FASTSIGNS
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here to link to FastSigns’ detailed company profile
FASTSIGNS is a pioneer and leader in the signs and graphics industry, combining advanced technology with innovative ideas to design and produce signs for businesses and organizations of all types and sizes. FASTSIGNS offers consulting, design, production, file transfer, delivery and installation for a full range of sign and graphic products. Since 1985, the company has grown to a network spanning across the globe. FASTSIGNS has been ranked among the top in Entrepreneur’s Annual 500 for over 15 years and has been named #1 in the Business Services Category by Franchise Business Review for 5 years in a row.
| |
Operating Units |
12/31/2008 |
12/31/2009 |
12/31/2010 |
|---|
| | Franchised |
460 |
453 |
452 |
| | % Change | -- |
-1.5% |
-0.2% |
| | Company-Owned | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | % Change | -- |
-- |
-- |
| | Total |
460 |
453 |
452 |
| | % Change | -- |
-1.5% |
-0.2% |
| | Franchised as % of Total |
100.0% |
100.0% |
100.0% |
Investment Required
The fee for a FASTSIGNS franchise is $34,500. If you establish an additional franchise, the initial fee is $17,500.
FASTSIGNS provides the following range of investments required to open your initial franchise. The range assumes that all items are paid for in cash. To the extent that you choose to finance any of these expense items, your front-end investment could be substantially reduced.
| |
Item | Established Low Range | Established High Range |
| |
Initial Franchise Fee |
$34,500 |
$34,500 |
| | Leasehold Improvements |
$8,264 |
$58,000 |
| |
Furniture & Fixtures |
$8,517 |
$13,166 |
| |
Deposits | $3,500 |
$9,000 |
| |
Décor, Menu Boards, Graphics |
$4,456 |
$4,556 |
| | Tools and Saw |
$5,969 |
$6,792 |
| | Output Devices |
$30,359 |
$30,828 |
| |
POS Computer |
$5,659 |
$6,809 |
| | Signage |
$2,800 |
$5,300 |
| | Initial Inventory |
$3,722 |
$4,078 |
| |
Architectural/Engineering |
$0 | $2,500 |
| | Initial Advertising |
$12,500 | $12,500 |
| |
Expenses While Training |
$11,380 |
$14,844 |
| | Administrative Supplies |
$1,880 |
$2,030 |
| |
Business Licenses and Permits | $500 | $1,000 |
| |
Insurance Deposits and Premiums (3 Months) | $646 | $1,000 |
| | Professional Fees |
$2,117 |
$4,617 |
| |
Sales Training Kits & Mobile Device |
$2,899 |
$2,899 |
| |
Bancorp Participation Fee |
$0 |
$2,000 |
| |
Working Capital |
$30,000 |
$60,000 |
| |
Total Initial Investment |
$169,668 |
$276,419 |
Ongoing Expenses
FASTSIGNS franchisees pay a monthly royalty fee equal to 3% of gross sales the first year, then 6% of gross sales thereafter. Franchisees also pay a National Advertising Council fee equal to 1% of sales the first year, then 2% of gross sales thereafter. Other fees include a possible advertising cooperative fee equal to a maximum of 2% of gross sales and the cost of various advertising, promotional materials and sales training.
Franchisee Satisfaction
A critical component of the due diligence process is that you, as a prospective franchisee, have a strong sense of existing franchisee satisfaction. Click here to download a summary of a recent independent survey of FASTSIGNS’s existing franchisees conducted by the Franchise Research Institute. You can also click here to download direct quotes from franchisees about their experience with FASTSIGNS, taken from the same survey. Please note that, in order to ensure that the comments were candid (both good and bad), franchisee names were intentionally withheld from the report provided to the franchisor.
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How do you rate FastSigns in terms of: |
Rating* |
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Overall Quality of Franchisor |
99% |
|
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Initial Training Supplied by Franchisor |
97% |
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High Standards of Quality Performance throughout Organization |
95% |
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Franchisor's Business Versus Local Competition |
100% |
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* Independent Audit of Existing Franchisees Who Rated FastSigns as Excellent, Very Good, or Good |
What You Get–Training and Support
The new franchise owner, a computer graphics designer and a customer service representative are provided with an initial training program, which includes two weeks of classroom instruction for up to nine hours a day in Carrollton, Texas as well as at least 32 hours of in-store training. For the owner, the training includes topics on sales, marketing, and administrative and financial management; for the computer graphics designer and customer service representative, training topics include sales, product knowledge, POS, product fulfillment and other related subjects. FASTSIGNS also offers site-selection assistance, construction consulting, operation manuals, and grand opening support to ensure each franchisee’s success.
Ongoing support for FASTSIGNS franchisees includes support from a FASTSIGNS Franchise Business Consultant and optional additional managing and operations advisory assistance by means of written materials, toll free telephone service, electronic communication, or at the FASTSIGNS office. FASTSIGNS also holds regular franchise conventions.
Territory
FASTSIGNS grants protected territories encompassing a minimum of 4,000 businesses divided by zip code boundaries.
Note: The tables and information regarding the number of operating units, investment required, on-going expenses, training and territory grants were taken from the company’s 2011 FDD. The 2011 write-ups will be incorporated into the 2012 Edition of Bond’s Hottest New Franchises publication.
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