This Is What It Really Costs To Open A Zaxby's

If you live in the Southern states in the U.S and have a craving for a juicy chicken sandwich, chicken wings, or even chicken fingers, then Zaxby's, a casual fast-food joint, may just be one of your favorite spots to satisfy your taste buds. Zaxby's is a chain dedicated to all things poultry, including sandwiches and salads.

Two childhood friends, Zach McLeroy and Tony Townley, were inspired to open their own fast-food chicken spot after realizing that their hometown of Statesboro in Georgia lacked really delicious options, according to Zaxby's website. Although they didn't know much about the restaurant business, the pals decided to embark on opening their own place and launched in 1990. In an article in Franchise Grade, today there are 755 franchised Zaxby's in 17 states.

So if owning a Zaxby's is up your alley, first things first: You need to have lots of moola in your bank account to qualify to be a franchisee.

In order to open your own restaurant, Zaxby's requires that you have at least a half a million in cash or liquid assets, and you need to have an all-around net worth of a million dollars minimum. Aside from a significant stack of cash, you'll also need to pass a background check, not have a criminal record, and not have a bad credit card history. Once you meet the requirements, then you can start considering all the required costs to go from dream to reality.

There are several fees you must pay before you can open the doors to a Zaxby's restaurant, including an initial franchise fee of $35,000 that is paid all at once (per the Zaxby's website). In addition, you also have to consider a variety of costs, such as furniture and equipment, insurance, permits and licensing, and smaller details, like uniforms too. With all these obvious and not so obvious expenses, the total cost of opening a franchise can range from $343,200 to $695,200, according to Entrepreneur.