Waffy’s Artisanal Belgian Waffles
Waffy’s is an innovative franchise concept focused on the authentic Belgian Waffle experience.
Our company success is based on our unique product; authentic Liege waffles, a favorite street food in Belgium, but practically unknown in the U.S.
What sets Waffy’s Liege waffles apart from the waffles Americans are familiar with is their sweet, crunchy coating of caramelized sugar, which occurs during the cooking process in our specialized waffle irons, much like the shell on crème brulee.
Although Liege waffles are often served plain in a paper wrapper for portability in Belgium, Waffy’sgoes one step further and offers a variety of delicious toppings such as fresh fruits, Nutella and home-made whipped cream. We also provide a unique packaging to enhance the eating experience for our customers.
In addition to our signature Liege waffles, Waffy’s also serves artisanal Panini sandwiches made with a pizza-like dough and waffle shaped potato fries. Soft-served ice cream and an assortment of specialty coffees round out our menu selection.
Waffy’s offers multiple store types: kiosk (malls, airports, college, etc…), food court, and in-line store (strip malls).
Our concept also enables off-site sales through catering and mobile food carts for an additional stream of revenue.
Company History
Having lived in the United States for a number of years, Steve Daumerie has often traveled back and forth to Belgium (his native country) to visit family. On these trips home, Mr Daumerie’s first destination from the airport would always be the waffle kiosks near his home.
Eating Belgian Waffles was part of Mr. Daumerie’s joyful routine as a child; the smell and taste of these waffles are so wonderful that no children or adults could ever resist taking a bite into them. In the thirteen years Mr. Daumerie lived in the United States, he had yet to find a place where he could eat a truly authentic Belgian Waffle (called “lieges” Waffle, a waffle prepared with a special sugar—only made and found in Belgium).
Mr. Daumerie realized how unfortunate it was for the American population to miss out on such an amazing treat. This genuine insight gave him the idea of introducing the authentic Belgian Waffles to the US market as well as an array of other Belgian treats.
Mr. Daumerie went to great lengths to make his waffles as true to his fond childhood memories as possible. “I went back to Belgium to learn the recipes and waffle making techniques first-hand. We also use authentic Liege waffle irons to produce the deeper pockets that hold more syrup or other toppings. And for the caramelized sugar coarting, we import genuine Belgian Pearl Sugar from the homeland.”
As of today, Waffy’s operates a central kitchen and our Franchise Support Center located in Pompano Beach, FL. The company also owns and operates a kiosk store prototype at the Galleria Mall in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
| Total # of Units | 1 |
| Franchised Units | 0 |
| Year Established | 2010 |
| Franchising Since | 2012 |
Benefits of Owning Waffy’s Franchise
Waffy’s is a unique concept with virtually no direct competition in that particular food segment. Our high quality products are all manufactured “in-house” allowing our franchisee to offer a consistent product at all times and locations.
One major advantage of Waffy’s is that our concept is easy to run; our franchisees do not need a large amount of staff, or extensive food business experience. Waffy’s use high quality equipment that allows automation and ease of use for faster and more efficient service.
Waffy’s is fully dedicated to its franchisees, offering a high level of franchise support through extensive training and state of the art technology. Your success is our success!
Waffy’s also offers a lower entry cost compared to similar food concept allowing a faster return on investment (ROI).
In addition, as Waffy’s grows, it will be able to use its leveraged buying power (economies of scale) to reduce food costs, allowing better profitability.
Finally, Waffy’s surrounds itself with a team of experienced and dedicated professionals (Accounting, Legal, Marketing, etc…) to provide the best services possible to our franchisees.
Financial Investment
| Total Initial Investment | 126,500-231,300 |
| Franchise Fee | 30,000 |
| Liquid Capital Required | 100,000 |
| Net Worth Required | 200,000 |
| Financial Assistance | No |
| Start Up Capital | 20,000 |
| Royalties | 6% |
Franchise Requirements
Because Waffy’s want all of its franchisees to be successful, our company does qualify potential franchisee candidates before granting them a franchise. Our success is tied to the success of our franchise partners. Their success is our success, so we are particular who we allow to join our franchise family.
In our experience, in order to be successful, a franchise candidate should meet the following requirement:
· Strong sales and customer service orientation
· Well-developed people skills
· Business management /organization experience
· High personal standards: excellence, honesty, integrity, etc.
· Able to meet initial investment requirements
· Strong leadership skills, highly motivated
· Familiarity with the food service industry
· Trainable/coachable
Location Requirements
Waffy’s offers 3 types of store options. Each has its own location requirement.
KIOSK – Kiosks must be located in a high traffic location, preferably in a regional shopping mall of 800,000 to 1,000,000 total square feet with 3 to 4 anchor department stores.
FOOD COURT- Food Court stores must be located in a regional shopping mall of 800,000 to 1,000,000 total square feet with 3 to 4 anchor department stores in the food court area.
IN-LINE – In-Line stores must be located in a high foot traffic location in either strip centers or urban street front locations.
Training and Support
Waffy’s offers a high level of franchise support with a training program divided in three phases:
· Phase 1: Training provided at the Waffy’s Training Support Center (Pompano Beach, FL): Waffy’s will provide Franchisees with approximately 2 weeks of initial training, beginning approximately 4-8 weeks before the franchisee is scheduled to open for business. Phase I Training will include administrative, operational, and sales/marketing; it will also include a liberal amount of on-the-job in-store training. This training will be provided for the franchisee and up to two associates.
· Phase 2: Training provided at the franchisee’s location: On-site training typically takes place just prior to when the franchisee commences operations. An experienced trainer fromWaffy’s will provide on-site training for a period of 7-10 days to assist the franchisee in the set-up and commencement of operations.
· Phase 3: Ongoing training: Waffy’s offers a web-based training program to provide on-going support to its entire franchise system.
Operational Support
Waffy’s will also provide web-based support to our franchisees for virtually all of their needs critical to their success including; operational, purchasing, marketing, and administrative support.
In addition to training and web-based support, a member of the Waffy’s field support staff will visit each franchisee on a regular basis to ensure proper guidance.
| Does Corporate Assist in Site Selection | Yes |
| Does Corporate Provide Advertising & Marketing (Local, National) | Yes |
| Does Corporate Provide Continued Training? | Yes |
Top 35 Target Areas
Waffy’s is currently offering franchise opportunities nationwide; however, our primary focus is to saturate targeted areas in order to maximize the synergies of distribution, marketing and franchise consultant support.
Our primary market areas are:
- Southern Florida – (Palm Beach, Broward and Dade Counties)
- Southeastern US – (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana)
- National markets on a market by market basis
Waffy’s would entertain other markets as part of a multi-unit agreement.
