Friendly's has humble beginnings in Springfield, Massachusetts as a small ice cream shop owned and run by brothers Prestley and Curtis Blake in 1935. Five years later the brothers opened another shop in West Springfield and added a food menu. Within a decade the restaurant grew across Massachusetts and into Connecticut. In 1979 the brothers retired and sold their company to Hershey Foods and in 1988 the company was sold to Donald Smith. In 1998 Friendly Ice Cream started selling the stock at $18 per share.

What Does A Friendly's Franchise Cost?

Income

The initial franchise fee to open a Friendly’s location ranges from $15,000 to $35,000. The total investment ranges from $147,600 to $1,979,350. Friendly's also has a royalty fee of 4% and all Friendly's franchise applicants are required to have a minimum net worth of $1,500,000 and a minimum of $650,000 in liquid assets.

Friendly's Franchise Business Opportunities: Other Information

Currently Friendly's is looking for locations in Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and Washington D.C.

Friendly's was named one of the top 200 franchises by Franchise Times in 2009. Friendly's was ranked #105 in Entrepreneur's Annual Franchise 500 for 2011.