Food is a major part of our lives. We can’t survive without it, so it’s no surprise that food might come to mind when thinking about becoming your own boss. While starting your own food business can be exciting, choosing one of the top food truck franchises is a far easier path to success.
We’ll discuss the food truck industry and the benefits of owning a food truck franchise. If that catches your interest, we’ll also explain how to start a food truck business and how to run a successful food truck.
Keep reading or click on any of the links below to jump to the section that interests you:
Understanding the Food Truck Industry
Food truck businesses have become more popular in the restaurant industry because they have lower operational and startup costs.
Unlike a traditional restaurant, mobile food trucks don’t need tables, servers, or a huge team. Most can be run by one or two people. Plus, they can literally meet customers where they are.
According to UpFlip Academy, there are over 51,407 food trucks in the United States with combined annual sales of more than $2.2 billion.
Benefits of a Food Truck Franchise
Buying a food truck franchise provides a proven business model, established operations, and a tested concept. Franchisors have already refined their business strategies, which reduces the risk to franchisees.
Note that many companies with food trucks are also restaurants, so their food trucks may be untested or dependent upon a brick-and-mortar location.
Let’s review some other benefits of choosing a franchise.
Marketing Support
Food truck franchises provide marketing support like established brand recognition and advertising strategies. Franchisees can rely on the franchisor’s marketing expertise to save time and money.
Lower Startup Costs
Starting a food truck franchise often involves lower startup costs than traditional restaurants. Food truck franchises also have lower overhead costs on rent, utilities, and maintenance.
Comprehensive Training
One of the many benefits of buying a food truck franchise is the initial training and ongoing support to help franchisees succeed.
Top Food Truck Franchises
While most franchise business lists are well-documented companies that are clearly franchises, I found the food truck business to be an anomaly.
Restaurants with a strong reputation can have numerous franchise offerings, so food trucks aren’t always listed in their disclosure documents. This may be because they are corporate owned, part of an area franchise agreement, or subject to other conditions.
#1. Spitz Mediterranean
Spitz Mediterranean is a Greek-style food truck and restaurant franchise that sports some of the highest revenues and margins on the list.
• Initial franchise fee: $35K
• Total initial investment: $217.3K to $284.1K
• Ongoing fees: 9.5% + $850 monthly
The Spitz franchises made an average revenue of $1,844,592.20 last year with 50.11% gross margins and 13.04% net profit margins.
#2. Toppers Pizza
Toppers Pizza is a pizza chain that sells food business franchises, including restaurants and food trucks.
• Initial franchise fee: $32.5K to $45K
• Total initial investment: $484.3K to $718.5K
• Ongoing fees: 10.5% + $208.33 monthly
Franchises have a median revenue of $1,129,031 and an 11.47% net profit margin.
#3. DonutNV
DonutNV is a donut food truck franchise where each mini donut is made to order.
• Initial franchise fee: $43K to $44K
• Total initial investment: $66.5K to $95.5K
• Ongoing fees: $125 to $875 weekly + 2% + $310 monthly
Their corporate-owned original food truck makes $169,863 and has an 86.30% net income. Even after adding in fees and royalties, this franchise still has a tremendous profit margin of 79.30%.
#4. Cousins Maine Lobster Rolls
Cousins Maine Lobster Rolls are lobster meat sandwiches with light mayo.
• Initial franchise fee: $91K to $151K
• Total initial investment: $266.7K to $968.9K
• Ongoing fees: $3,900 monthly or 8% + $400 (with a $20,000 balance fee)
This food truck franchise had an average revenue of $821,094.58 in 2023.
#5. Johnny Rockets
Johnny Rockets serves burgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, and other classics. It appears they have a food truck concept based on some of the terms in their franchise disclosure document, but there are only a few details.
• Initial franchise fee: $50K
• Total initial investment: $507.1K to $1.7M
• Ongoing fees: 10% of revenue + $840 to $4,750 yearly for technology
Franchise owners average $1,512,026 in annual revenue with a 43.16% gross margin.
#6. Frios Gourmet Pops
Frios Gourmet Pops is an ice cream truck franchise.
• Initial franchise fee: $43K to $44K
• Total initial investment: $66.5K to $95.5K
• Ongoing fees: $125 to $875 weekly + 2% + $310 monthly
The median annual revenue for a Frios Gourmet Pops franchise is $118,799.
#7. Kona Ice
Kona Ice is a shaved ice franchise.
• Initial franchise fee: $15K
• Total initial investment: $173.4K and $222.1K
• Royalties: $3K annually for the first five years, $3.5K annually for the next two, then $4K annually thereafter
They don’t provide financial representations for the performance of their food trucks, but they have fixed-rate royalties, which is nice.
#8. Totally Nutz
Totally Nutz is more of a food cart, but it’s still a mobile food vendor. They’re mostly located in malls and event centers.
• Initial franchise fee: $64.5K to $113K
• Total Initial Investment: $66.4K to $229K
• Royalties: 6% + $500 annually
The website claims 81.2% profits over two months. However, that’s not repeated in the financial disclosure document, so I assume those are atypical results.
Other Franchises in the Food Industry
Other opportunities that were mentioned online but didn’t meet the threshold for us to recommend include:
- Dairy Queen: Couldn’t confirm they allow franchisees to operate food trucks
- Masshole Lobster: Couldn’t pull the franchise disclosure document to review the business opportunity in greater detail
- Little Caesars Pizza: Not enough information about their food truck offerings
- Wayback Burgers: No information about food trucks in their franchise disclosure document
It wouldn’t surprise me if traditional restaurants add a franchise food truck opportunity. Food trucks provide a competitive advantage over fast food, fast casual, and every brick-and-mortar restaurant because they’re mobile.
Word of Caution: Gigi’s Cupcakes
I’m covering this franchising company because I question whether you should consider it. Cupcakes are delicious, and Gigi’s Cupcakes are no exception. But when I was researching them, I found an article from 2019 where 18 franchisees sued the corporate office for misrepresenting them.
If Gigi’s Cupcakes sends me an updated franchise disclosure document and explains what they did to correct these issues, I would be willing to change this section. For now, I’m hesitant.
Other Resources for Food Trucks
At UpFlip, we have numerous resources about the food truck industry:
- UpFlip Academy: If you join UpFlip Academy, you’ll have the chance to network with other business owners, read the latest market research, and learn about the most effective business strategies.
- YouTube: Check out our food business playlist to learn more about efficient operations and how current business owners build their customer base.
- Blogs: Check out our food truck blogs to learn about food truck names, how to start a food truck business, and how to buy a food truck.
Food Truck Franchise FAQ
Most people who are thinking about opening a food truck franchise have questions about what makes this particular sector so unique. Let’s review a few of the most common ones.
How much do food trucks make?
The average food truck makes $47K, but some of the most successful food truck franchises make up to $2 million per year.
How much do food trucks cost?
The average food truck business costs $75K to start. Meanwhile, according to financial disclosure documents, a food truck franchise can cost between $20K and $1.7M.
Are food trucks profitable?
The average food truck has a 7.2% net profit margin, but some of the most successful food truck franchises have much higher margins. For instance, Toppers Pizza has a 71.4% gross profit margin with 11.5% net profit.
Closing
Choosing the most profitable food trucks involves balancing initial costs, growth potential, and ongoing royalties. You’ll also need to think about menu development and how to maintain low overhead.
By now, we’ve introduced you to the food truck industry, explained some of the benefits of a food truck franchise, and then examined the top food truck franchise businesses to determine which ones are the best. We’ve also provided you with some other resources to learn about the food truck business.
Which food truck franchise sounds most appealing to you?
