Marble Slab Creamery Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $355K – $477K
- Disclosed sales
- $481K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 29.4%
- on 223 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Marble Slab Creamery is an ice-cream franchise where staff fold mix-ins into fresh ice cream on a frozen marble slab. Franchisees run shops managing made-to-order service, cakes, and staffing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Marble Slab Creamery franchise requires a total initial investment of $355K – $477K, including a $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $481K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 29.4% charge-off rate across 223 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: medium - issued 12 to 24 months ago; a newer filing is likely on file
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✓ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored8 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $355K – $477K
- 58th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $481K
- Net sales3rd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 48th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 249
- 85th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- 29.4%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-Service Restaurants median · 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 $355K – $477K including a $25K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $481K/year (median $458K).
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 40/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 29.4% across 223 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHPositive: net +1 franchised outlets in the latest year (13 opened, 12 closed); 5 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- TERMSNo protected territory and the franchisor reserves the right to compete in your area. Clarify territorial boundaries before signing.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Marble Slab Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Marble Slab Franchise Brands LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 10 of the 2025 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- FAT Brands, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 10 of the 2025 FDD
- Predecessor
- Global Franchise Group / LS GFG Holdings Inc.
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Taylor Wiederhorn
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 9720 Wilshire Boulevard Suite 500, Beverly Hills, California 90212
- Auditor
- Macias Gini & O'Connell LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $6.7M
- vs $6.9M prior year
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 10
12 other brands on this site name FAT Brands, Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
- Buffalo’s CafeB
- Elevation BurgerC
- FatburgerD
- Fazoli'sC
- GREAT AMERICAN COOKIESA
- HOT DOG ON A STICKB
- Hurricane Grill & Wings / Hurricane Burgers Tacos WingsB
- Johnny RocketsD
- Native Grill and WingsB
- PretzelmakerB
- Round Table PizzaB
- Twin PeaksA
Portfolio: FAT Brands
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2025 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Taylor Wiederhorn
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2007
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 17
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 14% 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 | $25K | $25K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $8K | $12K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $322K | $440K |
| Total initial investment | $355K | $477K |
Source: Marble Slab Creamery 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
- $355K – $477K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $8K – $12K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $25K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 0.1%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of net sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% |
| Technology fee | $840 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Inventory (initial) | $6K – $15K |
| Total fee load | 0.1% of rev |
A 0.1% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 51% below the quick-service restaurants norm.
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Marble Slab Creamery until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$426K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Marble Slab Creamery unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
- Avg gross sales
- $481K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $458K
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 sales
- Sample size
- 195 outlets
- vs category median 19 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $75K→$2.2MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 88 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 7 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 781 Quick-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 $481K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.2x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 0.1% — below the Quick-Service Restaurants median of 7.5%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 7/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System roughly stable (-0.4% 3-year CAGR) with 249 units.
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 medians
How Marble Slab Creamery Compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 249
- Opened
- 13
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 12
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 4.8%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -0.4%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- -0.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 21
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 5
- 0.02 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 12
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 13 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.
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
98 current owners across 13 states.
