Blowfish PokeFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Blowfish Poke franchise requires a total initial investment of $123K – $339K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $293K[2]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $123K – $339K
- 4th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $293K
- 1st pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 26th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 5
- 13th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-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
Started franchising in 2025. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $123K – $339K including a $35K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $293K/year (median $262K).
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 84/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Blowfish Franchise LLC
- Incorporated in
- MD
- HQ
- 12175 Clarksville Pike, Suite 206, Clarksville, MD 21029
- Auditor
- SMITH, BUZZI & ASSOCIATES, LLC
- Audited financials
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2025
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Affiliated brands
- Pr
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Franchisees operate fast-casual poke bowl restaurants or mobile food truck/trailer concepts, preparing and selling fresh raw fish bowls with customizable toppings and sauces. Daily operations include inventory management, food prep, customer service, staffing, and point-of-sale management across either brick-and-mortar locations or mobile routes.
- CEO
- Jennie Kwon
- Headquarters
- MD
- Founded
- 2024
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 2
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 26 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee (Brick and Mortar)not refundable | $35K | $35K | |
| Traveling and Living Expenses while Training (Brick and Mortar) | $3K | $6K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Decor (Brick and Mortar) | $3K | $6K | |
| Real Property Rent and Security Deposits (Brick and Mortar) | $8K | $18K | |
| Leasehold Improvements (Brick and Mortar) | $50K | $170K | |
| TV, Cameras, Computer Hardware, Software, POS System, and other Supplies (Brick and Mortar) | $20K | $35K | |
| Initial Inventory (Brick and Mortar) | $5K | $10K | |
| Signage (Brick and Mortar) | $5K | $7K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising (Brick and Mortar) | $3K | $5K | |
| Licenses, Permits, and Certifications (Brick and Mortar) | $1K | $2K | |
| Insurance (3 Months) (Brick and Mortar) | $750 | $1K | |
| Professional Fees (Brick and Mortar) | $3K | $4K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) (Brick and Mortar) | $20K | $40K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee (Food Truck/Trailer)not refundable | $30K | $30K | |
| Traveling and Living Expenses while Training (Food Truck/Trailer) | $3K | $6K | |
| Commissary Kitchen (Food Truck/Trailer) | $1K | $3K | |
| Food Truck or Trailer + Wrapping (Food Truck/Trailer) | $50K | $150K | |
| Equipment + Build Out (Food Truck/Trailer) | $15K | $50K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Decor (Food Truck/Trailer) | $2K | $3K | |
| Computer Hardware, Software, POS System, and other Supplies (Food Truck/Trailer) | $6K | $8K | |
| Total initial investment | $279K | $621K |
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
$35K
12.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
14%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.3 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $123K – $339K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $10K – $40K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $293K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $262K
- Item 19 type
- Historic Financial Performance Representation
- Sample size
- 5 units
- vs category median 13 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $83K→$571K
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Blowfish Poke Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 5
- 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
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 16 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 3 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 3
- Loan volume
- $730K
- Median loan
- $243K
- average
- 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)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 2
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Blowfish Poke presents elevated risk due to an underdeveloped franchise system (5 units), missing profitability disclosures, and unvalidated financial performance claims despite moderate investment requirements.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $105,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · SMITH, BUZZI & ASSOCIATES, LLC⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 84 / 100 rating
- 01MEDOnly 5 units system-wide indicates extremely limited operating history and unproven scalability model
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed despite average revenue of $292,760 — inability or unwillingness to share profitability metrics is a major transparency concern
- 03MINORWide investment range ($122,750–$338,750) with unclear cost drivers suggests inconsistent unit economics or hidden variables
- 04MEDNo disclosed growth trajectory for the 5-unit system raises questions about franchise appeal and unit economics viability
- 05MINORItem 19 financial performance representations absent — cannot validate that $292,760 average is achievable or sustainable for new franchisees
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 | 10 years |
| Territory type | Radius (Brick and Mortar) or Population (Food Truck) |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory sizeℹ | 500,000 people |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 3 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Maryland |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 31 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 92 hrs
- Training location
- on-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Clover POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Clover POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
17 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Blowfish Poke · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Blowfish Poke franchise?
The total investment to open a Blowfish Poke franchise ranges from $123K – $339K, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Blowfish Poke franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Blowfish Poke FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $293K. The median is $262K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Blowfish Poke's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Blowfish Poke (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 Blowfish Poke franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Blowfish Poke has 5 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 5 company-owned units.
Is Blowfish Poke a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Blowfish Poke as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 84 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.