Young Chefs Academy Franchise Discussion

166 Responses to Young Chefs Academy Franchise Discussion

1. CryingShame says:

   January 29, 2008 at 9:39 am

   Well, looks like the very first Young chefs – the one originally started by the founders which was sold to some unsuspecting couple last year – is now out of business too.

   That is a great selling point. Not even the location the founders started (and it is located right in the same city as the franchisor) has been able to stay in business.

   You would think that the one store the founders started, sold, and were in the same city with could make it. They couldn’t even hold on a year.

   If they cannot even keep open their own location, then what in the world gives folks the confidence that these founders have a “recipe for success” for any other location?

   This whole Young Chefs franchise sounds like a recipe for a disastor to me.

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2. Karen says:

   February 2, 2008 at 1:22 pm

   I am a prospective franchisee and while doing my due diligence I stumbled upon this website. I have to say, I am shocked at all the negative vibes. I was really convinced this was the right franchise for me and my husband but now I am having second thoughts. I have done a lot of research on different franchises and this one “appeared” to have the right stuff according to all the ratings. My question to anyone reading is, if it is such a mess, why is it rated in top 500 franchises and why is it #22 in top new franchises?

   As a current succesful business owner, I understand about long hours, hard work and I was going into this assuming the franchise fee was going to buy me the general concept, the curriculum, and the marketing concept. I figured the rest would be up to me anyway. I dont think I would expect someone in Waco Tx to be able to solve problems here in So Cal.

   Are the biggest issues the support problems? After all, it is your own business and it is up to you to make it successful. Maybe a lot of the failed franchisees just weren’t good business people. I dont mean to offend anyone, I am just trying to make an informed decision. I’ve run the numbers in my area and it seems like a no-brainer to me. Am I being naive?

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3. Look B4 U Leap says:

   February 2, 2008 at 3:41 pm

   Many people have lost money in this venture, to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. In all fainess, some were just not good business owners. Some were sold a bad bag of goods by the previous franchise broker. Many however have been previous franchise owners (i.e. Curves for example) or have been successful business people. However, they have had to shut their doors because there is virtually no “program” to sell.

   It takes time for anything to grow, but there are some obstacles in this franchise that must be addressed before the potential of what we all bought into can be realized. One, the competence of the current leadership. While nice people, they have no experience in managing/growing a franchise. The founders need to step aside and let someone with the right expertise manage things – even if they stayed around to provide creative input (which they might be good at). Two, being burned by the previous broker, the founders are now very mistrustful and defensive – even with their own franchisees. They spend more time stifling growth than inspiring it. Three, they have no understanding of the market. They struggle to understand what the customers want/need or even define what a successful program should look like (i.e., no business plan). Four, according to them you would NOT be a business owner. You have been granted a license to run THEIR business. This attitude permeates a “Big Brother” sort of mentality and level of paranoia that I can only call juvenile. They continuously act without input from franchisees and make unilateral decisions that directly (and negatively) affect viablity of the business without forewarning or an invitation to discuss.

   If you are expecting the franchise fee to buy you the general concept and the marketing concept, you will likely be disappointed. The only thing your franchise fee gives you is access to use the logo and some recipes. Although the curriculum has greatly improved over the past year, which is good.

   I am also personally concerned about their ability to deliver more than just promises – and they are full of promises. Last summer, they told the owners in Georgia that they had oversold the market and would not sell any more franchises in the state. At the conference last fall, they repeatedly referenced how they needed to address the saturation issues in Georgia. Yet now, they are marketing Georgia territories to be sold. Also, they rolled out a program a year ago with all these promises about what the children would receive if they enrolled in the program and stayed in it for a year. After that year there was nothing. None of what they had promised as part of the program was available and we had nothing to offer the children who had believed the promises made.

   YCI will promise you the world, they just rarely deliver on anything.

   You talk about a number of industry “ratings”. You should examine the criteria for these lists and when these ratings were assigned. Also, remember that the sell of these franchises started out with a bang. It just turned into a fizzle shortly thereafter because there was nothing of substance to sustain it. I would not consider a franchise that is consistently losing franchises each month to be successful even if it is a novel and creative idea.

   Have you asked them how many have gone out of business? It may not be in the UFOC yet unless they have updated it. Since these founders have taken over, more than 30 locations have gone out of business. Have you looked at the financials of the franchisor? Have you asked how many who had initially purchased multiple territories tried to sell back the others once they opened their first operation? Have you searched on the Internet to see how many are trying to sale their Young Chefs, even for ridiculously low prices? Have you called to speak to franchisees (not just the ones they give you)?

   The decision to buy also seemed like a no-brainer to me. It has been a great disappoointment. Not the struggles, every new business must go through that in order to establish itself. I was not expecting easy money and those who went into this with that mindset were in error. However, I did expect a franchisor who understood the market, had a vision for the brand, a desire to make this franchise #1, and the knowledge to realize the mission. That is unfortunately just not in place.

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4. Karen says:

   February 2, 2008 at 6:00 pm

   Thanks for the heads up. It sounds as though I may be better off saving the $30,000 and doing this on my own since it soinds like I’d be on my own anyway. I appreciate your honesty and wish you luck.

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5. Look B4 U Leap says:

   February 3, 2008 at 6:41 am

   Hi Karen, Don’t make that decision based on my feedback alone. You said you had already started looking into this; that is my best advice. Look very carefully before decidng to buy this so you won’t have any regrets. In hindsight, I would have gone with my own business over this. I personally have not found one thing they have provided that I could not have done on my own – probably better and cheaper. Being “on your own” is one of the top complaints I have heard from other franchisees here; you just begin to wonder what you are paying for. Yet, I am in this and only continue because I am hoping things get better and I don’t want to lose everything I have put into this. In the meantime, we will continue to run the best store we can and try to minimize the distractions caused by corporate.

   Maybe one day they will understand that being a franchisor is more about successful business management than controlling their business “partners”. Maybe one day they will begin to treat franchisees more like partners than indentured servents. Maybe one day they will start to use the advertsing fees we pay each month to actually advertise and promote the brand. Maybe one day they will realize that pretending there are no problems will not stop the fiscal bleeding and will ultimately hurt all of us as more and more businesses simply close their doors. For some, that day didn’t come soon enough. I hope that it does come soon.

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