- TX 63
- AL 10
- GA 4
- LA 4
- MD 4
- AK 3
- SC 3
- TN 2
- AR 1
- FL 1
- MS 1
- NC 1
- +1 more states
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 223
- Loan volume
- $46.4M
- Median loan
- $200K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 29.4%
- on 223 loans · 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)
- 70.6%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 81
- Defaults
- 63
- Typical loan rate
- 7.0%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 21.5%
- brand above franchise avg ↑
- Jobs supported
- 1,813
- 3.9 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 12%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 40% went to startups / new businesses, 60% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in limited-service restaurants, franchised businesses charge off at 21.5% vs 25.0% for independents — franchising is associated with 14% lower SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
Marble Slab Creamery charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Marble Slab Creamery franchisees
Showing 3 of 81 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.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Marble Slab Creamery from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 19.2%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 75%
- Avg interest rate
- 7.03%
- Avg chargeoff amount
- $142K
- Lender concentration
- 11.7%
- Job velocity
- 3.9 per $100K
- NAICS benchmark
- 15.7%
- NAICS 722211
- Jobs supported
- 1,813
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 12% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 26 | $5.1M | 19.2% |
| 2 | JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | 11 | $1.8M | 0.0% |
| 3 | PNC Bank, National Association | 11 | $2.6M | 40.0% |
| 4 | Comerica Bank | 11 | $2.3M | 27.3% |
| 5 | Readycap Lending, LLC | 8 | $1.8M | 25.0% |
| 6 | Popular Bank | 7 | $1.3M | 42.9% |
| 7 | Truist Bank | 7 | $1.7M | 0.0% |
| 8 | Bank of America, National Association | 6 | $1.1M | 20.0% |
| 9 | East West Bank | 6 | $635K | 16.7% |
| 10 | The Huntington National Bank | 6 | $1.4M | 66.7% |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 82 | 15 | 19.7% |
| FLFlorida | 26 | 9 | 36.0% |
| CACalifornia | 22 | 9 | 40.9% |
| OKOklahoma | 12 | 3 | 25.0% |
| TNTennessee | 11 | 2 | 18.2% |
| AZArizona | 8 | 2 | 25.0% |
| LALouisiana | 7 | 2 | 28.6% |
| ALAlabama | 5 | 1 | 25.0% |
| OHOhio | 5 | 3 | 60.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 4 | 2 | 50.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
A 29.4% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 3 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 29.4% — 84% above the 16.0% national norm, i.e. higher 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
Marble Slab operates within a contracting franchise system managed by litigious parent company FAT Brands, with negligible growth, non-disclosed profitability, and significant parent-level governance concerns.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
8 distinct cases disclosed: 1 pending class action against FAT Brands (Kates, 2024); 7 concluded cases including securities class actions (Matthews consolidated settled $3M, Rojany/Alden settled $50K, Vignola settled $75K), two Virginia SCC regulatory matters against FBNA (settled), Shahi v. FBNA (dismissed), and P&K Food Market v. BFCI (dismissed). All involve FAT Brands or affiliates, not Marble Slab Franchising LLC directly.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Macias Gini & O'Connell LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- 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 40 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORSeverely declining unit count: only 249 units with 0.4% YoY growth indicates a contracting franchise system losing momentum
- 02HIGHParent company FAT Brands facing active securities class action litigation plus multiple concluded lawsuits regarding stock price manipulation and registration violations—suggests governance and transparency issues
- 03MINOR15-year term length locks franchisees into a long commitment during a period of system contraction, limiting exit flexibility
- 04MINOR6% royalty on declining average revenue creates margin pressure; profitability data absence suggests parent may be obscuring poor unit economics
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 0.1% 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 | 15 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | No territory protection |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| 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 | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 14 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 15 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Los Angeles, California |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | CA |
| Litigation count | 8 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
8 distinct cases disclosed: 1 pending class action against FAT Brands (Kates, 2024); 7 concluded cases including securities class actions (Matthews consolidated settled $3M, Rojany/Alden settled $50K, Vignola settled $75K), two Virginia SCC regulatory matters against FBNA (settled), Shahi v. FBNA (dismissed), and P&K Food Market v. BFCI (dismissed). All involve FAT Brands or affiliates, not Marble Slab Franchising LLC directly.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 2 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 39 hrs
- Training location
- Certified Training Store, Greater Atlanta, GA or other location
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 40 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 7 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee (with franchisor approval); must use franchisor-designated real estate broker
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
98 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Marble Slab Creamery franchise?
The total investment to open a Marble Slab Creamery franchise ranges from $355K – $477K, 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 Marble Slab Creamery franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Marble Slab Creamery FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $481K. The median is $458K. Important context: Reported as net sales, not gross sales. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Marble Slab Creamery?
Marble Slab Creamery is franchised by Marble Slab Franchising, LLC. Its parent company is Marble Slab Franchise Brands LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is FAT Brands, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Marble Slab Creamery 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 Marble Slab Creamery FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Marble Slab Creamery's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Marble Slab Creamery has a charge-off rate of 29.4% across 223 loans, meaning 29.4% 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 Marble Slab Creamery franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Marble Slab Creamery has 249 total units in the United States, including 249 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 13 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Marble Slab Creamery a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Marble Slab Creamery as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 40 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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.