Kilwin's Chocolates Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Kilwin's Chocolates franchise requires a total initial investment of $513K – $880K, including a $20K – $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the latest FDD, average unit revenue was $933K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 8.3% charge-off rate across 25 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified
Overview
- Investment
- $513K – $880K
- 35th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $933K
- 8th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 172
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- 8.3%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Full-Service Restaurants 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 $513K – $880K including a $20K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $933K/year (median $802K).
- Verdict B (Above average), verdict score 54/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 8.3% across 25 loans (near or below the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- System growing at 15.1% CAGR over 3 years with 172 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Kilwins Chocolates Franchise, Inc.
- Parent company
- Kilwins MidCo LLC / Kilwins TopCo LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Levine Leichtman Capital Partners, LLC (LLCP)
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Brian Britton
- Incorporated in
- Michigan
- HQ
- 1050 Bay View Road, Petoskey, Michigan 49770
- Franchisor revenue
- $19.8M
- Most recent fiscal year
Overview
About
Franchisor of Kilwins Full Line Chocolates, Confectionery & Ice Cream Stores and Kilwins Ice Cream & Chocolate Shops, selling handcrafted chocolates, original recipe ice cream, fudge, and other confections.
- CEO
- Brian Britton
- Headquarters
- Michigan
- Founded
- 1981
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 26% below the typical full-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $20K | $20K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $8K | $75K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $485K | $785K |
| Total initial investment | $513K | $880K |
Source: Kilwin's Chocolates 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
- $513K – $880K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $8K – $75K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $20K – $40K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $200 |
| Training fee | $5K |
| Transfer fee | $30K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 39% below the full-service restaurants norm.
Source: FDD · 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
$93K
10.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
13%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.9 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $933K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $802K
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- historical gross sales average/median by state cohort, plus cost-of-sales %, payroll %, and per-transaction value
- Sample size
- 128 units
- vs category median 16 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $260K→$2.5M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
Compared against 1273 Full-Service Restaurants 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 $933K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.3x.
Fee burden
5.0% royalty + 3.0% ad fund.
Operator retention
System expanding at 15.1% CAGR over 3 years across 172 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 Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Kilwin's Chocolates Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 172
- Opened
- N/A
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- N/A
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 4
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 98%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +15.1%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +15.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 9
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 4
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 25
- Loan volume
- $6.5M
- Median loan
- $211K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 8.3%
- 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)
- 91.7%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 13
- Defaults
- 2
- Typical loan rate
- 5.2%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- NAICS 7222
- Jobs supported
- 263
- 4.0 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 44%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 0% went to startups / new businesses, 100% to established operators
Vintage analysis
Kilwin's Chocolates charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Kilwin's Chocolates franchisees
Showing 3 of 13 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.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 8.3% — 48% 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
Litigation (Item 3)
Kilwins Chocolates Franchise, Inc. v. Erik Berakovich et al. (Circuit Court for Emmet County, Michigan, Case No. 11-3196-CZ) - franchisor sued former franchisees/related party for operating a competing business at a former Kilwins location and covenant-not-to-compete violations; case settled in 2013 with defendants paying $180,000 and agreeing franchise agreements were properly terminated.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
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
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD · 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 | none |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Michigan |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Kilwins Chocolates Franchise, Inc. v. Erik Berakovich et al. (Circuit Court for Emmet County, Michigan, Case No. 11-3196-CZ) - franchisor sued former franchisees/related party for operating a competing business at a former Kilwins location and covenant-not-to-compete violations; case settled in 2013 with defendants paying $180,000 and agreeing franchise agreements were properly terminated.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 43 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 157 hrs
- Training location
- Petoskey, Michigan (headquarters) and franchisee's Store
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- franchisor approval of franchisee-identified site; Search Area Addendum with search area/right of first refusal
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Kilwins Point of Sale (POS) System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Kilwins Point of Sale (POS) System
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Kilwin's Chocolates franchise?
The total investment to open a Kilwin's Chocolates franchise ranges from $513K – $880K, with an initial franchise fee of $20K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Kilwin's Chocolates franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Kilwin's Chocolates FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $933K. The median is $802K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Kilwin's Chocolates's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Kilwin's Chocolates has a charge-off rate of 8.3% across 25 loans, meaning 8.3% 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 Kilwin's Chocolates franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Kilwin's Chocolates has 172 total units in the United States, including 168 franchised units and 4 company-owned units.
Is Kilwin's Chocolates a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Kilwin's Chocolates as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 54 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
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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.