Dogtopia Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $664K – $1.5M
- Disclosed sales
- $928K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 5.2%
- on 175 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Dogtopia is a pet-services franchise providing dog daycare, boarding, and grooming with supervised play and webcams. Franchisees run a facility managing staff, animal-care protocols, client billing, and local marketing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Dogtopia franchise requires a total initial investment of $664K – $1.5M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $928K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 5.2% charge-off rate across 175 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
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 scored8 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $664K – $1.5M
- 79th pct Pet Services
- Avg gross sales
- $928K
- 28th pct Pet Services
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 49th pct Pet Services
- Units
- 266
- 91st pct Pet Services
- SBA charge-off
- 5.2%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Pet Services · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Pet Services 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 $664K – $1.5M including a $50K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $928K/year (median $915K). Note: this is gross profit, not take-home income.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 70/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 5.2% across 175 loans (near or below the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHPositive: net +5 franchised outlets in the latest year (9 opened, 4 closed) (Item 20).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 27.6% CAGR over 3 years with 266 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Better Together, LLC
- Parent company
- Dogtopia Enterprises, LLC
- Predecessor
- company
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Neil Gill
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 6245 North 24th Parkway, Suite 210, Phoenix, Arizona 85016
- Auditor
- CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $23.4M
- vs $21.5M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- owned Dogdrop location in Denver
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Neil Gill
- Headquarters
- Arizona
- Founded
- 2005
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 37
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 228% above the typical pet services franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $30K | $60K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $585K | $1.4M |
| Total initial investment | $664K | $1.5M |
Source: Dogtopia 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $664K – $1.5M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $60K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $10K |
| Training fee | $2K |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $25K |
| Inventory (initial) | $16K – $21K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 54% above the pet services norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · 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 Dogtopia 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
$1.1M
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 Dogtopia 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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $928K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $915K
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
- 169 outlets
- vs category median 12 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $295K→$1.9MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 64 of the 2026 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $555K→$1.3M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 7 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 69 Pet Services brands
Revenue is only 0.9x 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 $928K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.9x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 9.0% (near the Pet Services median).
Disclosure
Transparency score 7/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 27.6% CAGR over 3 years across 266 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 Pet Services medians
How Dogtopia Compares
Category median of published Pet Services 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 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 266
- Opened
- 9
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 4
- Terminated
- 2
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.5%
- Company-owned
- 41
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 84%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +27.6%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +27.6%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 2
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 11
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Transfer rate
- 4.2%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 100.0%
- Units that stayed open
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 37 states 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.
37
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.
- Total loans
- 175
- Loan volume
- $128.5M
- Median loan
- $750K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 5.2%
- on 175 loans · 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)
- 94.8%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 5.4%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 51
- Defaults
- 4
- Typical loan rate
- 6.7%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 10.4%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 3,511
- 3.0 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 25%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 76% went to startups / new businesses, 24% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in pet care (except veterinary) services, franchised businesses charge off at 10.4% vs 11.3% for independents — franchising is associated with 8% lower SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
Dogtopia charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Dogtopia franchisees
Showing 3 of 51 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 Dogtopia from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 1.7%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 76%
- Avg interest rate
- 6.73%
- Avg chargeoff amount
- $504K
- Lender concentration
- 25.0%
- Job velocity
- 3.0 per $100K
- Startup risk premium
- +5.0pp
- NAICS benchmark
- 4.6%
- NAICS 812910
- Jobs supported
