Fleet Feet Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Fleet Feet is a specialty-retail franchise selling running and walking shoes with personalized fittings and gait analysis. Franchisees run stores managing footwear inventory, fitting expertise, and local running communities and events.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Fleet Feet franchise requires a total initial investment of $352K – $652K, including a $23K – $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 4.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.7M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 7.1% charge-off rate across 28 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $352K – $652K
- 66th pct Health & Fitn…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.7M
- 48th pct Health & Fitn…
- Royalty
- 4.0%
- 0th pct Health & Fitn…
- Units
- 283
- 92nd pct Health & Fitn…
- SBA charge-off
- 7.1%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Health & Fitness · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Health & Fitness avg · 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
- Total investment $352K – $652K including a $23K franchise fee, 4.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.7M/year (median $1.5M).
- Verdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 98/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 7.1% across 28 loans (near or below the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Fleet Feet, Incorporated
- Parent company
- Onward Outdoor Brands, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Investor's Management Corporation
- Predecessor
- Fleet Feet Sports
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chairman of Board, Director
- Joey Pointer
- Incorporated in
- NC
- HQ
- 310 East Main Street, Suite 200, Carrboro, NC 27510
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $15.2M
- vs $14.7M prior year
Affiliated brands
- RUNNING LOGISTICS
- FFS DIGITAL
- FLEET FEET SPORTS DEVELOPMENT COMPANY
- MARATHON SPORTS
- FFS Digital
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Joey Pointer
- Headquarters
- NC
- Founded
- 2002
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 35
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 11% below the typical health & fitness franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown10 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $23K | $45K | |
| Inventory | $80K | $140K | |
| Real Estate & Improvements | $150K | $250K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment | $50K | $125K | |
| Computer Hardware and Software | $16K | $24K | |
| fit id subscription | $1K | $1K | |
| Travel and living expenses while training | $4K | $6K | |
| E-Commerce Fee | $300 | $300 | |
| Legal, Accounting, and License Fees | $3K | $10K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Months | $25K | $50K | |
| Total initial investment | $352K | $652K |
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
- $352K – $652K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $23K – $45K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 4.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.3%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 4.3%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.3% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $0 |
| Training fee | $200 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Inventory (initial) | $80K – $140K |
| Total fee load | 4.3% of rev |
A 4.3% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 155% above the health & fitness norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
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
$565K
33.8% margin
Unlevered ROIC
105%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
11 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.7M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.5M
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
- 248 units
- vs category median 11 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $177K→$6.7M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.1M→$2.1M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 178 Health & Fitness 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 $1.7M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 3.3x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 4.3% — below the Health & Fitness average of 8.4%.
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 7.7% CAGR over 3 years across 283 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 Health & Fitness averages
How Fleet Feet Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 283
- Opened
- 12
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 5
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 2.5%
- Company-owned
- 86
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 70%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +7.7%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +7.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 12
- Closed (3yr)
- 4
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 4
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 2
- Franchisor bought back
- Transfer rate
- 1.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 0.4%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.7%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 37 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.
- Total loans
- 28
- Loan volume
- $3.4M
- Median loan
- $100K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 7.1%
- 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)
- 92.9%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 20
- Defaults
- 2
- Typical loan rate
- 5.5%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 27.1%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 160
- 4.6 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 11%
- top lender's share
Franchise vs independent — in shoe stores, franchised businesses charge off at 27.1% vs 24.2% for independents — franchising is associated with 12% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
Fleet Feet charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Fleet Feet franchisees
Showing 3 of 20 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.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Fleet Feet's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 14-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 7.1% — 55% 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
Fleet Feet presents moderate-to-cautionary risk due to lack of profitability disclosure, anemic unit growth, and capital-intensive model without clear ROI visibility.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Largest disclosed settlement: $45,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers 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: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 98 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — cannot validate profitability or ROI against $352k-$651.5k investment
- 02MINORMinimal unit growth of 2.6% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee satisfaction issues in 283-unit system
- 03MEDHigh investment range ($299.5k spread) with no disclosed average net income creates uncertainty on payback period
- 04MINORRoyalty burden of 4% on $1.67M avg revenue ($66.9k annually) plus operating costs may compress margins significantly
- 05MINOR20-year term is unusually long and locks franchisees into potential declining retail/running shoe market trends
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 4.3% 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 | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 25 mi |
| Territory population | 200,000 |
| 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 | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | NC |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 34 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 8 hrs
- Training location
- Carrboro, NC; approved Fleet Feet store; or web-based
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- RICS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: RICS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
197 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Fleet Feet · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Fleet Feet franchise?
The total investment to open a Fleet Feet franchise ranges from $352K – $652K, with an initial franchise fee of $23K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Fleet Feet franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Fleet Feet FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.7M. The median is $1.5M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Fleet Feet's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Fleet Feet has a charge-off rate of 7.1% across 28 loans, meaning 7.1% 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 Fleet Feet franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Fleet Feet has 283 total units in the United States, including 197 franchised units and 86 company-owned units. 12 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Fleet Feet a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Fleet Feet as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 98 out of 100 (higher is better), 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
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.