Cinnaholic Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $241K – $527K
- Disclosed sales
- $313K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Limited · 57 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Cinnaholic is a bakery franchise serving customizable, plant-based cinnamon rolls with dozens of frostings and toppings, plus other vegan treats. Franchisees run compact bakeries managing baking, counter service, and staffing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Cinnaholic franchise requires a total initial investment of $241K – $527K, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $313K[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: 2025 filing · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: medium - a newer filing may exist
Evidence: strong✓ 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 scored7 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $241K – $527K
- 34th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $313K
- 1st pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 83
- 73rd 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 median · 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 $241K – $527K including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $313K/year (median $300K).
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 44/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +2 franchised outlets in the latest year (15 opened, 13 closed); 13 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- FLAGItem 4 discloses a bankruptcy of an officer or of a company an officer ran, not of the franchisor. Review Item 4 for details.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Cinnaholic Franchising, LLC
- CEO title
- CEO
- Daryl Dollinger
- CEO experience
- 2018 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- GA
- HQ
- 1567 Mt. Vernon Road, Suite 112, Atlanta, GA 30338
- Auditor
- Muhammad Zubairy, CPA PC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $3.5M
- vs $2.9M prior year
Affiliated brands
- Cinnaholic Dunwoody
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Daryl Dollinger
- Headquarters
- GA
- Founded
- 2014
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 23
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 21% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown17 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $40K | $40K | |
| Rentnot refundable | $5K | $10K | |
| Security Depositnot refundable | $3K | $10K | |
| Project Management Feenot refundable | $2K | $2K | |
| Real Estate and Improvementsnot refundable | $75K | $220K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses while Trainingnot refundable | $3K | $10K | |
| Furnishings, Fixtures, Equipment and Decoratingnot refundable | $75K | $150K | |
| Signagenot refundable | $3K | $8K | |
| Opening Inventorynot refundable | $3K | $5K | |
| Computer Hardware/Softwarenot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Technology Feenot refundable | $750 | $750 | |
| POS Service Feenot refundable | $537 | $537 | |
| Grand Openingnot refundable | $5K | $7K | |
| Professional Feesnot refundable | $4K | $15K | |
| Insurancenot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Miscellaneous Opening Costsnot refundable | $5K | $15K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 monthsnot refundable | $15K | $30K | |
| Total initial investment | $241K | $527K |
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
- $241K – $527K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $250 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Inventory (initial) | $3K – $5K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 68% below the quick-service restaurants norm.
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Cinnaholic until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$406K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Cinnaholic unit return on the cash you put in?
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.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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
- Avg gross sales
- $313K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $300K
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales
- Sample size
- 67 outlets
- vs category median 19 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $122K→$639KCited, not corroborated — printed on page 53 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 781 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.8x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $313K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.8x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.0% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants median).
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 26.2% CAGR over 3 years across 83 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 medians
How Cinnaholic 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.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 83
- Opened
- 15
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 13
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 15.7%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 99%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +26.2%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +26.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Signed, not yet open
- 13
- 0.16 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 13
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 13.2%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 1.2%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 15.7%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 27 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
- Indiana
- Michigan
- South Dakota
- Washington
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
99 current owners across 26 states; 22 former (terminated, transferred or not renewed) listed separately.
