Burritos might have initially seemed like an unfamiliar food choice for Indians, but that’s no longer the case. And why should it be? We have been continuously witnessing numerous international food franchises introducing most popular dishes from their respective markets, and certainly this has made a significant impact on the industry.
In this exciting blog, we’ll cover about a similar business which was established by a student-turned entrepreneur who came to India as a college student and tourist in 2010 and later found that India’s food market is still in developing stage and opening and serving a Mexican-styled food options can really make wonder in the industry.
Yes, We are talking about California Burrito Franchise. In this comprehensive post, we’ll cover several aspects of California Burrito business along with its cost, profit, and step-by-step guide to start this business in your city (Don’t miss to read our final thought).
Furthermore, to ease your research, we’ll also provide answer to some of commonly asked questions on California Burrito (in FAQ section) and a few alternatives to it, in case you are interested in it.
- Company: California Burrito
- Founded: 2012
- Founder: Bert Mueller
- Industry: Mexican-styled cuisine
- No. of Locations: 50+
- Model: Self-owned and open to franchise
- Area served: India
- Franchise Fee: ~5 -15 lakhs
- Area Required: At least 400 sq ft
- Est. Initial investment: ₹30 lakh to ₹80 lakhs
Table of Contents
Overview of California Burrito Franchise
California Burrito was conceptualized in 2010 when the founder, Bert Mueller envisioned opening a restaurant in India that would serve a delightful array of Mexican-styled cuisine to its Indian consumers, without requiring them to visit any Mexican city.
Bert Muller, who arrived in Jaipur, India in 2010 as a college student and tourist, was pleasantly taken aback by the vibrancy and flavors that Indian cuisine embodies. During his period, Bert noticed a remarkable resemblance between Indian and Mexican dishes, which further solidified his determination to open his food business.
While he was on the lookout for the perfect location, Bert landed in Bengaluru, and the city immediately caught his attention and appeared to be an ideal spot for his venture.
Bengaluru is renowned for being the hub of IT companies, and many IT employees had previously visited the US or other international countries, making them familiar with foreign culinary tastes.
With all his energy and immense enthusiasm to bring Mexican culinary experience to the Indian consumers, Bert embarked on his journey in the food industry with two of his friends and a chef from San Francisco by opening the first California Burrito restaurant at the Embassy Gold Links Tech Park in Bengaluru in 2012.
It is important to mention that other two co-founders have left the chain had Bert Mueller has been driving the chain solo since 2020.
We can go on exploring more about it. However, as per the franchisee point of view, it certainly seems like a detailed overview. In the further section, we’ll elaborate more about its journey and current market presence of the chain in India.
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The Journey of California Burrito
Indeed, It is truly inspiring to discover the Journey of its founder who came to India and developed a keen interest to open a fast food restaurant (California Burrito) to offer exceptional range of cuisine to Indian.
Bert Mueller, who had earlier worked for US-Based casual restaurant, envisioned to bring in the same business model in India.
The idea was quite straightforward: to locate a tech park and establish the restaurant there. It not only helped the chain to familiarize the brand with techies but also allowed them to garner a healthy customer base in India.
At present, the chain boasts over 50 outlets across the country and is planning to make the total count of restaurants to 100 in coming years.
Slowly and steadily, California Burrito expanded its presence to other cities, including Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, and the home market (Bengaluru). There is no surprise that majority of its outlets are present in Bengaluru, followed by Hyderabad, NCR, and other region.
Key Facts on California Burrito
| Sr No. | Type | Private |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trade Name | California Burrito |
| 2 | Industry | Food & Beverages & QSR |
| 3 | Founded | 2012 |
| 4 | Founders Or Parent Company | Bert Mueller, Dharam Khalsa, & Gaelan Connel |
| 5 | Corporate Headquarters | Bengaluru |
| 6 | Number of locations | Over 50+ |
| 7 | Area served | Primarily in Southern India, Expanding in North as well |
| 8 | Model | Self owned and Franchises |
| 9 | Menu offering | Bowls, Burritos, Tacos, Nachos, and more |
| 10 | Revenue | Approx. 110 Cr in 2022 |
| 11 | Website | https://californiaburrito.in/ |
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Why consider owning a California Burrito Franchise?
Potentially, there are numerous reasons to contemplate investing in a restaurant franchise that specializes primarily in burritos and Mexican-styled foods.
- Your keen interest in Mexican Food:
- Obviously, if you consider yourself as a Mexican-styled food enthusiasts and planning to serve the same experience in your community, all other justifications might seem trivial in comparison.
