THE CORA FRANCHISE GROUP INC.

What THE CORA FRANCHISE GROUP INC. does

The Cora Franchise Group Inc. is a privately held, family-owned Canadian franchisor founded in 1987 by Cora Tsouflidou in Montreal, Quebec, and headquartered in Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec. It develops, owns, and licenses the "Cora Breakfast and Lunch" restaurant brand and is the franchisor of a network of 125+ breakfast-and-lunch restaurant locations operating across nine Canadian provinces (Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador). The company has no proprietary technology platform and operates a conventional restaurant franchise system rather than a software or data business.

The company's core product is the franchise package itself, which grants franchisees a 10-year right to operate a Cora restaurant using the brand's trademark (held by Coramark Inc.), standardized operating systems, training, site selection assistance, lease negotiation support, marketing programs, and ongoing regional coaching. Restaurant units are 2,500–3,500 square feet with roughly 110 seats and operate six days a week from 6am to 3pm. Cora generates revenue through three primary streams: a recurring 5% royalty on franchisee gross sales, a 3% national marketing fund contribution, and a one-time $35,000 banner fee for the initial 10-year term (with first 5-year renewal at $17,500 and second renewal free). A wholly-owned subsidiary, Casseroles Cora, runs a private distribution center that supplies trademarked Cora products and food merchandise exclusively to franchise locations, adding a managed-services revenue layer and supporting brand consistency.

Cora sells franchises through a structured 5-step approval process (interviews, financial verification, disclosure review, workshop, signing) targeting motivated owner-operators who must live in their markets. Initial franchisee investment ranges from CAD $750,000 to $1,000,000, requiring a minimum 40% equity contribution (CAD $300,000–$400,000 unencumbered). The company maintains financing partnerships with all major Canadian banks to facilitate franchisee capital access. Founder Cora Tsouflidou remains active as Creative Director, while her son Nicholas Tsouflidis has served as President since 2008; Benoit Morel serves as Vice President of Legal Affairs.

Name

THE CORA FRANCHISE GROUP INC.

Legal name

The Cora Franchise Group Inc.

Website

https://corafranchise.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Cora Franchise Group Inc. is a privately held, family-owned Canadian franchisor that licenses the "Cora Breakfast and Lunch" restaurant brand to 125+ owner-operated franchisees across nine Canadian provinces, earning recurring royalties, marketing fund contributions, and banner fees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Restaurant Franchising

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee Chains & Franchise Cafes (THAFADAB)

Keywords

• Breakfast franchise
• Restaurant franchising
• Franchise opportunities
• Family restaurant
• Breakfast restaurant chain

Headquarters

HQ city

Sainte-Thérèse

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Franchise Royalty Fees: Ongoing royalty payments calculated as 5% of gross sales collected from each franchisee location. This represents the primary recurring revenue stream from the franchise network.
2. National Marketing Fund: 3% of gross sales collected from franchisees for national marketing initiatives. These funds are used for brand-wide advertising and marketing campaigns.
3. Banner/Initial Franchise Fee: One-time banner fee of $35,000 for the initial 10-year franchise term. First renewal is $17,500 and second 5-year renewal is free.
4. Casseroles Cora Distribution Center: Private distribution center supplying trademarked Cora franchise products and food merchandise to franchise locations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Cora Franchise Group Inc. develops and licenses the Cora Breakfast and Lunch restaurant franchise network across Canada. It sells franchise rights to prospective owner-operators, providing the brand, standardized restaurant design, training, site selection support, regional coaching, and access to its private Casseroles Cora distribution centre. The franchisor earns ongoing royalty (5%) and national marketing (3%) fees on franchisee gross sales, plus an initial $35,000 banner fee for a 10-year term.

Product overview

The Cora Franchise Group Inc. offers a single unified franchise concept—the Cora Breakfast and Lunch restaurant franchise. The core offering is the franchise package, which includes brand licensing, operational systems, training, site selection support, marketing assistance, and ongoing coaching. Supporting the franchise network is Casseroles Cora, a private distribution center supplying trademarked Cora products to franchisees. New franchisees also receive turnkey restaurant design and buildout services featuring standardized modern farmhouse-inspired design elements. The company operates a network of 125+ locations across Canada with operating hours of 6am-3pm, positioning itself as a family-friendly breakfast and lunch destination.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cora Breakfast and Lunch Franchise The flagship franchise offering — a breakfast and lunch restaurant franchise opportunity for owner-operators, including brand licensing, training, site selection support, regional coaching, marketing, and access to the Casseroles Cora private distribution centre. Aimed at entrepreneurs in Canada with $300,000+ unencumbered cash and total initial investment of $750,000–$1,000,000.
• Casseroles Cora Distribution Centre Wholly-owned private distribution centre that supplies trademarked Cora food products and merchandise exclusively to franchise locations, ensuring product consistency and operational efficiencies across the network.

Quantifiable outcome

• 125+ franchise locations operating successfully across Canada
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• De Dutch: Western Canadian breakfast and lunch franchise concept. Directly comparable to Cora in daypart focus, family-friendly branding, and franchise structure.
• Eggsquis: Quebec-based breakfast and lunch franchise chain. Highly comparable to Cora given overlapping home market (Quebec), identical daypart, and franchisee-driven growth model.
• IHOP: Iconic American breakfast and all-day franchise chain operating under a franchise model. Comparable to Cora in core breakfast occasion, family diner positioning, and franchise unit economics, though US-focused.
• Sunset Grill: Canadian breakfast-focused franchise chain with multi-unit franchisees across Ontario and other provinces. Most directly comparable to Cora in daypart, customer segment, and franchise-driven growth model.
• Eggsmart: Canadian breakfast and lunch restaurant chain with franchised locations, primarily in Ontario. Overlaps with Cora in menu concept, family-friendly positioning, and franchise-driven expansion.

Regional players

• St-Hubert: Iconic Quebec-based restaurant chain (rotisserie-focused). Comparable as a heritage Quebec family restaurant brand with broad geographic reach, though lunch/dinner focused rather than breakfast.
• Second Cup: Canadian café and coffee chain with franchised locations. Adjacent competitor in the breakfast/café occasion, though coffee-focused rather than full-service breakfast.

Broad incumbents

• Denny's: Large US-based diner/breakfast franchise chain offering all-day breakfast. Comparable to Cora on category leadership and franchise model, but operates broader daypart and US footprint.
• Tim Hortons: Canada's dominant QSR chain with a major breakfast daypart. Competes for the same breakfast occasions as Cora and is the most-recognized Canadian breakfast brand, though QSR rather than full-service.
• Restaurant Brands International: Parent of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes, and Firehouse Subs. Relevant as the public-market proxy for Canadian QSR/franchise economics and as a benchmark for franchise restaurant valuations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about THE CORA FRANCHISE GROUP INC.