- TX 24
- NC 9
- GA 6
- VA 6
- IL 5
- MD 5
- TN 5
- CA 4
- FL 4
- AZ 3
- IA 3
- NJ 3
- +14 more states
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 57
- Loan volume
- $14.4M
- Median loan
- $266K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- Limited · 57 loans
- Limited SBA coverage: 57 loans, rate hidden until 10 have resolved and loans reach 2% of franchised units
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- Limited · 57 loans
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 25
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 8.6%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 10.6%
- n=3,755 loans
- Jobs supported
- 709
- 5.1 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 30%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 88% went to startups / new businesses, 12% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, franchised businesses charge off at 10.6% vs 8.9% for independents — franchising is associated with 19% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Cinnaholic franchisees
Showing 3 of 25 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Cinnaholic from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 0.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 72%
- Avg interest rate
- 8.58%
- Lender concentration
- 30.2%
- Job velocity
- 5.1 per $100K
- NAICS benchmark
- 7.0%
- NAICS 722515
- Jobs supported
- 709
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 30% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Huntington National Bank | 16 | $3.2M | 0.0% |
| 2 | Cadence Bank | 6 | $1.6M | 0.0% |
| 3 | First Bank of the Lake | 3 | $1.2M | N/A |
| 4 | KeyBank National Association | 2 | $316K | 0.0% |
| 5 | Stearns Bank National Association | 2 | $341K | 0.0% |
| 6 | Broadway National Bank | 2 | $625K | 0.0% |
| 7 | Old National Bank | 2 | $561K | N/A |
| 8 | Citizens Bank | 2 | $342K | 0.0% |
| 9 | Mechanics and Farmers Bank | 2 | $837K | N/A |
| 10 | Mortgage Capital Development Corporation | 1 | $220K | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 13 | 0 | 0.0% |
| INIndiana | 4 | 0 | -- |
| NCNorth Carolina | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| SCSouth Carolina | 4 | 0 | -- |
| VAVirginia | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 3 | 0 | -- |
| NJNew Jersey | 3 | 0 | -- |
| WAWashington | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| CACalifornia | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| ILIllinois | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
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
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (plaintiff).
3 franchisor-initiated suits: (1) v. Revel Systems re POS platform breach, settled Aug 2024; (2) v. Calipto Foods to compel arbitration, dismissed May 2023; (3) AAA arbitration v. Calipto Foods/Philip Edwards, award in franchisor's favor Jan 2024. 2 concluded affiliate/officer bankruptcy adversary proceedings from 2012 (S&Q Shack and Raving Brands), both settled 2017.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Subject: an officer. An officer’s own bankruptcy or a company an officer ran, not the franchisor’s
CEO Daryl Dollinger was an officer of S&Q Shack LLC and Raving Brands Inc., both of which were placed into involuntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2010. Adversary proceedings settled November 2016 with dismissal orders in 2017.
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Muhammad Zubairy, CPA PC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Item 21 states Exhibit H contains an unaudited P&L/balance sheet as of April 30, 2025 plus audited statements for FY2022-2024, but the Exhibit H financial statement pages (H-3 through H-25) did not extract in the OCR text (blank), and the only disclaimer page present (H-2) states the figures are unaudited and not reviewed by a CPA. No balance sheet, income, revenue, net worth, or auditor name is recoverable from the text.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- 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 44 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORStagnant unit growth at 2.5% YoY with only 83 units indicates struggling system expansion
- 02HIGHActive franchisor-initiated litigation against POS vendor and franchisee suggests operational/contractual conflicts
- 03MINORNo Item 19 (Average Net Income) disclosure limits ability to validate $241k-$526k investment ROI
- 04HIGHPrior CEO litigation involving bankruptcy trustee raises governance and fiduciary credibility concerns
- 05MINORHigh franchise fee ($40k) relative to thin average revenue ($313.5k) creates margin pressure
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.0% 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 territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 1 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Atlanta, Georgia (AAA office closest to principal executive office) |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | GA |
| Litigation count | 5 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
3 franchisor-initiated suits: (1) v. Revel Systems re POS platform breach, settled Aug 2024; (2) v. Calipto Foods to compel arbitration, dismissed May 2023; (3) AAA arbitration v. Calipto Foods/Philip Edwards, award in franchisor's favor Jan 2024. 2 concluded affiliate/officer bankruptcy adversary proceedings from 2012 (S&Q Shack and Raving Brands), both settled 2017.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 7 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 28 hrs
- Training location
- Atlanta, Georgia (CINNAHOLIC-approved training facility)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 10 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Square POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Square POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
121 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Cinnaholic franchise?
The total investment to open a Cinnaholic franchise ranges from $241K – $527K, with an initial franchise fee of $40K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Cinnaholic franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Cinnaholic FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $313K. The median is $300K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Cinnaholic?
Cinnaholic is franchised by Cinnaholic Franchising, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Cinnaholic 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 Cinnaholic FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Cinnaholic's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Cinnaholic (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 Cinnaholic franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Cinnaholic has 83 total units in the United States, including 82 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 15 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Cinnaholic a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Cinnaholic as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 44 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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?
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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.