- Focus on quality not the “quantity”:
- While you might wonder how a chain can have merely 50 outlets in nearly a decade long operations.
- Well, it all lies in its business model, Bert, the founder was quite determined to serve and understand the particular market and location first, before expanding its operation in other territory.
- While you might wonder how a chain can have merely 50 outlets in nearly a decade long operations.
- Growing revenue:
- As a franchisee, you’ll have liberty to leverage California Burrito’s proven business model and will certainly become a part of ever-growing chain, which has exhibited unprecedented growth from a few lakhs to over 110 Crore in revenue in 2022.
- Use of fresh ingredients – Outsourced from its own farm:
- With its good chunk of investment in farming, the chain has not only succeeded in delivering an exceptional Mexican culinary experience to its customers but has also led to a significant reduction in its raw material costs.
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Does California Burrito Sell franchises?
Officially, The California Burrito does sell its franchises in some instances but it’s quite limited.
According to the post published by the ET Hospitality world, The chain were still generating a significant cash and had sizeable capital of approximately USD 5.5 million raised from its investors.
With this amount, California Burrito is certainly one a track to open and operate up to 100 stores in near future; all on its own.
However, If you consider yourself as an aspiring candidates and looking to create an opportunity out of it, then feel free to visit its official website and fill in its franchise form.
How much does California Burrito Franchise Cost?
Despite the fact that California Burrito offers limited franchising opportunities only at certain instances to aspiring entrepreneurs, it doesn’t really restrict you from seizing the ever-growing opportunity in the food industry.
The initial investment for setting up a California Burrito will certainly vary depending on the numerous factors, including the proposed outlet’s locations, available floor space, and amount required to furnish the space.
Since the official website has not disclosed any information regarding the franchise fee and costs, we can only offer certain estimated figures. If you require accurate details for your location, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the franchise team.
The initial investment for California Burrito Franchise may range between ₹30 lakhs to ₹80 lakhs for a floor space of at least 400 sq feet to well over 1000 sq feet.
Based on our research, the California Burrito chain caters to a wider audience through its flexible outlet setup, which ranges from a kiosk model (suitable for office cafeterias, airports, or high-traffic locations) to a restaurant model (best suited for city centers or high-traffic areas within the city).
How much is California Burrito Franchise Fee?
The franchise fee for California Burrito could range between ₹5 lakh and ₹15 Lakhs plus 18% GST.
In major case, a franchise prospects/investors should at least have a collective investment capacity to invest at least ₹50 lakh for California Burrito.
Additional Cost for California Burrito
Typically, to run and maintain a fast food franchise like California Burrito, one must adhere to their standards and are liable to pay a few additional costs such as Royalty fee, advertisement fee, maintenance fee, and a few other investments.
The ongoing royalty fee for the California Burrito franchise may range between 5% and 8% and a fixed fee for marketing support, which would be paid by the Franchisee on their monthly gross sales.
| Type of Fee | Cost and Other Details |
|---|---|
| Franchise Fee | ₹ 5 – 15 lakh + GST |
| Floor Area | Min. 400 – 1000 sq. ft. |
| Royalty Fee | 5-8% |
| Ad Royalty fee | 1-2% |
| Store ambience | ₹5 – 10 lakhs |
| Machinery & Equipment | ₹5-10 lakhs |
| IT Support & Online Platforms | 1 lakhs |
| Total Initial Investment | ₹ 30 lakhs to ₹80 lakhs |
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How much is California Burrito Franchise Profit Margin?
The chain has been quite meticulous in selecting the perfect locations to set up its outlets, a process that involves detailed research into the area’s growth prospects and the average customer traffic at these outlets.
California Burrito’s growth prospects is all about sustained growth, which focuses purely on having a robust presence in the their initial operating area rather than expanding into other market.
The chain was bootstrapped in 2012 and since then it has undergone a significant changes.
After securing its first funding of ₹3 Crore in 2014, the chain posted an annual turnover of ₹23 Crore in 2017 and quoted to expect nearly ₹36 Crore in 2018, according to the post published by TOI.
Like other business, California Burrito did face issues during Pandemic. After the COVID restrictions were lifted, the chain successfully rebounded, leading to a net revenue of ₹110 Crore in 2022.
In addition to all these, California Burrito restaurants also managed to expand its presence into other markets, and at present, the chain is operating approximately 50 outlets and planning to make it 100 outlets in coming years.
