With 7-11 franchises being highly sought after, less than one out of 100 applicants was awarded a franchise (a testament to store profitability). The franchise owner was required to put a significant amount of money up front. Half of this amount was used to prepare the store and train the owner. The rest was used for purchasing the initial stock for the store. In 1994, forty-five % of total gross profits at a store went to 7-11 Japan, and the rest went to the store owner. The responsibilities of the two parties were as follows: