How does the Wayback Burgers opening process work?
What must a Wayback Burgers applicant qualify for before approval?
Wayback Burgers currently publishes three financial qualification thresholds: a credit score of at least 700, $250,000 in liquid capital, and net worth of at least $500,000. Its official franchise process then describes proof-of-funding verification, asset verification, a credit check, a background check, and Executive Review Board approval. Meeting the published minimums does not itself award a franchise.
The current qualification page says prior business ownership is not required, while leadership experience and day-to-day involvement are preferred. The official FAQ says an applicant who does not independently meet financial or operational criteria may partner with someone who does, provided that partner owns at least 50% of the organization. Wayback Franchising, LLC does not offer or guarantee financing; its website says it can provide a list of recommended third-party lenders.
What happens between the initial inquiry and the signed agreements?
The public sales process begins with an initial conversation and financial qualification, followed by Discovery Day and a Discovery Day Questionnaire. The applicant then receives the FDD, speaks with current franchisees, verifies funding, completes due diligence, goes through Executive Review Board approval, and has an FDD review call before receiving the executable Franchise Agreement.
Under the FTC consumer guide, a prospective franchisee must receive the FDD at least 14 calendar days before being asked to sign a contract or pay money to the franchisor or an affiliate. A separate seven-calendar-day review can apply when the final agreement contains previously undisclosed material terms or unilateral material changes; the FTC Franchise Rule FAQs explain that trigger. State addenda can modify applicable requirements, so the operative documents for the buyer’s state should be checked before signing.
Ownership structure also affects signing. Item 15 states that each equity or voting owner holding 5% or more of an entity franchisee must personally guarantee the Franchise Agreement, while all owners of an entity developer must personally guarantee the Development Agreement. These guaranties are separate from candidate approval and should be identified before the entity signs.
Inquiry and financial qualification
- Action:
- Submit contact and financial information and complete the qualification form.
- Actor:
- Applicant.
- Timing:
- Before Discovery Day and formal due diligence.
- Blocker:
- Published financial thresholds or incomplete applicant information.
Discovery Day and fit review
- Action:
- Attend Discovery Day, meet the support team, and complete the Discovery Day Questionnaire.
- Actor:
- Applicant and Wayback Franchising, LLC.
- Timing:
- Before Executive Review Board approval.
- Blocker:
- Mutual-fit concerns or incomplete questionnaire responses.
FDD receipt and buyer diligence
- Action:
- Review the FDD and agreements, verify funding, and contact current and former franchisees listed through Item 20 and Exhibit F.
- Actor:
- Applicant.
- Timing:
- Federal pre-sale review requirements apply before signing or payment.
- Blocker:
- Unresolved financing, legal, state-registration, or disclosure questions.
Approval, entity setup, and signing
- Action:
- Complete asset, credit, background and corporate-name diligence; obtain approval; sign the correct agreement package and required guaranties.
- Actor:
- Applicant and Wayback Franchising, LLC.
- Timing:
- After disclosure review and approval.
- Blocker:
- No award occurs until the franchisor accepts the candidate and documents are executed.
Site, lease, and format approvals
- Action:
- Submit the site review package before lease or purchase, obtain written site approval, and obtain required lease approval or Walmart sublease documents.
- Actor:
- Franchisee; approval by Wayback Franchising, LLC.
- Timing:
- Contract windows differ by traditional and development paths.
- Blocker:
- Site rejection, landlord terms, missing LOI materials, or Walmart delivery dependencies.
Design, buildout, permits, and systems
- Action:
- Use approved architects and contractors, obtain plan approval, secure required insurance and permits, install approved equipment, POS, surveillance and technology.
- Actor:
- Franchisee and third parties; franchisor approval where required.
- Timing:
- Construction follows approved plans and site control.
- Blocker:
- Government permits, contractor schedule, utilities, equipment, supplier or inspection delays.
Complete pre-training prerequisites
- Action:
- Complete ServSafe Manager certification for the required owner/principal, managers and assistant managers, and provide certificates before initial training.
- Actor:
- Franchisee and trainees.
- Timing:
- Before attendance at the Initial Training Program.
- Blocker:
- Missing certification or unapproved trainee designation.
Successfully complete initial training
- Action:
- The required owner or principal and designated manager complete classroom and on-the-job training to the franchisor’s satisfaction.
- Actor:
- Franchisee trainees and Wayback Franchising, LLC.
- Timing:
- The 2026 FDD schedules it approximately eight weeks before opening.
- Blocker:
- Failure to complete required training can be a non-curable default.
Finish readiness items and open
- Action:
- Staff the restaurant, stock prescribed inventory, complete inspections, deliver the ADA Certification, execute the grand-opening plan, and meet the applicable opening date.
- Actor:
- Franchisee, franchisor support team and government authorities.
- Timing:
- After buildout and required approvals; contract-specific deadline controls.
- Blocker:
- Failed inspections, incomplete staffing, missing permits, or missed contractual opening date.
Which disclosed deadlines can control the critical path?
The periods below share a common unit but not a common trigger, so they must not be added together. They show where a traditional franchisee, area developer, or applicant seeking a nonstandard supplier can run into a contractual or approval clock.
