Caribou Coffee Kiosk Franchise Cost & 2026 FDD Data
69/100
Second tier
69 this brand51 Quick-Service Restaurants medianlikely 54–84: narrower with more SBA loans (low confidence)
Higher is better · an editorial assessment, not investment advice
#583 of 3,069 graded brands
Why a B: Helped by financial health, scale, legal record and transparency. Held back by unit growth. See all six factors
- Total investment
- $281K – $712K
- Avg gross sales
- not extracted
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from the FDD filing. Analysis by FranchiseVerdict · Methodology · Website · Report an error · Franchisor? Claim this listing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026 FDD
Per the 2026 FDD, a Caribou Coffee Kiosk franchise requires a total initial investment of $281K – $712K, including a $15K franchise fee. Once open, the ongoing royalty is 6.0%. The 2026 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. Verdict grade: B (Second tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice.
Sources: 2026 FDD · What one unit could make and lose →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: 2026 filing · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low (the current year's filing)
Evidence for the headline figures: thin✓ Investment (Item 7)✗ Item 19 status✗ Units and owners (Item 20)✗ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored4 of 4 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
Quick verdict · vs Quick-Service Restaurants median
Top edge: green = better than the Quick-Service Restaurants median by more than 10%, red = worse by more than 10%, gray = within 10% or no benchmark. Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a).
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Methodology
Bottom line
- RETURNSItem 19 presents three tables (Table 1: 130 non-traditional Kiosk franchises; Table 2: 12 traditional franchise locations; Tables 3-4: 116 company-owned Drive-Thru Chalet and 65 company-owned Cabin locations, all for FY2025) as Gross Sales distribution charts and Cash Flow % of Gross Sales, but the actual numeric distribution/percentage values were rendered as embedded chart images and could not be recovered from the extracted text, so no dollar figures could be captured.
- GROWTHIn the latest Item 20 year, the number of franchised outlets grew by 2 (2 opened, 0 closed).
AT STAKEOne unit at the Item 7 midpoint: $64K a year in payments on assumed SBA 7(a)-style terms.You put in about $99K of your own cash and personally guarantee a $397K loan. Assumptions are labeled in Sales; not investment advice.See what one unit could make and lose
Things to check before you sign (3)
- The franchisor keeps the right to compete inside your territory (Item 12, territory).
- You waive a jury trial in disputes with the franchisor (Item 17, renewal, termination and disputes).
- The franchisor receives rebates or payments from suppliers you buy from (Item 8, required suppliers).
Checked and clear: no auditor doubt that the franchisor can keep operating, no lawsuit naming the franchisor in Item 3, no rule that the owner must run it personally and the full filing on file. Not on file here, so ask: unit trend and SBA charge-off rate against the category median.
What to do next
Step 1: Read the FDD itself.
Free: the franchisor must give it to you at least 14 days before you sign or pay. Or look it up in a state registry (Wisconsin, Minnesota, California). What to read first.
Step 2: Talk to current and former owners.
Free: Item 20 of the FDD lists every current owner and those who left last year, most with a phone number. Questions to ask.
Step 3: Talk to an SBA lender.
Free: the SBA's Lender Match. Ask what you would personally guarantee and what the monthly payment would be. If you plan to use retirement savings, ask a CPA about the rules for that first.
Step 4: Have a franchise attorney review the FDD and agreement.
Free: your state bar's lawyer referral service can name franchise lawyers, and many offer a short first consultation. Bring the checks listed above.
Research steps, not investment or legal advice.
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost (the Item 7 midpoint) is near the Quick-Service Restaurants median ($487K).
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7 (fees and startup costs)
Do you qualify? The filing states no minimum net worth or liquid capital. Ask Caribou Coffee Development Company, Inc. (Item 1: 3900 Lakebreeze Avenue N., Minneapolis, Minnesota 55429) and your lender what they require, and keep living costs for the first year outside the deal.
