Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory

Founded: 1981 Franchising since: 1982
On Memorial Day Weekend, 1981, Franklin Crail wasn't on vacation; instead, he was opening the doors to a new business. That weekend, residents of Durango, Colorado, got the world's first taste of a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.

Today, visitors to any of the company's more than 200 U.S. locations can watch fudge being made, bite into fresh caramel apples, and purchase a variety of candies and chocolates.

265 Turner Dr. Durango, Colorado 81303

Phone: (800)438-7623/ (970)259-0554

Franchisor is a publicly-held company with 130 employee(s); 5 employee(s) in franchise department.

Franchise Growth

Year	U.S. Franchises	Canadian Franchises	Foreign Franchises	Company Owned
2009	276	44	3	7
2008	281	40	3	4
2007	275	37	3	5
2006	264	33	3	7
2005	243	29	2	8

Where Seeking Franchisees
In the U.S. Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North carolina, North dakota, New hampshire, New jersey, New mexico, Nevada, New york, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode island, South carolina, South dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West virginia, Wyoming
Worldwide

Total investment: $158.95K-566.4K Franchise fee: $24.5K

Ongoing royalty fee: 5% Term of agreement: 10 years, renewable

Express/kiosk option available

Type of Financing Available

	In-House	Third Party
Franchise Fee	No	Yes
Startup Costs	No	Yes
Equipment	No	Yes
Inventory	No	Yes
Accounts Receivable	No	Yes
Payroll	No	Yes

Qualifications
Net worth requirement: $200K
Cash liquidity requirement: $50K

Operations

• 25% of all franchisees own more than one unit
• Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 7
• Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (90% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

Training

• Available at headquarters: 7 days

Ongoing Support

• Meetings
• Grand opening
• Field operations/evaluations

Franchise 500® rank:
#162 (2009); #151 (2008); #135 (2007); #152 (2006); #146 (2005);

Ranked #1 in category in:
2009; 2008; 2007; 2006; 2005;

America's Top Global Franchises:
#127 (2009); #130 (2008); #103 (2007); #120 (2006);