Just A BuckFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Just A Buck franchise requires a total initial investment of $176K – $298K, including a $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 4.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $484K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 44.4% charge-off rate across 27 loans[1]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $176K – $298K
- 18th pct Retail
- Avg gross sales
- $484K
- 3rd pct Retail
- Royalty
- 4.0%
- 3rd pct Retail
- Units
- 10
- 8th pct Retail
- SBA default
- 44.4%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Retail · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Retail 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
44.4% of SBA loans charged off across 27 loans, above the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1992. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
The system contracted 13% year-over-year. Investigate why units are closing.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $176K – $298K including a $25K franchise fee, 4.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $484K/year (median $511K).
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 99/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 44.4% across 27 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
- Just A Buck Licensing, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- NY
- HQ
- 563 Temple Hill Road, New Windsor, NY 12553
- Auditor
- Henry A. Gleich, CPA, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $245K
- vs $281K prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2024
- Status as of 2024; may have been resolved in a later filing we don't yet have.
Overview
About
Just A Buck franchisees operate discount/dollar store retail locations, likely selling a curated selection of closeout merchandise, seasonal items, and household goods at fixed or heavily discounted price points. Daily operations involve inventory management, point-of-sale transactions, visual merchandising, and customer service in a high-volume, low-margin retail environment.
- CEO
- Michael Conners
- Headquarters
- NY
- Founded
- 1992
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 4
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $25K | $25K | |
| Site Development Fee | $8K | $8K | |
| Turnkey Services Fee | $0 | $10K | |
| Lease Deposit | $500 | $10K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $9K | $50K | |
| Architectural Plans | $0 | $5K | |
| Training Fee | $4K | $4K | |
| Racks/Displays | $11K | $19K | |
| Cash Register System | $1K | $2K | |
| Office Supplies & Miscellaneous Equipment | $3K | $4K | |
| Computer and Proprietary Software | $4K | $4K | |
| Equipment & Store Supplies | $3K | $4K | |
| Security Systems | $1K | $2K | |
| Permits and Licenses | $125 | $1K | |
| Interior Graphics and Signage | $8K | $10K | |
| Prepaid Insurance Premium | $5K | $6K | |
| Utility and Telephone Deposits | $500 | $1K | |
| Initial Inventory | $65K | $85K | |
| Additional Funds | $30K | $50K | |
| Total initial investment | $176K | $298K |
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
$44K
9.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
16%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
6.4 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $176K – $298K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $25K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 4.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $460 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $484K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $511K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 4 units
- vs category median 49 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $367K→$575K
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 6 / 5
- vs category median 2 / 5 · above
Compared against 304 Retail brands
vs Retail averages
How Just A Buck Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 10
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 2
- Turnover rate
- 20.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -12.5%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -36.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Continuity rate
- 87.5%
- Units that stayed open
- Ceased ops
- 14.3%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 17 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
- 27
- Loan volume
- $4.0M
- Median loan
- $148K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- 44.4%
- 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)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 9
- Defaults
- 8
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
A 44.4% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 2 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Rapidly contracting 10-unit system with missing profitability data and unclear unit economics poses meaningful investment risk despite protected territory and low litigation.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Henry A. Gleich, CPA, P.C.⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Score breakdown · what drove the 99 / 100 rating
- 01MEDUnit count declined 12.5% year-over-year (10 units remaining) suggests system contraction and potential franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 makes ROI impossible to validate; only gross revenue ($484K avg) provided without profitability metrics
- 03MINOR4% royalty on $484K average revenue yields only ~$19,360 annual royalty per unit, creating sustainability concerns for franchisor support
- 04MEDInvestment range of $176-298K against undisclosed net income creates high uncertainty on payback period and break-even timeline
- 05MINOR10-unit system is extremely small, raising questions about franchisor viability, marketing leverage, and supply chain economies of scale
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 |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius / Population |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 90 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Governing law | New York |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 140 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 140 hrs
- POS system
- Sharp Cash Register (model # XE-A407)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Sharp Cash Register (model # XE-A407)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
27 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Just A Buck · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Just A Buck franchise?
The total investment to open a Just A Buck franchise ranges from $176K – $298K, 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 Just A Buck franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Just A Buck FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $484K. The median is $511K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Just A Buck's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Just A Buck has a charge-off rate of 44.4% across 27 loans, meaning 44.4% 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 Just A Buck franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Just A Buck has 10 total units in the United States, including 7 franchised units and 0 company-owned units.
Is Just A Buck a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Just A Buck as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 99 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.