How Much It Really Costs To Open A Hungry Howie's Pizza Franchise

Hungry Howie's Pizza may have started in 1973, but this Michigan-based pizza chain didn't garner much consumer attention until it launched its popular — and innovative — Flavored Crust in the 1980s. In addition to a rotating feature crust, there are eight Flavored Crusts to choose from at Hungry Howie's, including butter, onion, Asiago cheese, butter cheese, sesame, Cajun, garlic herb, and ranch. It was creativity like this that took the company from 65 franchise locations in 1983 to more than 550 today (via Hungry Howie's).

The company didn't stop at Flavored Crusts. Hungry Howie's introduced Howie Bread, a tray of hot, buttered garlic bread sticks topped with Parmesan and served with a side of marinara. Maybe not too groundbreaking for a pizza place, but Hungry Howie's has 10 kinds of Howie Bread, including Jalapeno-stuffed Howie Bread, Cajun Howie Bread, and Deep Dish 3 Cheeser Howie Bread (via Hungry Howie's). Did we mention there are also oven-baked subs? Okay, enough with making you hungry, let's talk about how much money you need to open your own Hungry Howie's Pizza franchise.

What you need to open a Hungry Howie's franchise

The initial franchise fee to own a Hungry Howie's is $25,000. If you're a military veteran, the fee is reduced 50 percent to $12,500. Additionally, the company requires interested franchisees to have a credit score above 700, the ability to obtain financing above $350,000, at least $300,000 in liquid assets, and $600,000 of total net worth. The estimated cost to build a Hungry Howie's location falls somewhere between $290,600 and $538,400 with an ongoing royalty fee of 5.5 percent, once you're open for business (via Hungry Howie's FAQ).

According to Franchise Chatter, there are more fees associated with opening a franchise, beyond those initial ones. These can include a grand opening fee, in the case of Hungry Howie's, that fee is $15,000, and the cost of products for your pizzeria, like a conveyor oven and kitchen equipment. Will you decide to dedicate your life to Hungry Howie's Flavored Crusts? Order a few up before you sign on the dotted line.