Ben's Soft Pretzels franchise research

Investment by format

Format-specific estimates only. Do not combine one format's minimum with another format's maximum.

Investment sourceFDD p.18 ↗

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$7,500 to $30,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

6% · 6% of Gross Sales weekly (7.5% of Gross Sales for a Venue location)

Marketing contribution

1.5% (basis not captured; see original filing)

Technology fee

$229/month currently ($99/month to franchisor for POS software, $130/month to Incentivio for online ordering/loyalty/rewards)

Other fees

Ongoing training $500/day plus expenses; Audit fee $3,500 (if underreporting >5%); Sublease/Sublicense rent plus $200/month Lease Administration Fee

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

Traditional/Captive Venue Store: $20,000 to $40,000; Mobile Store: $12,500 to $17,500. Estimates initial start-up expenses; excludes any owner draw/salary and debt repayment.

Fees sourceFDD p.12 ↗

Working capital is drawn from Item 7. The Investment source below locates the investment section, not an independently verified working-capital scalar.

Investment sourceFDD p.18 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Actual annual Gross Sales for individual Franchisee-Owned and Company-Owned Operating Stores open at least one full year, broken out per store/operator by format (Stand Alone, Mall, Walmart, Meijer, Mobile, Venue) and by single-store vs. multi-store operator

Reporting period

Calendar years 2023, 2024, and 2025

Sample

Individual per-store/per-operator listings (single-store, multi-store, and mobile/venue-only operators, plus Corporate Locations); no single summary outlet count stated

Reported average

Not captured

Reported median

Not captured

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Results depend on the disclosed metric, sample and period; consult the full filing.

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.39 ↗

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

2025

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

78

Year-end outlets

81

Net change

+3

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

6

Terminations

0

Non-renewals

0

Other closures

3

Reacquisitions

0

Transfers

2

Transfers are not closures. Net change is ending minus starting outlets for the stated scope and year, or complete openings less terminations, non-renewals, other closures and reacquisitions. Missing inputs stay unknown.

Unit growth sourceFDD p.43 ↗

SBA loan history

Loan activity

3 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$68,000

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

3 loans

Historical charge-off share

Suppressed: fewer than 10 seasoned loans

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

0 / 7

Formula

CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100

This is a historical loan-level share, not a franchise failure probability or location survival rate. Loan size is not total investment. Other loan statuses are excluded from the seasoned denominator. Activity combines 7(a) and 504 approvals, excluding canceled and not-funded records; this is not a rolling five-year count. FY2024-25 franchise tags are sparse after directory suspension; fewer tagged loans do not establish brand decline. Recent charge-off cohorts are immature.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median loan amounts are financing context, not startup cost. The median window is separate from the seasoned charge-off cohort.

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Questions before you invest

How much does Ben's Soft Pretzels franchise cost?

Traditional or Captive Venue Store: $122,200 to $344,500; Mobile Store: $101,149 to $309,299 These are format-specific estimates, not a guaranteed cash requirement. Franchise fee: $7,500 to $30,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review..

Investment sourceFDD p.18 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

How much do Ben's Soft Pretzels owners make?

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Item 19 metric: Actual annual Gross Sales for individual Franchisee-Owned and Company-Owned Operating Stores open at least one full year, broken out per store/operator by format (Stand Alone, Mall, Walmart, Meijer, Mobile, Venue) and by single-store vs. multi-store operator. Sample: Individual per-store/per-operator listings (single-store, multi-store, and mobile/venue-only operators, plus Corporate Locations); no single summary outlet count stated. Period: Calendar years 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.39 ↗

What's the SBA charge-off rate for Ben's Soft Pretzels?

Suppressed: fewer than 10 seasoned loans; numerator / denominator: 0 / 7. Historical 7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals; CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100, snapshot 2026-06-30. This is not a franchise failure probability. Median SBA loan: $68,000; window: FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30; sample: 3 loans. Median financing is not total investment.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