European Wax Center Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $332K – $777K
- Disclosed sales
- $902K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 2.6%
- on 332 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
European Wax Center is a personal-care franchise specializing in body and facial waxing on a membership and walk-in model. Franchisees run salon-style centers staffing licensed wax specialists and managing recurring wax-pass revenue.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A European Wax Center franchise requires a total initial investment of $332K – $777K, including a $36K – $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $902K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 2.6% charge-off rate across 332 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 scored7 of 7 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $332K – $777K
- 38th pct Personal Care…
- Avg gross sales
- $902K
- 24th pct Personal Care…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 12th pct Personal Care…
- Units
- 1,047
- 61st pct Personal Care…
- SBA charge-off
- 2.6%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Personal Care & Beauty · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Personal Care & Beauty 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 $332K – $777K including a $45K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $902K/year.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 73/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 2.6% across 332 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHNegative: net -20 franchised outlets in the latest year (12 opened, 32 closed) (Item 20).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 25.2% CAGR over 3 years with 1047 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- EWC Franchisor LLC
- Parent company
- EWC Ventures, LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2026 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- European Wax Center, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2026 FDD
- Predecessor
- EWC Franchise, LLC (formerly EWC Franchise Group, Inc.)
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Chris Morris
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- Granite Park V, 5830 Granite Parkway, Suite 300, Plano, Texas 75024
- Auditor
- Deloitte & Touche LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $206.6M
- vs $216.9M prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Chris Morris
- Headquarters
- Texas
- Founded
- 2006
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 45
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 38% above the typical personal care & beauty franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $45K | $45K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $45K | $75K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $242K | $657K |
| Total initial investment | $332K | $777K |
Source: European Wax Center 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
- $332K – $777K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $45K – $75K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $36K – $45K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $310 |
| Training fee | $8K |
| Transfer fee | $9K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $18K – $21K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 71% above the personal care & beauty 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 European Wax Center 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
$614K
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 European Wax Center 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
- $902K
- Per unit, per year
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- Average Gross Sales, All Reporting Centers (1,028), from the quartile table - quartile averages $1,428,602 / $977,033 / $728,567 / $475,545 at 257 centers each, and Mature Centers (60+ MIO) $1,024,725
- Sample size
- 1,028 outlets
- vs category median 38 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $135K→$2.4MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 75 of the 2026 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $476K→$1.4M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
Compared against 177 Personal Care & Beauty brands
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 $902K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.6x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 9.0% (near the Personal Care & Beauty median).
Disclosure
Transparency score 0/10 — minimal disclosure beyond the required average. Hard to judge the distribution of outcomes across units.
Operator retention
System expanding at 25.2% CAGR over 3 years across 1,047 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 Personal Care & Beauty medians
How European Wax Center Compares
Category median of published Personal Care & Beauty 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
- 1,047
- Opened
- 12
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 32
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 3.1%
- Company-owned
- 5
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -1.9%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +25.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 45 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.
45
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
2 current owners across 2 states.
- DR 1
- RD 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20; 1,071 entries carry no state. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 332
- Loan volume
- $131.6M
- Median loan
- $360K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 2.6%
- on 332 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)
- 97.4%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 49
- Defaults
- 7
- Typical loan rate
- 6.3%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 17.4%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 4,201
- 3.2 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 71%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 63% went to startups / new businesses, 37% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in other personal care services, franchised businesses charge off at 17.4% vs 20.9% for independents — franchising is associated with 17% lower SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
European Wax Center charge-off rate by loan vintage
Shaded area: recent vintages with few resolved loans; rates may change as loans mature.
Top lenders financing European Wax Center franchisees
Showing 3 of 49 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 European Wax Center from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 1.2%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 75%
- Avg interest rate
- 6.25%
- Avg chargeoff amount
- $222K
- Lender concentration
- 71.1%
- Job velocity
- 3.2 per $100K
- Startup risk premium
- +2.4pp
- NAICS benchmark
- 5.1%
- NAICS 812199
- Jobs supported
- 4,201
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 71% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Simmons Bank | 236 | $82.7M | 2.0% |
| 2 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 10 | $3.8M | 11.1% |
| 3 | PNC Bank, National Association | 5 | $1.5M | 0.0% |
| 4 | TD Bank, National Association | 4 | $1.1M | 0.0% |
| 5 | Stearns Bank National Association | 4 | $1.9M | 0.0% |
| 6 | Firstrust Savings Bank | 4 | $1.8M | 0.0% |
| 7 | Live Oak Banking Company | 4 | $5.3M | N/A |
| 8 | The Huntington National Bank | 3 | $965K | 0.0% |
| 9 | Cadence Bank | 3 | $984K | 0.0% |
| 10 | LendingClub Bank, National Association | 3 | $4.2M | 0.0% |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 46 | 0 | 0.0% |
| CACalifornia | 40 | 1 | 3.6% |
| FLFlorida | 31 | 3 | 10.0% |
| NYNew York | 29 | 1 | 4.0% |
| AZArizona | 18 | 0 | 0.0% |
| PAPennsylvania | 18 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NJNew Jersey | 17 | 0 | 0.0% |
| ILIllinois | 11 | 0 | 0.0% |
| MNMinnesota | 10 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NCNorth Carolina | 10 | 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?
SBA loans charge off at 2.6% — 84% 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
Mature wax center franchise with opaque unit economics, minimal growth momentum, and active litigation across multiple domains requires rigorous franchisee validation before committing $327k+ investment.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
Pending: putative class action re: website communications interception (settlement fund cap $5,000,000, court-approved 2026); franchisee (EWC Michigan Management) dispute re: POS system access/termination. Prior: vendor trade-secret suit settled $179,000; parent-entity ownership dispute settled $140,000,000; franchisee arbitration re: wrongful termination settled $400,000. Governmental: WA AG investigation into no-poach provisions, resolved via Assurance of Discontinuance with no fines.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Deloitte & Touche 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
- 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 73 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORStagnant unit growth (2.3% YoY) suggests market saturation or franchisee satisfaction issues in 1067-unit system
- 02HIGHMultiple active litigations including governmental investigation into non-poaching provisions indicate compliance/culture risks
- 03MINORFranchise termination arbitration (Worley Wax) and vendor disputes signal operational/relationship friction
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 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 50 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Collin County, Texas |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 6 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Pending: putative class action re: website communications interception (settlement fund cap $5,000,000, court-approved 2026); franchisee (EWC Michigan Management) dispute re: POS system access/termination. Prior: vendor trade-secret suit settled $179,000; parent-entity ownership dispute settled $140,000,000; franchisee arbitration re: wrongful termination settled $400,000. Governmental: WA AG investigation into no-poach provisions, resolved via Assurance of Discontinuance with no fines.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 57 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 33 hrs
- Training location
- Plano, Texas (in-person) or virtual video conference / self-led eLearning
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Zenoti
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Zenoti
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
1,073 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 European Wax Center franchise?
The total investment to open a European Wax Center franchise ranges from $332K – $777K, with an initial franchise fee of $45K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do European Wax Center franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the European Wax Center FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $902K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns European Wax Center?
European Wax Center is franchised by EWC Franchisor LLC. Its parent company is EWC Ventures, LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is European Wax Center, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the European Wax Center 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 European Wax Center FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is European Wax Center's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, European Wax Center has a charge-off rate of 2.6% across 332 loans, meaning 2.6% 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 European Wax Center franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, European Wax Center has 1,047 total units in the United States, including 1,042 franchised units and 5 company-owned units. 12 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is European Wax Center a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates European Wax Center as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 73 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.