Melting Pot®Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Melting Pot® franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.6M – $2.7M, including a $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.2M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 29.3% charge-off rate across 75 loans[1]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.6M – $2.7M
- 47th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $2.2M
- 22nd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 89
- 41st pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 29.3%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants 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
29.3% of SBA loans charged off across 75 loans, above the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1984. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 89 to 85 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $1.6M – $2.7M including a $45K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $2.2M/year (median $1.9M).
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 100/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 29.3% across 75 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
- The Melting Pot Restaurants, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 7886 Woodland Center Boulevard, Tampa, Florida 33614
- Auditor
- CBIZ CPAs P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $22.7M
- vs $26.2M prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2025
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Overview
About
Franchisees operate fondue-based casual dining restaurants where customers cook food tableside in communal pots of melted cheese, broth, or chocolate. Day-to-day operations include managing kitchen prep, server training on fondue technique, maintaining table-side equipment, and managing the unique inventory of fondue ingredients and specialty cookware.
- CEO
- John “JC” Crawford
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 1984
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 29
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 20 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $36K | $45K | |
| Real Estate Services Fee | $3K | $3K | |
| Extensions for Securing Site or Opening Restaurant | $0 | $12K | |
| Real Estate (Rent - First 3 months) | $29K | $81K | |
| Security Deposit | $0 | $23K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $830K | $1.4M | |
| Computer and Point of Sale Hardware/Software | $25K | $32K | |
| Computer Software Installation and Training; First Year Subscription | $9K | $15K | |
| Gift Card Processing and Website Development/Enhancement Fee (3 months) | $677 | $747 | |
| Restaurant Equipment, Furniture, Fixtures and Signage | $439K | $732K | |
| Utility Deposits | $4K | $6K | |
| Opening Inventory and Supplies | $60K | $70K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $15K | $20K | |
| Training Expenses | $90K | $170K | |
| Permits, Licenses - Alcoholic Beverages, Business and Health | $6K | $10K | |
| Insurance (3 months) | $750 | $2K | |
| Legal | $2K | $3K | |
| Accounting Firm (3 months) | $2K | $3K | |
| Reservation System (3 months) | $2K | $4K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $65K | $125K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.6M | $2.7M |
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
$234K
10.8% margin
Unlevered ROIC
10%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
9.7 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.6M – $2.7M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $65K – $125K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $23K – $45K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.2%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.2%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.2% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $20K |
| Transfer fee | $8K |
| Renewal fee | $23K |
| Total fee load | 7.2% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $2.2M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.9M
- Item 19 type
- Actual Average Unit Volume
- Sample size
- 89 units
- vs category median 13 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $938K→$8.5M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.4M→$3.2M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 6 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 1.0x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Melting Pot® Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 89
- Opened
- 2
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 3
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 3.4%
- Company-owned
- 4
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 96%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 12.5%
- Net growth (yr3)
- -2.3%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -4.5%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
- Transfer rate
- 3.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 3.4%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 3.4%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 33 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
- 75
- Loan volume
- $48.2M
- Median loan
- $649K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 29.3%
- 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)
- 70.7%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 26
- Defaults
- 22
Vintage analysis
Melting Pot® charge-off rate by loan vintage
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Melting Pot®'s SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 18-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
A 29.3% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 3 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Melting Pot presents moderate-to-elevated risk due to declining unit growth, undisclosed profitability metrics, and prior employment litigation, though the brand retains revenue scale and protected territories.
Litigation (Item 3)
Washington State Attorney General initiated investigation into The Melting Pot Restaurants, Inc. regarding no-poach provisions in franchise agreements. Case No. 19-2-235101SEA (King County Superior Court, September 9, 2019). TMPRI entered into Assurance of Discontinuance agreeing to: (a) cease including no-poach provisions in future franchise agreements; (b) cease enforcement of existing no-poach provisions; (c) notify franchisees; (d) amend existing Washington franchise agreements to remove no-poach provisions; and (e) remove no-poach provisions from all franchise agreements nationwide upon renewal. AOD is not an admission of liability.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · CBIZ CPAs P.C.⚠ Going-concern note flagged
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
Score breakdown · what drove the 100 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 2.3% YoY indicates shrinking system despite mature brand
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 prevents ROI analysis and profitability verification
- 03MEDHigh initial investment ($1.6M–$2.7M) with no disclosed average net income creates uncertainty on payback period
- 04HIGH2019 employment litigation and no-poach agreement removal suggests franchisor compliance issues
- 05HIGHGoing Concern status (True) may indicate financial stability concerns at corporate level
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 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory radius | 5 mi |
| Territory population | 10 |
| 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 | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Florida |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Washington State Attorney General initiated investigation into The Melting Pot Restaurants, Inc. regarding no-poach provisions in franchise agreements. Case No. 19-2-235101SEA (King County Superior Court, September 9, 2019). TMPRI entered into Assurance of Discontinuance agreeing to: (a) cease including no-poach provisions in future franchise agreements; (b) cease enforcement of existing no-poach provisions; (c) notify franchisees; (d) amend existing Washington franchise agreements to remove no-poach provisions; and (e) remove no-poach provisions from all franchise agreements nationwide upon renewal. AOD is not an admission of liability.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 15 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 208 hrs
- Training location
- franchisor facility and on-site
- POS system
- Toast POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Toast POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
100 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Melting Pot® · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Melting Pot® franchise?
The total investment to open a Melting Pot® franchise ranges from $1.6M – $2.7M, with an initial franchise fee of $45K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Melting Pot® franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Melting Pot® FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.2M. The median is $1.9M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Melting Pot®'s franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Melting Pot® has a charge-off rate of 29.3% across 75 loans, meaning 29.3% 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 Melting Pot® franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Melting Pot® has 89 total units in the United States, including 89 franchised units and 4 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Melting Pot® a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Melting Pot® as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 100 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.