Auntie Anne's Hand-Rolled Soft Pretzels franchise opportunity analysis

Auntie Anne's Hand-Rolled Soft Pretzels: A franchising opportunity

Why is it interesting to you?

Auntie Anne's Hand-Rolled Soft Pretzels offer 'comfort food' without the unappealing grease of a burger. Increasingly, franchises that offer something outside of the conventional burger 'box' are becoming more popular. Auntie Anne's Hand Rolled Soft Pretzels are a great opportunity to embark upon a franchise that offers the cache of homemade baked goods. The pretzel company was founded by a couple that wished to raise funds for counseling Amish families, and has continued in its spirit of public-spiritedness towards all its employees and customers.

What should be produced?

As its name suggests, the company specializes in handmade, large traditional Amish pretzels. The pretzels come in a variety of sweet and savory flavors, along with various dipping sauces. It also offers pretzel hot dogs and pretzel nuggets and sticks. A wide variety of cravings and flavors are satisfied by Auntie Anne's, spanning from breakfast to lunch, snacks to light meals.

How should goods and services be produced?

Pretzels are baked on-premises at franchise stores. The preparation, display, and components of the pretzel must meet company specifications, as in the case of all franchises which wish to ensure a consistent customer experience. Staff is also trained within specific protocols, in terms of how to greet and interact with customers. The types of pretzels may vary with locations and the demands of the core customer base.

Define opportunity cost in your own words

An opportunity cost consists of the opportunities forsaken when making a particular decision. Human choices are finite in nature: we cannot have everything. Choosing to go to college full time, for example, extracts the opportunity cost of four years of earned income in the workforce, and four years' full-time work experience.

What are some of the opportunity costs of purchasing a franchise?

Operating a franchise means that the owner must sacrifice the opportunity of opening his or her own business. Unlike an independent business, the owner must pay a franchise fee as well as other start-up costs. Not only does the owner sacrifice the fee, but he or she also loses the potential money he or she could garner from running an independent business. Of course, there are some arguments in favor of choosing a franchise. A franchise has built-in customer demand, and the parent company offers standardized methods of training and production that have been proven to work again and again in various areas of the country. Generating these components of running a business can be risky and time-consuming. However, there is also the chance that starting an independent business on one's own could yield the 'next new thing:' a hot commodity that does not replicate an already-proven business model that might be reaching a state of demand saturation. With an independent business, the proprietor has more leeway about cutting costs regarding building, inventory, supplies, and product offerings, based upon his or her perceptions of the market.