Full Item 7 breakdown12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Architecture and Design Fees | $5K | $25K | |
| Leasehold Improvements / Construction Costs | $45K | $275K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures & Eqpt | $155K | $230K | |
| Signage | $5K | $15K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee | $7K | $15K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $100 | $5K | |
| Initial Inventory | $10K | $15K | |
| Technology Costs | $24K | $31K | |
| New Store Opening Launch Program | $3K | $6K | |
| Professional Fees | $5K | $15K | |
| Initial Training Expenses | $5K | $15K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $17K | $65K | |
| Total initial investment | $281K | $712K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. The total row is the total as printed in Item 7. Actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 6 · what you pay once you are open
Ongoing fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fundBrand-wide marketing pool. Up to 3% of Gross Sales (currently allocated 2% to Brand Fund, 1% for local marketing) | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology feesApproximately $400-$800 per store per month for computer system support, maintenance, and software upgrades (including loyalty program) | See the list |
| Total fee loadabove the Quick-Service Restaurants median of 7.0% (heavy) | 8.0% of sales |
Items 6 (other fees), 7 (startup costs) and 19 (sales and earnings) · assumptions labeled
What you could make and lose: one unit
What one Caribou Coffee Kiosk unit would ask of you, from the filing's Item 7 total and labeled assumptions.
How these figures are worked out
- Loan (assumption): 80% of the $497K Item 7 midpoint is a $397K loan, paid over 10 years at 10.5%: $64K a year. SBA 7(a)-style terms on a long-term rate; your lender sets yours.
What you put at risk
Your own cash in: about $99K Assumption (the part the loan does not cover of the $497K Item 7 midpoint), plus whatever anything Item 7 leaves out (its notes say what). The loan is $397K.
Personal guarantee. SBA 7(a) loans require a personal guarantee from anyone who owns 20% or more of the business. If the unit cannot pay, the lender can collect from you personally, which can include your savings and your home. The worst case is losing the cash you put in and still owing the rest of the loan.
Gross sales are not profit, and none of these figures is take-home pay until tax and every operating cost are paid. The assumptions are ours, not the filing's. Not investment advice.
Returns modelOne unit · several units · editable
No Item 19 gross sales figure for Caribou Coffee Kiosk is on file. The return models need one gross sales figure to start from, plus the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions; nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · one unit
What would one Caribou Coffee Kiosk unit leave you each year after the loan payment?
Not disclosed in Item 19. Enter your own gross sales assumption
Gross sales, not profit: the costs below decide what is left.
No Item 19 figures are on file for this brand. Enter your own costs from a lease quote, a payroll plan and calls with current owners.
Illustrative category typicals, not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Item 7 midpoint of $281K to $712K
Item 7's $17K to $65K additional funds are already in the total
Left after the loan payment · per year
The unit's EBITDA minus the assumed loan payment. Before tax, depreciation and any cost your inputs leave out (insurance, accounting and legal, licenses, technology fees): not take-home pay.
Gross sales are not profit. Neither the filing nor a stated assumption on this page supplies annual revenue, COGS, labor, rent / occupancy and other operating costs. Enter your own (a lease quote, owner calls) and the model runs on it.
Loan of $397K at 10.5% over 10 years, an assumption, not a quote. Return and payback are before tax, depreciation and the costs above. The loan usually needs your personal guarantee.
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: 2026 FDD · filed by Caribou Coffee Development Company, Inc.
Financial performance
Item 19 presents three tables (Table 1: 130 non-traditional Kiosk franchises; Table 2: 12 traditional franchise locations; Tables 3-4: 116 company-owned Drive-Thru Chalet and 65 company-owned Cabin locations, all for FY2025) as Gross Sales distribution charts and Cash Flow % of Gross Sales, but the actual numeric distribution/percentage values were rendered as embedded chart images and could not be recovered from the extracted text, so no dollar figures could be captured.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How Caribou Coffee Kiosk compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
System figures: see Caribou Coffee
System figures: see Caribou Coffee
Government records
SBA loan data
Matched to this brand from SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan records.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What are the risks?
Main risk in the grade: unit growth. The reasons are below.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Verdict grade + FDD Items 3 (litigation), 4 (bankruptcy), 8 (required suppliers), 16 (what you may sell), 21 (audited financials)
Risk and legal
Grade B: Second tier, 69/100 (category median 51); the full grade is at the top of the page.
