Barney Brown Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Barney Brown is a fast-casual franchise serving made-to-order deli sandwiches and salads, run as dine-in shops or delivery-only virtual kitchens. Franchisees run the shops, managing food prep, staffing, and delivery.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Barney Brown franchise requires a total initial investment of $94K – $597K, including a $30K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $94K – $597K
- 5th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned onlyn=2
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 2
- 9th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $94K – $597K including a $30K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 21 states audited financial statements for FYE Dec 31 2024, 2023, 2022 are attached as Exhibit D, but Exhibit D in this text extract contains only the cover header with no balance sheet, income statement, or auditor report content.
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 35/100 (higher is better).
- DATAItem 19 reports gross sales and profit components rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Barney Brown Franchise, LLC
- Parent company
- Barney Brown, Inc.
- CEO title
- Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer
- Matthew Baer
- CEO experience
- 8 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- NY
- HQ
- 822 Avenue of the Americas, 2nd Floor, New York, New York 10001
- Auditor
- Roos & McNabb CPA'S
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- vs $0 prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Matthew Baer
- Headquarters
- NY
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 48% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown30 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee (Pickup Location)not refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Construction and Leasehold Improvements (Pickup Location) | $30K | $250K | |
| Lease Deposits - Three Months (Pickup Location) | $9K | $48K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (Pickup Location) | $44K | $110K | |
| Signage (Pickup Location) | $3K | $12K | |
| Computer, Software and Point of Sales System (Pickup Location) | $7K | $11K | |
| Grand Opening Marketing (Pickup Location) | $10K | $10K | |
| Initial Inventory (Pickup Location) | $15K | $30K | |
| Utility Deposits (Pickup Location) | $500 | $3K | |
| Insurance Deposits - Three Months (Pickup Location) | $4K | $9K | |
| Travel for Initial Training (Pickup Location) | $3K | $7K | |
| Professional Fees (Pickup Location) | $6K | $22K | |
| Licenses and Permits (Pickup Location) | $500 | $2K | |
| Wrapped Vehicle (Pickup Location) | $0 | $3K | |
| Additional Funds - Three Months (Pickup Location) | $35K | $50K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee (Virtual Restaurant)not refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Construction and Leasehold Improvements (Virtual Restaurant) | $0 | $70K | |
| Lease Deposits - Three Months (Virtual Restaurant) | $6K | $18K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (Virtual Restaurant) | $3K | $60K | |
| Signage (Virtual Restaurant) | $500 | $2K | |
| Total initial investment | $290K | $892K |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $94K – $597K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $750 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $8K |
| Inventory (initial) | $10K – $30K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Barney Brown did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Barney Brown unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
28%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Item 21 states audited financial statements for FYE Dec 31 2024, 2023, 2022 are attached as Exhibit D, but Exhibit D in this text extract contains only the cover header with no balance sheet, income statement, or auditor report content.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a sample of only 2
- Item 19 type
- gross sales and profit components
- Sample size
- 2
- vs category median 20 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $1.0M→$2.1M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- The FDD edition these figures were read from
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 782 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants average).
Disclosure
Item 19 reports gross sales and profit components rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Barney Brown Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 2
- Opened
- 0
- 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
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 4
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 1 state reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
1
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Micro-franchise system (2 units) with opaque financials, undisclosed net income, and wide investment variance presents elevated due diligence risk despite no litigation and protected territory.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Roos & McNabb CPA'S
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 35 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 2 units in system with unknown growth trajectory — insufficient scale and proof of concept
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD — cannot validate 6% royalty impact or actual profitability
- 03MINORMassive investment range ($93.5K–$597K) suggests inconsistent unit economics or poorly defined costs
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| 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 | New York County, New York |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | NY |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 32 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 88 hrs
- Training location
- New York, New York
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 7 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects; franchisor approves
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- proprietary information management and point of sale system
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: proprietary information management and point of sale system
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Barney Brown franchise?
The total investment to open a Barney Brown franchise ranges from $94K – $597K, with an initial franchise fee of $30K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Barney Brown franchise owners earn?
Barney Brown does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the Barney Brown FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Barney Brown FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Barney Brown's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Barney Brown (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 Barney Brown franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Barney Brown has 2 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is Barney Brown a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Barney Brown as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 35 out of 100 (higher is better), 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.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Barney Brown, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.