Why do so many enterprising people consider becoming a Culver’s franchisee the best way to start a new business? Because franchising with Culver’s lets you have the best of both worlds. You get all the advantages of an established operating system with nearly 30 years of valuable, hard-earned experience under our aprons, support when you need it most, and the marketing strength of our proven brand – all without giving up your independence as a business owner.
Culver’s franchise partners are hands-on owner-operators, not just silent business partners. It’s a key factor in Culver’s success.
Inquire about a Franchise
Take the first step! Submit your completed online Franchise Inquiry form today and a Culver’s Franchise Representative will contact you.
Phone Interview, Personal Meeting, Receive Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD)
There’s more to becoming a Culver’s franchisee than meeting a set of financial requirements. In our conversations, we’ll review your inquiry, discuss your entreprenurial goals and share with you Culver’s Franchise Disclosure Document. The FDD will help you to understand our organization and the opportunity we offer you in a potential long-term business relationship.
Discovery Week
This is your opportunity to find out what it’s like to be a Culver’s franchisee and decide whether Culver’s is the right franchisor for you. You’ll spend six days in a Culver’s uniform, working in the restaurant to get a feel for Culver’s unique culture and the day-to-day demands of a busy restaurant environment. The experience also allows you the opportunity to meet members of our executive team. In all fairness, Discovery Week is also our opportunity to evaluate your fitness to become a Culver’s franchisee. We’re looking for candidates who are thoroughly engaged and are on board with living up to our high standards.
Identify a Site for Your Culver’s Restaurant
If you have been approved to continue the process based on your Discovery Week, we will assist you in the site selection process. We’ll review your proposed site’s demographics, placement within the trade area and specific characteristics of that area. If you don’t have a particular trade area in mind, we will help you locate one.
Enter into a Franchise Agreement
It is after entering into a franchise agreement you officially become a Culver’s franchisee. Your initial franchise fee puts you in possession of a very valuable asset: the right to use the Culver’s brand, which includes our logo marks, operating systems, menu items and all the goodwill that’s been generated since the beginning. Now we roll up our sleeves and work together to get your restaurant up and running. We offer valuable services to help you choose a site, design and build your restaurant and provide opening support.
Providing opportunities for personal, professional and financial growth is an important part of Culver’s mission. So we also offer another way to become a franchise partner through our Mentorship Program, which allows promising candidates to ease into the franchise partner role with the support of an existing franchisee who’s looking to expand.
Successfully Complete Training
Culver’s offers its franchisees one of the most extensive 16-week training courses available in the restaurant industry. ButterBurger® University includes both classroom and in-restaurant training. Your active engagement in every aspect of training will serve as valuable preparation for how thoroughly engaged you’ll need to be as an owner-operator.
Complete Construction
Our Design Services team provides site layouts and prototype building plans for new construction, or concept plans and building elevations if you are converting an existing building. They will assist you as you work with your architect to modify these plans to suit local requirements while maintaining the quality and image of the Culver’s brand. They will assist you with the bidding process and are available during construction to answer questions.
Open for Business
Delivering an exceptional experience for every guest who chooses your Culver’s restaurant is a big responsibility. And supporting you in those efforts will always be our top priority.