How the grade is built
Why a B, factor by factor
- Financial health HelpsAudited financials; no going-concern doubt; statements are the parent's, so this stays near neutral
- Unit economics NeutralNo Item 19 sales figure to set against the investment, so neutral
- Unit growth Weighs on it, weakest dimensionTurnover 6.9%
- Scale HelpsFranchising since 2006; mostly company-owned (29% franchised)
- Legal HelpsNo litigation naming the franchisor in Item 3
- Transparency HelpsItem 19 status not confirmed (neither credit nor penalty); audited financials
From the six scored dimensions, an editorial assessment, not investment advice. How the score is built
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Grant Thornton LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
ⓘ These are the parent company's consolidated financials (the parent guarantees the franchisor), not this brand's standalone results; the figure reflects the whole corporate group, not this brand alone.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
Ask what the franchisor earns on the supplies it sells you or the rebates it takes (Item 8).
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Franchisor takes supplier rebates: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
System figures: see Caribou Coffee
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before your own operating costs.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12 (territory), 15 (owner participation) and 17 (renewal, termination and disputes)
Contract and territory detail
| Allowed renewals | 2 |
|---|---|
| Exclusive territory | No |
| Territory size | Varies (Protected Territory not guaranteed; size based on nearby businesses, drive times, demographics, and trade area characteristics; no minimum area) |
| Online sales rights | Reserved by franchisor |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Who runs it (Item 15) | Owner-operator not required |
| Non-compete (years) | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles) | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusal | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Minnesota |
Items 5 (initial fees), 7 (startup costs), 12 (territory) and 20 (outlet counts) · development agreement
Area development (several units)
The filing offers a development agreement for several units. If you miss the schedule, the development agreement can be ended.
Every term, with its page
- If you miss the schedule
- The development agreement can be ended.
2026 FDD p.42
“If you fail to meet the development schedule, you will be in default under the Development Agreement and we reserve the right to terminate the Development Agreement for that default.”
Each unit still needs its own Item 7 investment on top of the development fee. Have a franchise attorney read the schedule and the default terms before you sign.
Items 10 (financing), 11 (training and support)
Training and operations
- On-the-job training
- 72 hrs
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- franchisee, with franchisor site-selection guidelines, counseling, and approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 (initial fees) & 11 (training and support)
Franchisor support
Franchisee contacts
We hold no owner list for this brand. Item 20 of the FDD lists the current and former owners; the free FDD is the source.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to open a Caribou Coffee Kiosk franchise?
Per the 2026 FDD, the total investment to open a Caribou Coffee Kiosk franchise ranges from $281K to $712K, with an initial franchise fee of $15K. This is the Item 7 total in the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD): the startup costs the franchisor lists, such as build-out, equipment, inventory and working capital. It usually leaves out buying land or a building; Item 7's notes say what is excluded.
What do Caribou Coffee Kiosk franchise owners earn?
No average owner earnings figure for Caribou Coffee Kiosk is on file. Item 19, where a franchisor may disclose what its outlets earn, is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and we have not established what this brand's FDD says. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Caribou Coffee Kiosk?
Caribou Coffee Kiosk is franchised by Caribou Coffee Development Company, Inc. Its parent company is Caribou Coffee Company, Inc.. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is JAB Holding Company. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Caribou Coffee Kiosk 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 Caribou Coffee Kiosk FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Caribou Coffee Kiosk's franchise failure rate?
There is no published franchise failure rate, and Caribou Coffee Kiosk has too few resolved SBA 7(a) loans on file (fewer than 10) to show an SBA charge-off rate that would mean anything. The SBA charge-off rate is the share of a brand's resolved SBA 7(a) loans to its franchisees that the SBA wrote off, including purchased guarantees. Resolved means paid in full or charged off; active loans are excluded because their outcome is not yet known. It is a lending outcome, not a count of closed businesses. Review the turnover and closure figures in Item 20 of the FDD and speak with current and former franchisees.
Is Caribou Coffee Kiosk a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict gives Caribou Coffee Kiosk a B Verdict grade (Second tier) with a verdict score of 69 out of 100 (higher is better), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Helped by financial health (audited financials), scale, legal record and transparency. Held back by unit growth (turnover 6.9%). The “Why a B” section on this page lists all six dimensions and any adjustment. Speak with current franchisees before making any investment decision.
Other Quick-Service Restaurants franchises
Similar investment first, then by grade
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.