Overall, Taking its growth prospects into consideration, year-on-year growth in revenue, diverse array in menus, outlet’s geographical locations, and unique offering, a franchise aspirants may anticipate a net profit margin of 12-20% from a California Burrito restaurants.
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What are the alternatives to California Burritos Franchise?
Burritos and other international food options have become quite popular in these days, which not only allowed entry of foreign brand in the Indian food industry but also the provided a better dining options for consumers.
California Burritos has recently announced its intention to open a minimum of two stores each month. However, it remains unclear whether they will pursue this expansion through a franchising model or self-owned systems.
And we believe this could be only reason for you to look out for other available options:
Samosa Singh Franchise
Indeed, we acknowledge that Samosa Singh doesn’t offer burritos at its outlets. However, considering the price point similar to that of California Burrito, Samosa Singh could present an appealing opportunity for you.
Samosa Singh has recently announced its franchising program and not only the official website, even we are getting numerous queries to partner with the chain (as we are currently ranking on Google’s first page).
Started little late in 2017, Samosa Singh has certainly disrupted the snacks industry and with only 40+ self owned outlets, The chain were managed to post a revenue of ₹12 lakh every day. Isn’t it a gigantic numbers?
You should definitely check our detailed post on this.
Read more: Why Samosa Singh Franchise Worth your Investment? – Apply, Cost, & Profit – Samosa Singh
Burger Singh Franchise
Another franchise business on our list is Burger Singh. While the name may resemble the well-known international brand Burger King, Burger Singh is an entirely homegrown concept rooted in India.
Founded in 2014 by Kabir Jeet Singh and his team, Burger Singh has emerged as one of India’s most renowned restaurant chains.
With a presence in more than 40 cities and over 100 outlets, the Burger Singh restaurant chain has successfully sold over 1 Crore (10 million) burgers to date.
The basic model for Burger Singh franchise starts at price point of ₹26 lakhs and with over 90% of success rate to its existing franchises, you can certainly bet on it and embark on your journey into the food industry.
Read more: Start a Burger Singh Franchise – Cost, Fee, & Profit – Burger Singh
In case you have ample capital, do check out other franchises options, such as McDonald’s, KFC, Burger King, and Tim Hortons.
How to Get California Burrito Franchise?
Though the official website hasn’t disclosed the actual investment for owning a California Burrito restaurants, they do have option to accept the application for its franchising programs.
One can certainly avail this opportunity through following steps;
- Visit the California Burrito’s official website and navigate to the franchising window.
- You are required to fill in the personal details such as Name, Email ID, Phone Number, City, State, Postal code, and more.
- Or, Contact them at 08047091118
| California Burrito Franchise form | Franchise form |
Final Takeaway – Conclusion
California Burrito has been in the Indian food industry since 2012, which has managed to receive funds from investors that allowed them to grow from a single unit to over 50 outlets till date.
Post-pandemic, the chain has been strategizing to extend its presence into new territories. However, founder Burt Mueller has explicitly stated that while they aim to incorporate a minimum of 2 locations each month, their expansion strategy will first focus on strengthening their presence in current states.
Subsequently, they plan to gradually extend to other cities as well in the near future.
The key risk:
The majority of California Burrito outlets are situated in IT Parks, and another pandemic similar to COVID-19 could significantly affect their revenue and even potentially result in the closure of operations.
Despite the market for burritos is expanding, it is still in its nascent stage. Beyond IT employees and Indians who have returned from the US, the franchised outlets located in non-IT park areas (excluding airports) may experience lower customer traffic.
The Bottom line:
California Burrito franchise indeed presents an enticing opportunity for the aspiring candidates having keen interest in serving Mexican-styled food to Indian consumers. The chain has been expanding its presence sustainably through out the Indian territories and its net revenue is certainly on rise.
So, what are you waiting for? Go and start your entrepreneurial journey with California Burrito!!
Good Luck!! Happy Franchising!!
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FAQ
How much does it cost to start a California Burrito Franchise?
Ans: The initial investment cost for California Burrito franchise could range between ₹30 lakh and ₹80 lakh. The kiosk model will be relatively affordable than its restaurant model.
Is California Burrito Franchise Profitable?
Ans: Though the chain has opened door for its franchise partners, but as per the Bert Mueller, the founder, the chain didn’t intend to sell its franchises. They possess ample capital to open at least 50 more outlets in near future, showcasing a strong business with a healthy cash flow model.
Overall, on considering the year-on-year growth and outlet’s presence in IT park, the franchise aspirants can anticipate a net profit margin of 12-20%.
