Marufuku Ramen Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Marufuku Ramen is a ramen franchise serving authentic Hakata-style tonkotsu ramen with rich broth and thin noodles. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing kitchen production, staffing, and service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A MARUFUKU RAMEN franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.7M – $2.6M, including a $30K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.7M – $2.6M
- 38th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 7
- 10th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
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
- COSTTotal investment $1.7M – $2.6M including a $30K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSThis is the entire franchised system at three restaurants (printed p.35). The six company-owned restaurants, which range up to $12,002,915, are disclosed separately and correctly excluded — so the figure covers a third of the locations operating.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 65/100 (higher is better).
- DATAItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Marufuku Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- EK Food Services, Inc.
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Eiichi Mochizuki
- Incorporated in
- CA
- HQ
- 1072 Saratoga Avenue, San Jose, CA 95129
- Auditor
- Albert & Associates, Certified Public Accountant, An Accountancy Corporation
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $455K
- vs $176K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Eiichi Mochizuki
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2018
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 2
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 88% above the typical full-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) | $30K | $40K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $1.7M | $2.6M |
| Total initial investment | $1.7M | $2.6M |
Source: MARUFUKU RAMEN 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
- $1.7M – $2.6M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $40K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $15K |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
MARUFUKU RAMEN 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 MARUFUKU RAMEN unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
4%
Below 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
This is the entire franchised system at three restaurants (printed p.35). The six company-owned restaurants, which range up to $12,002,915, are disclosed separately and correctly excluded — so the figure covers a third of the locations operating.
- Median gross sales
- $2.9M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
No system-wide average is published for this brand. The median and range below are what Item 19 supports; we show an average only where it reconciles against them.
- Item 19 type
- Historical
- Sample size
- 3 outlets
- vs category median 18 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $2.9M→$3.0M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 3 / 10 · above
Compared against 805 Full-Service Restaurants brands
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 6.0% — below the Full-Service Restaurants average of 7.6%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +200.0% over 3 years (1 opened, 0 closed).
Multi-unit rate
Only 1% of franchisees own multiple units. Could indicate challenging economics or a young system where operators haven't had time to expand.
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 Marufuku Ramen Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 7
- Opened
- 1
- 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
- 4
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 43%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 1.0%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +200.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +200.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 1
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- $600K
- Median loan
- $600K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
- limited sample (1 loan) — rate not shown below 10
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
- 1
- Defaults
- N/A
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
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
Marufuku Ramen presents meaningful risk due to undisclosed profitability data, going concern status, minimal system size, and insufficient clarity on actual franchisee returns relative to substantial capital requirements.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Albert & Associates, Certified Public Accountant, An Accountancy Corporation
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
Score breakdown · what drove the 65 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — indicates potential financial instability or disclosure issues with the franchisor
- 02MEDNet Income not disclosed in Item 19 — impossible to validate actual profitability against $3M average revenue claim
- 03MINOROnly 9 units with unknown growth trajectory — extremely small system raises sustainability questions
- 04MINOR5% royalty on gross sales (not net) — franchisees pay regardless of profitability; combined with high COGS in ramen business creates cash flow risk
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.0% 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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 3 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | CA |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 23 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 217 hrs
- Training location
- Our Corporate Restaurant Locations (San Francisco, Oakland, or Redwood, California)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Toast POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Toast POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
3 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
MARUFUKU RAMEN · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a MARUFUKU RAMEN franchise?
The total investment to open a MARUFUKU RAMEN franchise ranges from $1.7M – $2.6M, 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 MARUFUKU RAMEN franchise owners earn?
MARUFUKU RAMEN 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 MARUFUKU RAMEN 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 MARUFUKU RAMEN FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is MARUFUKU RAMEN's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for MARUFUKU RAMEN (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 MARUFUKU RAMEN franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, MARUFUKU RAMEN has 7 total units in the United States, including 3 franchised units and 4 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is MARUFUKU RAMEN a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates MARUFUKU RAMEN as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 65 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?
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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.