BonchonFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Bonchon franchise requires a total initial investment of $262K – $1.3M, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.6M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 6.7% charge-off rate across 30 loans[1]. Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $262K – $1.3M
- 15th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.6M
- 17th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 151
- 44th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 6.7%
- 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
Bottom line
- Total investment $262K – $1.3M including a $35K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.6M/year (median $1.5M).
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 69/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 6.7% across 30 loans (near or below the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- System growing at 16.5% CAGR over 3 years with 151 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- BONCHON FRANCHISE LLC
- Parent company
- Bonchon U.S.A., Inc.
- Predecessor
- Bonchon Restaurant Company
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- NY
- HQ
- 15660 North Dallas Parkway, Suite 1150, Dallas, TX 75248
- Auditor
- Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $13.1M
- vs $14.0M prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- Bonchon
- and predecessor
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Franchisees operate fast-casual Korean fried chicken restaurants featuring signature soy garlic and spicy sauces, managing kitchen operations, food preparation, customer service, and delivery logistics. Day-to-day involves food cost management, labor scheduling, quality control, and inventory management in a QSR environment with higher operational complexity than typical chicken concepts.
- CEO
- Suzie Tsai
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 2011
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 27
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $20K | $60K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $207K | $1.2M |
| Total initial investment | $262K | $1.3M |
Source: Bonchon 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
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
$144K
9.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
17%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
5.7 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $262K – $1.3M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $60K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $20K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Gross Revenues · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 4.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $1 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $9K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.6M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.5M
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 128 units
- vs category median 13 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $337K→$4.1M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $799K→$2.6M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Bonchon Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 151
- Opened
- 19
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 14
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 9.8%
- Company-owned
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 98%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +3.5%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +16.5%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 5
- Closed (3yr)
- 1
- Terminated (3yr)
- 2
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 1
- Transfers (3yr)
- 7
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Termination rate
- 33.3%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 11.1%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 19 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- California
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 30
- Loan volume
- $19.8M
- Median loan
- $697K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 6.7%
- 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)
- 71.4%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 20
- Defaults
- 2
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Bonchon's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 9-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Bonchon presents moderate-to-cautious risk with undisclosed profitability metrics, sluggish unit growth, regulatory compliance issues, and unresolved questions about actual franchisee returns relative to high investment requirements.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 1 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 69 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — inability to verify profitability claims against $1.6M average revenue
- 02MINORSlow unit growth of 3.5% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction in mature 151-unit system
- 03HIGHLitigation history including trademark/contract disputes and 2020 Washington consent order for unqualified accountants raises franchisor operational/compliance concerns
- 04MINORWide investment range ($262K-$1.3M) with no clear breakdown suggests inconsistent unit economics or hidden costs
- 05MINOR5% royalty on gross revenues (not net) compounds profitability pressure if margins are thin
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 |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 15 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | New York |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 1 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 26 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 65 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- NCR/Aloha
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: NCR/Aloha
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
100 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Bonchon · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Bonchon franchise?
The total investment to open a Bonchon franchise ranges from $262K – $1.3M, 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 Bonchon franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Bonchon FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.6M. The median is $1.5M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Bonchon's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Bonchon has a charge-off rate of 6.7% across 30 loans, meaning 6.7% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Bonchon franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Bonchon has 151 total units in the United States, including 127 franchised units and 3 company-owned units. 19 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Bonchon a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Bonchon as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 69 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.