Interpretation: the two 270-day traditional deadlines are sequentially triggered, but the 8–24 month Item 11 range remains the franchisor’s disclosed typical total; the chart does not create a derived total.
Source: 2026 Wayback Burgers FDD, Item 8 p. 17 and Item 11 pp. 22, 28; Franchise Agreement §5.3; Site Selection Addendum ¶¶1–3; Development Agreement §§1.4 and 3.2.
Who finds the site, approves the lease, and controls the buildout?
The Franchise Agreement places site selection on the franchisee. Before acquiring a site, the franchisee submits the required site review materials and evidence of favorable prospects for the location; Wayback Franchising, LLC must approve the site in writing. If leasing, the franchisee must also obtain the landlord’s execution of the required lease addendum and submit the lease for prior written franchisor approval, then furnish the executed lease copy within five days.
Wayback’s current training and support page describes market analytics, LOI support, on-site review, lease negotiation help, architecture relationships, contractor sourcing and permit assistance. The 2026 Franchise Agreement and Site Selection Addendum are narrower: the franchisee remains responsible for the site, lease, drawings, permits and construction, while franchisor site and lease-negotiation assistance is provided as Wayback Franchising, LLC deems advisable.
Applicant / franchisee
Proves financial qualification; forms the approved entity; secures site control; submits lease and design packages; obtains permits, insurance and inspections; hires staff; completes required certifications and training; buys approved equipment and inventory; and meets the opening deadline.
Wayback Franchising, LLC
Evaluates the candidate; issues approval or rejection; approves sites, leases, plans, suppliers and trainees where the agreements require it; provides standard design information and initial training; makes Manuals available after successful training; and may provide pre-opening assistance under the contract.
Third parties
Landlords control lease negotiations and possession; architects and contractors control design and construction execution; lenders control financing; suppliers control delivery; government authorities control permits and inspections; and Walmart-related premises add master-lease, delivery-window and store requirements.
What training must be completed before opening?
The 2026 FDD requires the individual majority owner and one designated manager to satisfactorily complete the Initial Training Program, normally 15 days, with 40 classroom hours and 100 on-the-job hours. Before that program, the required owner or principal and each manager and assistant manager must successfully complete ServSafe Manager certification and provide copies of the certificates. The restaurant must then remain under direct, on-premises supervision of a person who completed required training.
The FDD places initial training approximately eight weeks before opening. The current official support page markets a sequence beginning approximately six weeks before opening, consisting of 10 days at a Certified Training Restaurant and five days at Wayback Business School. It also describes 10 days of restaurant-opening training after inspections. The Franchise Agreement, however, commits only to such on-site pre-opening and post-opening assistance as the franchisor determines in its sole discretion, so the website description should not be treated as a fixed contractual assistance period.
Registration for initial training also triggers the $5,000 Grand Opening Fee. During training, Wayback Franchising, LLC and the franchisee collaborate on the grand-opening plan; the franchisee is responsible for securing plan-related vendors. The fee is process-relevant because the FDD states it is non-refundable and any approved grand-opening spending above that amount remains the franchisee’s responsibility.
How do traditional, development, and Walmart openings differ?
Traditional single unit
Documents: Franchise Agreement, Site Selection Addendum, required lease addendum and guaranties.
Opening control: Franchisee finds the site and controls buildout; Wayback Franchising, LLC gives required written approvals. Missing the site or opening deadline can support termination without a cure opportunity.
Development Agreement
Documents: Development Agreement plus a separate Franchise Agreement for every restaurant; the first Franchise Agreement is signed concurrently.
Opening control: The custom Development Schedule governs cumulative openings. Missing it can lead to reduced development rights, loss of fee credits, loss of the right of first refusal, or termination of development rights.
Walmart location
Documents: Franchise Agreement plus Walmart Sublease, Sublease Addendum and site-specific Attachment A.
Opening control: Attachment A supplies the Delivery Window and Rent Commencement Date. Floor plans need approval before permit applications, and the restaurant must open on the applicable Rent Commencement Date.
For a Walmart location, the Sublease adds a meaningful opening consequence: subject to stated events beyond the sublessee’s reasonable control, failure to open on the Rent Commencement Date can trigger $10,000 in liquidated damages plus $300 for each day the premises remain unopened; more than three consecutive unopened days after that date is a material breach. Sublease §4.8 also requires the security stated in Attachment A within 10 days after the sublessee signs Attachment A; Item 7 estimates a $12,000 security deposit. The Walmart path depends on premises delivery and Walmart requirements, so the blank-form Sublease does not establish one universal opening duration.
Source: 2026 Wayback Burgers FDD, Items 1, 5, 11, 12 and 17; Development Agreement §§1.1–3.5 and 6.2; Walmart Sublease §§2.1, 2.4 and 4.8.
What should be verified before the restaurant opens?
Item 20 and Exhibit F provide current franchisee contacts and contacts for franchisees who left the system during the most recently completed fiscal year. A buyer can use those contacts to verify how long site approval, lease negotiation, permitting, buildout, training and opening support actually took in comparable markets. The FTC also recommends speaking with current and former franchisees as part of franchise due diligence.