Johnny RocketsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Johnny Rockets franchise requires a total initial investment of $517K – $2.7M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.6M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 35.9% charge-off rate across 39 loans[1]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $517K – $2.7M
- 34th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.6M
- 17th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 26th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 100
- 42nd pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 35.9%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-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
35.9% of SBA loans charged off across 39 loans, above the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1987. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 106 to 98 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $517K – $2.7M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.6M/year (median $1.1M).
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 100/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 35.9% across 39 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Johnny Rockets Licensing, LLC
- Parent company
- FAT Brands, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Fog Cutter Holdings LLC
- Predecessor
- and Affiliates
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 9720 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 500, Beverly Hills, California 90212
- Auditor
- Macias Gini & O’Connell LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $15.4M
- vs $12.7M prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2025
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Overview
About
Franchisees operate casual dining restaurants serving American comfort food (burgers, milkshakes, hot dogs) with retro 1950s-themed environments. Day-to-day operations involve managing kitchen and front-of-house staff, inventory procurement, customer service, food preparation oversight, and local marketing to drive traffic and manage P&L across multiple revenue streams (food, beverages, merchandise).
- CEO
- Taylor Wiederhorn
- Headquarters
- CA
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 24
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $25K | $40K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $442K | $2.6M |
| Total initial investment | $517K | $2.7M |
Source: Johnny Rockets 2025 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
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
$164K
10.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
10%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
9.9 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $517K – $2.7M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $40K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $2K |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.6M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.1M
- Item 19 type
- net_sales
- Sample size
- 58 units
- vs category median 13 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $348K→$6.9M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Johnny Rockets Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 100
- Opened
- 2
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 4
- Turnover rate
- 4.0%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 98%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -2.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -7.5%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 22 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Hawaii
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- South Dakota
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 39
- Loan volume
- $20.7M
- Median loan
- $500K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 35.9%
- 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)
- 58.8%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 24
- Defaults
- 14
Vintage analysis
Johnny Rockets charge-off rate by loan vintage
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Johnny Rockets'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 13 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 18-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
A 35.9% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 3 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Johnny Rockets operates in a contracting system with undisclosed profitability, active litigation against parent company, and going concern issues, making this a high-risk investment requiring extensive validation.
Litigation (Item 3)
10 case reference(s): 1 pending, 8 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $3
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
BANKRUPTCY On January 25, 2026, Parent (located at 9720 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500, Beverly Hills, California 90212), Twin Hospitality Group Inc. (located at 5151 Belt Line Road, Suite 1200, Dallas, TX 75254) and their subsidiary entities, including us and our affiliates (collectively, the “FAT Group
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Macias Gini & O’Connell LLP⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
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 100 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 2.0% YoY with only 100 locations suggests system contraction and potential saturation or performance issues
- 02HIGHMultiple active litigation matters including putative investor class action against parent company FAT Brands raises governance and transparency concerns
- 03MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 prevents accurate ROI assessment despite $1.64M average revenue
- 04HIGHGoing concern notation indicates FAT Brands has substantial doubt about continuity, signaling financial distress at corporate level
- 05MINORHigh initial investment range ($517K-$2.67M) combined with 6% royalty creates significant breakeven burden on $1.64M average sales
- 06HIGHSecurities litigation history and franchise registration disputes in Virginia suggest regulatory compliance and disclosure problems
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 | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | 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 | 10 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 8 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
10 case reference(s): 1 pending, 8 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 44 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 256 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
92 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Johnny Rockets · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Johnny Rockets franchise?
The total investment to open a Johnny Rockets franchise ranges from $517K – $2.7M, 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 Johnny Rockets franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Johnny Rockets FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.6M. The median is $1.1M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Johnny Rockets's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Johnny Rockets has a charge-off rate of 35.9% across 39 loans, meaning 35.9% 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 Johnny Rockets franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Johnny Rockets has 100 total units in the United States, including 106 franchised units and 2 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Johnny Rockets a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Johnny Rockets as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 100 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.
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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.