Schoop's Hamburgers: "best burger in Munster" is a growing franchise.

• Author: Richards, Rick
• Position: Company Profile

For someone who just wanted to make the best hamburger in Munster, spreading beyond the city limits and into other states wasn't something he contemplated.

Mark Schoop admits he wasn't prepared when he began franchising.

"I went into it blind," says Schoop, 48. "If I had known then that it would be a big legal hassle, I don't know if I'd have done it."

But Schoop did and today he spends at least three days a week on the road, checking his Schoop's Hamburgers franchises, ordering supplies for the stores and making sure everything is running smoothly.

And while he's on the road, he's also scouting possible locations for new stores.

Schoop's father, Allen, and a partner started Fogarty and Schoop's Hamburgers in 1948 in Hammond. His father had been a cook at another hamburger restaurant, but wanted to build something of his own.

In 1959, Allen Schoop opened a second store in Munster. Five years later, he bought out his partner, changed the name to Schoop's Hamburgers, and ran both restaurants until he died in 1974. After his father's death, Mark Schoop took over.

Today, there are 19 restaurants (a 20th will open soon in Schererville) and Schoop could make a nice living just off the franchise fees he collects.

But he refuses to step away from the family's long-time Munster store. Besides the family ties, being involved in the store is something that keeps him close to the customer and aware of the problems and concerns of his franchisees.

A Schoop's franchise costs $20,000, but that doesn't include the $225,000 investors will need for equipment and building remodeling. Schoop also gets 5 percent of each store's gross sales each year.

Unlike some other restaurant franchisers, Schoop's doesn't build new stores. "We look for older buildings to fit our needs," he...