Macu Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
MACU is a bubble tea franchise serving tapioca milk tea, milk teas, and fruit teas with toppings, tied to a Taiwanese parent brand. Franchisees run the shops, managing drink prep, inventory, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A MACU franchise requires a total initial investment of $145K – $207K, including a $30K franchise fee. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $145K – $207K
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 4
- 19th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-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
- COSTTotal investment $145K – $207K including a $30K franchise fee.
- RETURNStotal_revenue of $9,518,951 (FY ended Dec 31, 2024) is the PARENT company Macu Company Limited (Macu-Taiwan), disclosed in Item 8(5), NOT the franchisor Macu International LLC. Of this, $2,633,418 (32.94%) came from required franchisee purchases/leases. The franchisor's own audited financial statements (Item 21 / Exhibit B, FYs 2024/2023/2022) are present only as image-based pages and are not text-extractable, so franchisor net worth, assets, liabilities, net income, and auditor name could not be obtained.
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 35/100 (higher is better).
- DATANo Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Macu International LLC
- Parent company
- Macu Company Limited (Macu-Taiwan)
- Predecessor
- None — franchisor (Macu International LLC) discloses no predecessor during the 10-year period before its most recent fiscal year.
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President
- Hsiu Chuan Chien
- Incorporated in
- WA
- HQ
- 800 E Wishkah St. No.1008, Aberdeen, WA 98520
- Auditor
- Kaizen CPA PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $318K
- vs $389K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Hsiu Chuan Chien
- Headquarters
- WA
- Founded
- 2022
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 2
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 73% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $30K | $30K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $20K | $30K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $95K | $147K |
| Total initial investment | $145K | $207K |
Source: MACU 2025 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
- $145K – $207K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- $2,000/month flat fee if monthly net sales under $60,000;…
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 2.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty (flat) | $2,000/month flat fee when monthly net sales are under $60,000; paid quarterly on 10th of January, April, July, and October |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Total fee load | 2.0% of rev |
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
MACU did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one MACU unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
60%
Within the 30–60% "attractive franchise" band
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
total_revenue of $9,518,951 (FY ended Dec 31, 2024) is the PARENT company Macu Company Limited (Macu-Taiwan), disclosed in Item 8(5), NOT the franchisor Macu International LLC. Of this, $2,633,418 (32.94%) came from required franchisee purchases/leases. The franchisor's own audited financial statements (Item 21 / Exhibit B, FYs 2024/2023/2022) are present only as image-based pages and are not text-extractable, so franchisor net worth, assets, liabilities, net income, and auditor name could not be obtained.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 2.0% — below the Quick-Service Restaurants average of 7.9%.
Disclosure
Franchisor chose not to disclose financial performance representations. You will need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +100.0% over 3 years (2 opened, 0 closed).
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 Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Macu Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 4
- Opened
- 2
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +100.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 2
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 6
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 2 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
2
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
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.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Early-stage franchise with critical financial transparency gaps, minimal operating history, and unvalidated unit economics presents elevated risk for capital deployment.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $60,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kaizen CPA PLLC
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: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 35 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure (average revenue and net income not provided) prevents ROI validation
- 02MINORExtremely small franchisee base (only 4 units) limits track record credibility and support infrastructure viability
- 03MINOR100% YoY unit growth from 2 to 4 units is statistically insignificant and may not represent sustainable expansion
- 04MINORDual royalty structure ($2,000 flat + 2% variable) lacks transparency on typical franchisee profitability thresholds
- 05MEDHigh initial investment ($144.5K–$206.6K) paired with undisclosed average revenues creates unquantifiable payback risk
- 06MINORShort 4-year franchise term limits long-term planning and renewal predictability
- 07HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE, but absence of explicit 'True' designation requires clarification on franchisor financial stability
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 2.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 4 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 3 years |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 3 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 10 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Washington |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | WA |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 80 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 40 hrs
- Training location
- Taichung, Taiwan
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects, franchisor approves
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: POS System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
7 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
MACU · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a MACU franchise?
The total investment to open a MACU franchise ranges from $145K – $207K, with an initial franchise fee of $30K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do MACU franchise owners earn?
MACU does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the MACU FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the MACU FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is MACU's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for MACU (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 MACU franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, MACU has 4 total units in the United States, including 4 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is MACU a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates MACU as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 35 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?
If you represent MACU, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.