Exotic Snack GuysFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Exotic Snack Guys franchise requires a total initial investment of $162K – $291K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $754K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $162K – $291K
- 22nd pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $754K
- 22nd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 13th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 5
- 22nd pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Quick-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Each dollar invested generates 3.3x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Started franchising in 2026. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
Bottom line
- Total investment $162K – $291K including a $50K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $754K/year.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 37/100.
- Revenue data based on only 1 reporting unit. Treat as directional, not definitive. Ask franchisees directly for current unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Exotic Snack Guys Franchising, LLC
- Incorporated in
- IL
- HQ
- 2787 N Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago, IL 60647
- Auditor
- Smith, Buzzi & Associates, LLC
- Audited financials
Affiliated brands
- Exotic Snack Guys Florida
- International Snack Imports
- Exotic Snack Guys
- no longer offers license agreements
- Exotic Snack Guys TL
- Exotic Snack Guys Altamonte
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Franchisees operate specialty snack retail/distribution locations featuring exotic and international food products. Day-to-day operations likely include inventory management, customer sales, potential wholesale/B2B distribution, and local marketing to drive the reported $753k average revenue.
- CEO
- Zohaib Naman
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2025
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 2
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing · 15 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses While Training | $2K | $5K | |
| Real Property Rent and Security Deposits (3 mos.) | $5K | $30K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $5K | $40K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment | $15K | $30K | |
| Initial Inventory | $50K | $85K | |
| Uniforms | $300 | $500 | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $1K | $2K | |
| Licenses, Permits, and Certifications | $2K | $2K | |
| Insurance (3 mos.) | $300 | $500 | |
| Supplies | $2K | $4K | |
| Computer Hardware and Software | $3K | $4K | |
| Professional Fees | $3K | $4K | |
| Additional Funds (3 mos.) | $25K | $35K | |
| Area Development Fee | $100K | $150K | |
| Total initial investment | $261K | $441K |
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.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$106K
14.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
41%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
29 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $162K – $291K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $35K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- -n/d
- Total fee load
- 5.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $400 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $52K – $88K |
| Total fee load | 5.0% of rev |
A 5.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $754K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Item 19 type
- Historical
- Sample size
- 1 units
- vs category median 28 · small
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 3 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · below
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Exotic Snack Guys Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5
- Opened
- 4
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 5
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 16 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Exotic Snack Guys presents caution-to-high-risk profile due to undisclosed profitability, minimal system scale (5 units), false going concern status, and inability to validate promised returns.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $149,700
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Smith, Buzzi & Associates, LLC
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 37 / 100 rating
- 01MINOROnly 5 units in system with unknown growth trajectory raises viability concerns
- 02MINORNo net income disclosure (Item 19) prevents ROI validation despite $753k avg revenue claim
- 03HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE, indicating potential financial instability at corporate level
- 04MINORHigh initial investment range ($161.5k-$290.9k) relative to system size and unproven unit economics
- 05MINORExtremely small franchise base limits support infrastructure and brand recognition leverage
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Territory type | Radius/Population boundaries |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory population | 500,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 3 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 8 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 40 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- 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
17 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Exotic Snack Guys · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Exotic Snack Guys franchise?
The total investment to open a Exotic Snack Guys franchise ranges from $162K – $291K, 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 Exotic Snack Guys franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Exotic Snack Guys FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $754K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Exotic Snack Guys's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Exotic Snack Guys (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 Exotic Snack Guys franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Exotic Snack Guys has 5 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 5 company-owned units. 4 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Exotic Snack Guys a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Exotic Snack Guys as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 37 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. 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.