DQ Treat Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $849K – $1.6M
- Disclosed sales
- not disclosed
- SBA charge-off
- Limited · 29 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
DQ Treat is the treat-only Dairy Queen format, serving soft-serve, Blizzards, sundaes, and frozen cakes without the full food menu. Franchisees run compact locations managing service, equipment, and staffing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A DQ Treat franchise requires a total initial investment of $849K – $1.6M, including a $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), 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 scored5 of 5 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $849K – $1.6M
- 90th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 745
- 91st 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 $849K – $1.6M including a $25K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSThis franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 65/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +18 franchised outlets in the latest year (45 opened, 31 closed) (Item 20).
- LEGAL14 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3, higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- American Dairy Queen Corporation
- Parent company
- International Dairy Queen, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.
- CEO title
- Director, Chief Executive Officer and President
- Troy A. Bader
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 8000 Tower, Suite 700, 8331 Norman Center Drive, Bloomington, MN 55437
- Auditor
- Independent auditor (unnamed in Item 21; audited consolidated financial statements of IDQ)
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $266.1M
- vs $257.6M prior year
Same owner · FDD Item 1
2 other brands on this site name Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2026 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Troy A. Bader
- Headquarters
- MN
- Founded
- 1962
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 43
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 152% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $25K | $25K | |
| Initial Training Fees and Costs | $200 | $4K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses for Training Programs | $0 | $9K | |
| Building, Construction and Leasehold Improvements | $390K | $870K | |
| Prepaid Rent and Security Deposit | $3K | $6K | |
| Construction Consultation Services | $0 | $8K | |
| Building Plans, Design Intent Plans and Architectural Seal | $10K | $50K | |
| Equipment (includes signs and point-of-sale systems) | $360K | $420K | |
| Training Inventory | $4K | $8K | |
| Opening Inventory | $8K | $17K | |
| Utility Deposits, Business Licenses and Government Charges | $3K | $15K | |
| Attorneys’ Fees | $5K | $10K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Months | $41K | $155K | |
| Total initial investment | $849K | $1.6M |
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
- $849K – $1.6M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $41K – $155K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $25K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 5.0%
- 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 | 5.0% |
| Training fee | $3K |
| Transfer fee | $6K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Inventory (initial) | $8K – $17K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
DQ Treat makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD - a voluntary item under the FTC Franchise Rule - so no unit revenue figures are disclosed. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one DQ Treat 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 annual revenue, 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.
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
No financial performance representation
This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that.
Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 10.0% — above the Quick-Service Restaurants median of 7.5%.
Disclosure
This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Operator retention
System contracting at -6.4% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven consolidation or franchisee exits.
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 DQ Treat 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 2026 · Item 20
ADQ's 2026 DQ Treat FDD Table No. 1 for direct-licensed outlets (Dairy Queen/Limited Brazier, DQ Treat and DQ soft-serve-only stores ADQ licenses directly): 745 franchised at the end of 2025 (727 in 2024, 751 in 2023), no company-owned. The filing's own Total row prints 743 for 2025, which does not equal its components, so the components are shown. The same Item 20 separately prints 310 / 358 / 371 outlets operating under territory operators (master franchisees), figures ADQ says it does not independently verify; under owner ruling R28 they are noted here, not counted.
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 745
- Opened
- 45
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 31
- Terminated
- 17
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 5
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 4.2%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -6.4%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- -6.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 17
- Not renewed
- 5
- Transferred
- 50
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Transfer rate
- 6.0%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 96.1%
- Units that stayed open
- Termination rate
- 4.1%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 43 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.
43
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
- 29
- Loan volume
- $18.1M
- Median loan
- $400K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- Limited · 29 loans
- Limited SBA coverage: 29 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 · 29 loans
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 16
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 6.8%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 10.8%
- n=12,827 loans
- Jobs supported
- 381
- 2.6 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 20%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 40% went to startups / new businesses, 60% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in limited-service restaurants, franchised businesses charge off at 10.8% vs 10.0% for independents — franchising is associated with 8% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing DQ Treat franchisees
Showing 3 of 16 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 DQ Treat from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 0.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 66%
- Avg interest rate
- 6.81%
- Lender concentration
- 20.0%
- Job velocity
- 2.6 per $100K
- NAICS benchmark
- 8.7%
- NAICS 722513
- Jobs supported
- 381
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 20% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Huntington National Bank | 5 | $1.3M | 0.0% |
| 2 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 3 | $1.9M | 0.0% |
| 3 | Wheaton Bank & Trust Company, National Association | 2 | $350K | N/A |
| 4 | First Savings Bank | 2 | $3.0M | 0.0% |
| 5 | Village Bank and Trust, National Association | 2 | $967K | N/A |
| 6 | PNC Bank, National Association | 2 | $695K | N/A |
| 7 | SouthState Bank, National Association | 1 | $253K | 0.0% |
| 8 | Bank of America, National Association | 1 | $383K | N/A |
| 9 | Cedar Rapids Bank and Trust Company | 1 | $400K | N/A |
| 10 | United FCU | 1 | $740K | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| ILIllinois | 7 | 0 | -- |
| NCNorth Carolina | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| PAPennsylvania | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| MIMichigan | 2 | 0 | -- |
| NYNew York | 2 | 0 | -- |
| AZArizona | 1 | 0 | -- |
| FLFlorida | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| IAIowa | 1 | 0 | -- |
| MNMinnesota | 1 | 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 (defendant).
