Andy's Frozen CustardFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.1M – $2.9M, including a $32K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.4M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.1M – $2.9M
- 96th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.4M
- 45th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 44th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 147
- 77th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Quick-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
At 0.7x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchised units fell from 89 to 61 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
32% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Above the 20% threshold most investors target.
Bottom line
- Total investment $1.1M – $2.9M including a $32K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.4M/year, with an estimated 32% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 45/100.
- System growing at 45.9% CAGR over 3 years with 147 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Andy's Frozen Custard Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Andy’s Frozen Custard Holdings, LLC
- CEO title
- CEO and Managing Member
- Andy Kuntz
- CEO experience
- 23 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- MO
- HQ
- 211 E. Water Street, Springfield, Missouri 65806
- Auditor
- The Whitlock Co.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $5.2M
- vs $6.2M prior year
Overview
About
Franchisees operate quick-service frozen custard shops focused on premium ice cream products, seasonal menu items, and drive-through service. Day-to-day operations include managing 15-30 staff members across shifts, maintaining strict food quality and temperature controls, managing inventory of dairy and mix-ins, and executing marketing in protected territories. Success depends on operational consistency, customer service excellence, and seasonal traffic management typical of the QSR dessert category.
- CEO
- Andy Kuntz
- Headquarters
- MO
- Founded
- 2003
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 15
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 17 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $28K | $32K | |
| Architecture Feenot refundable | $3K | $3K | |
| Real Estate/Rentnot refundable | — | — | |
| Leasehold Improvementsnot refundable | $500K | $1.6M | |
| Utility and Security Depositsnot refundable | $3K | $300K | |
| Store POS, Network, WiFi, CCTV, Music, Phone Packagenot refundable | $38K | $45K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipmentnot refundable | $300K | $350K | |
| Signagenot refundable | $100K | $160K | |
| Professional Feesnot refundable | $100K | $175K | |
| Office Equipment and Suppliesnot refundable | $3K | $5K | |
| Business License and Permitsnot refundable | $1K | $75K | |
| Opening Inventory and Suppliesnot refundable | $15K | $24K | |
| Smallwaresnot refundable | $18K | $25K | |
| Grand Opening Marketingnot refundable | $5K | $15K | |
| Training Expensesnot refundable | $4K | $20K | |
| Insurance - 3 monthsnot refundable | $2K | $5K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 monthsnot refundable | $1K | $80K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.1M | $2.9M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$212K
14.8% margin
Unlevered ROIC
10%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
9.7 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.1M – $2.9M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $1K – $80K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $28K – $32K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.3%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.3%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 3.1 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.3% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $150 |
| Training fee | $1K |
| Transfer fee | $17K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 7.3% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.4M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $648K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 32.1%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 123 units
- vs category median 28 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $541K→$3.0M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 9 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.7x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Andy's Frozen Custard Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 147
- Opened
- 15
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 58
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 61%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +20.3%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +45.9%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 5
- Transfer rate
- 3.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Ceased ops
- 0.7%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 17 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 9 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 9
- Loan volume
- $3.4M
- Median loan
- $450K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 3
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Andy's Frozen Custard's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 3 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 2 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 3-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Andy's Frozen Custard presents a strong fundamental opportunity with healthy unit growth, profitability, and no litigation, but the substantial capital requirement and opaque royalty tiers warrant careful financial modeling and franchisee validation.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · The Whitlock Co.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 45 / 100 rating
- 01MINORHigh initial investment range ($1.1M-$2.9M) requires strong financial reserves and creates extended payback period
- 02MINORTiered royalty structure (6% to 4%) lacks transparency—unclear at what unit count thresholds apply and actual franchisee economics
- 03MINORRapid 20.3% YoY growth may strain support infrastructure, training quality, and supply chain consistency
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Springfield, Missouri |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Missouri |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 0 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 224 hrs
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 40 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
47 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD franchise?
The total investment to open a ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD franchise ranges from $1.1M – $2.9M, with an initial franchise fee of $32K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.4M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD has 147 total units in the United States, including 89 franchised units and 58 company-owned units. 15 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates ANDY'S FROZEN CUSTARD as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 45 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.