providers for every area, which must be used throughout the build and operation of your location.

I ALREADY OWN A RESTAURANT; CAN I OWN A SMOKE'S POUTINERIE BRAND RESTAURANT AS WELL?

Yes, we have many Franchisees who are involved in other ventures. You cannot be involved in a competing restaurant; one that offers a main focus on poutine.

HOW MUCH CAN I EXPECT TO EARN WITH A SMOKE'S POUTINERIE BRAND RESTAURANT?

The profitability of any location depends on many factors including, occupancy costs, financing terms and most importantly, your ability to operate your location efficiently and to our system. Although we are limited by law from providing earning projections, we do provide a historical P&L view from day one of our initial location as well as a P&L based on mature location averages in our Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD). We will also provide an opportunity for you to meet with our existing Franchisees to gain insight into their experiences as a Smoke’s Brand Franchisee.

WHAT IS A FDD?

A Franchise Disclosure Document or FDD is a document required through Franchise Law. The document is presented to the potential Franchisee and includes all corporate and Brand information to conduct proper due diligence prior to buying a Franchise.

DO YOU OFFER FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE?

No. We do have contacts with Canadian banks who are always interested in doing business with our Franchisees and can provide you with templates for business plans, but we do not offer financing services ourselves.

CAN I OWN MORE THAN ONE SMOKE'S POUTINERIE BRAND RESTAURANT?

Definitely! Many of our Franchisees have become multi-unit Franchisees within our brands! We actually look for Franchisees who we feel have the ability and the drive to become multi-unit owners.

WHAT KIND OF ONGOING SUPPORT CAN I EXPECT?

We are with you whenever we are needed. We have a seasoned group of District Managers (DM) who coach you in all areas of business and help to build your business by identifying and assisting you with all opportunities. Your DM will be available to you during your locations work hours and will touch base with you via phone or visit on a regular basis. We also have a mentorship program where more experienced franchisees volunteer their time to assist new franchisees.

DO YOU SIGN MOBILE FRANCHISES (FOOD TRUCKS)?

We do have food trucks available, but only to those Franchisees who have a four-wall location. Smoke’s Poutinerie does not Franchise mobile units on their own as a permanent location is required to prep and service the mobile unit. Not every location will have mobile rights, and additional fees apply to secure.

WHAT IS THE SIZE OF SPACE REQUIRED FOR A SMOKE'S POUTINERIE BRAND RESTAURANT?

The ideal footprint for a single Smoke’s Poutinerie restaurant is between 1000 – 1200 sq.’ although we are able to work with larger or smaller space on a case by case basis.

DO FRANCHISEES HAVE A VOICE IN THE DIRECTION OF YOUR COMPANY?

We have a Franchise Advisory Council with members who meet with our Global Head Quarter team to discuss opportunities on a regular basis.

NEXT STEPS?

Complete the Franchise application and submit for our review. It's to serve as a tool for you to make sure this is a viable investment as well as an insight into your experience, background and resources in order to ensure you qualify for a Franchise. It will also help you decide the best way to structure and finance your Smoke's Poutinerie restaurant. Once we have received your application, we can then set a date for a face to face and Brand presentation, where you will meet separately with two Development team members for an open interview, which will help you to decide if we are right for you, and us, if you are right for the Brand. After that, we present you with our FDD, a legal requirement in many areas, which discloses everything about our company. There is a 14-day cooling off period, where you can conduct further due diligence, then finally you can join the team, becoming the proud owner of a Smoke's Poutinerie restaurant, an active party in our quest for Global Domination!!