Pending cases include subcontractor suits (Denney Mechanical, Beristain Roofing) alleging misrepresentation; ADQ v. Wineinger (declaratory judgment re transfer conditions); Oakland Family Restaurants v. ADQ (territory division/assignment). Concluded cases include settled class actions over flexed sales promotion fees, encroachment arbitration, wrongful termination disputes. Franchise-relationship actions: 3 ADQ enforcement actions (McMath x2, Yogikrupa).
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Independent auditor (unnamed in Item 21; audited consolidated financial statements of IDQ)
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Item 21 attaches Exhibit K, the audited consolidated financial statements of International Dairy Queen, Inc. (IDQ), ADQ's parent and a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., for the years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023, in thousands of dollars; ADQ's own statements are not included and IDQ guarantees ADQ's obligations. 2025 total revenues $266,139,000; net income $100,623,000; total assets $365,085,000; total liabilities $268,860,000; stockholder's equity $96,225,000.
ⓘ 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
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- 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 65 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNo average revenue or net income disclosure (Item 19) prevents ROI validation and hides performance reality
- 02HIGHMultiple litigation cases involving subcontractor disputes, encroachment conflicts, and contract termination suggest franchisor operational/payment issues
- 03MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk between franchisees and potential encroachment by franchisor
- 04MINORSubcontractor payment disputes (Denney Mechanical, Beristain Roofing) suggest franchisor cash flow or vendor management problems
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 10.0% 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 | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 15 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | No territory protection |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 0.3 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | State where authorized location is located |
| Litigation count | 14 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Pending cases include subcontractor suits (Denney Mechanical, Beristain Roofing) alleging misrepresentation; ADQ v. Wineinger (declaratory judgment re transfer conditions); Oakland Family Restaurants v. ADQ (territory division/assignment). Concluded cases include settled class actions over flexed sales promotion fees, encroachment arbitration, wrongful termination disputes. Franchise-relationship actions: 3 ADQ enforcement actions (McMath x2, Yogikrupa).
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 32 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 142 hrs
- Training location
- DQ® locations certified/designated by ADQ (Phases 1-2); ADQ franchisee support center Minneapolis MN or other location (Phase 3)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 4 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with ADQ approval
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- ParTech ParBrink (EPOS)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ParTech ParBrink (EPOS)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
1,303 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 DQ Treat franchise?
The total investment to open a DQ Treat franchise ranges from $849K – $1.6M, with an initial franchise fee of $25K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do DQ Treat franchise owners earn?
DQ Treat makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD - a voluntary item under the FTC Franchise Rule - so no unit revenue figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the FranchiseVerdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns DQ Treat?
DQ Treat is franchised by American Dairy Queen Corporation. Its parent company is International Dairy Queen, Inc.. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the DQ Treat 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 DQ Treat FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is DQ Treat's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for DQ Treat (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 DQ Treat franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, DQ Treat has 745 total units in the United States, including 745 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 45 new units were opened in the latest reporting year. ADQ's 2026 DQ Treat FDD Table No. 1 for direct-licensed outlets (Dairy Queen/Limited Brazier, DQ Treat and DQ soft-serve-only stores ADQ licenses directly): 745 franchised at the end of 2025 (727 in 2024, 751 in 2023), no company-owned. The filing's own Total row prints 743 for 2025, which does not equal its components, so the components are shown. The same Item 20 separately prints 310 / 358 / 371 outlets operating under territory operators (master franchisees), figures ADQ says it does not independently verify; under owner ruling R28 they are noted here, not counted.
Is DQ Treat a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates DQ Treat as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 65 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.