- 3,511
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 25% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Live Oak Banking Company | 39 | $34.5M | 5.6% |
| 2 | Paragon Bank | 10 | $8.0M | 0.0% |
| 3 | SouthState Bank, National Association | 10 | $8.4M | 0.0% |
| 4 | United Community Bank | 9 | $6.3M | 0.0% |
| 5 | The Huntington National Bank | 7 | $3.5M | 0.0% |
| 6 | Banc of California | 6 | $5.8M | 100.0% |
| 7 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 5 | $3.1M | 33.3% |
| 8 | Stearns Bank National Association | 5 | $3.1M | 0.0% |
| 9 | TD Bank, National Association | 5 | $4.5M | 0.0% |
| 10 | Ameris Bank | 4 | $3.5M | 0.0% |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 24 | 1 | 11.1% |
| VAVirginia | 14 | 0 | 0.0% |
| ILIllinois | 11 | 0 | 0.0% |
| CACalifornia | 10 | 1 | 20.0% |
| AZArizona | 9 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FLFlorida | 8 | 0 | 0.0% |
| PAPennsylvania | 8 | 0 | 0.0% |
| WIWisconsin | 8 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 6 | 0 | 0.0% |
| COColorado | 5 | 1 | 50.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 5.2% — 68% below the 16.0% national norm, i.e. lower lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Dogtopia presents moderate-to-cautionary risk: opaque unit economics, active litigation, and modest growth in a high-investment model warrant deep validation before committing $500K–$1.4M.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
(1) HotBox Enterprises, LLC v. Jamie Weeks, et al. (consolidated with Weeks v. Mortarotti/Samios/Cox) - franchisor's affiliated entity sued a former Dogtopia area developer/HotBox brand founder for breach of contract, unfair competition and IP misuse after he refused to sign franchise agreements and rebranded to a competing brand; settled Feb 2022 via $2.7M promissory note and asset transfer. (2) Kimberly Hamm v. Dogtopia Enterprises, LLC and Neil Gill (filed May 2024) - former VP of Operations sued over forfeited Long-Term Incentive Plan participation units, alleging breach of contract, fraud, and related claims; motion to dismiss pending.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Franchisor Better Together, LLC (d/b/a Dogtopia), a DE LLC. Item 21 states audited financial statements of Better Together, LLC (FYEs Dec 25 2022, Dec 31 2023, Dec 30 2024) are attached as Exhibit "H", but the Exhibit H statement pages are NOT present in the extracted text, so balance-sheet figures (total assets/liabilities, member's equity/net worth, net income) and prior-year revenue could not be read and are left null. The franchisor's total revenue is $21,471,254 is the franchisor's total revenue for fiscal year ended Dec 28, 2024 as disclosed in the Item 6/Item 8 narrative (not from the audited statements). Other revenue is $1,900,211 = revenue from purchases and leases by franchised/company-owned Centers (8.9% of total), comprised of $9,471 supplier rebates + $1,454,070 technology/digital marketing fees + $436,670 Contact Center fees.
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 70 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Net Income) disclosed — impossible to validate ROI claims or unit economics
- 02HIGHActive litigation involving area developer (breach of contract) and former VP (incentive plan dispute) suggests operational and governance issues
- 03MINORModest unit growth of 8.3% YoY in a pet services category with strong consumer tailwinds indicates slower expansion than competitors
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 9.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · 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 | 3 mi |
| Territory population | 25,000 |
| 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 | 15 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Maricopa County, Arizona |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | Arizona |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
(1) HotBox Enterprises, LLC v. Jamie Weeks, et al. (consolidated with Weeks v. Mortarotti/Samios/Cox) - franchisor's affiliated entity sued a former Dogtopia area developer/HotBox brand founder for breach of contract, unfair competition and IP misuse after he refused to sign franchise agreements and rebranded to a competing brand; settled Feb 2022 via $2.7M promissory note and asset transfer. (2) Kimberly Hamm v. Dogtopia Enterprises, LLC and Neil Gill (filed May 2024) - former VP of Operations sued over forfeited Long-Term Incentive Plan participation units, alleging breach of contract, fraud, and related claims; motion to dismiss pending.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 101 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 80 hrs
- Training location
- Remote/virtual, Dogtopia corporate headquarters (Phoenix, Arizona), and a Dogtopia training facility (Scottsdale, Arizona)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 80 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee (with franchisor approval and real estate company assistance)
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Third-party cloud-based POS (licensor unnamed); $95/month licensing fee
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Third-party cloud-based POS (licensor unnamed); $95/month licensing fee
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
210 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 Dogtopia franchise?
The total investment to open a Dogtopia franchise ranges from $664K – $1.5M, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Dogtopia franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Dogtopia FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $928K. The median is $915K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Dogtopia?
Dogtopia is franchised by Better Together, LLC. Its parent company is Dogtopia Enterprises, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Dogtopia 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 Dogtopia FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Dogtopia's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Dogtopia has a charge-off rate of 5.2% across 175 loans, meaning 5.2% 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 Dogtopia franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Dogtopia has 266 total units in the United States, including 225 franchised units and 41 company-owned units. 9 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Dogtopia a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Dogtopia as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 70 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
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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.