Mrs. FieldsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Mrs. Fields franchise requires a total initial investment of $189K – $496K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $378K[2]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $189K – $496K
- 28th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $378K
- 3rd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 44th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 113
- 75th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Quick-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
Franchised units fell from 125 to 113 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $189K – $496K including a $35K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $378K/year (median $332K).
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 84/100.
- System contracting at -9.6% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Mrs. Fields Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Mrs. Fields Franchising Holdco, LLC
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 1717 S. 4800 W., Salt Lake City, Utah 84104
- Auditor
- GBQ Partners LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.6M
- Most recent fiscal year
Affiliated brands
- TCBY Systems
- Famous Brands Franchising
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Mrs. Fields franchisees operate cookie and baked goods retail locations, managing daily production, customer service, inventory, and point-of-sale operations. They leverage the established brand and recipes while maintaining storefront operations in malls, street locations, or kiosks. Revenue streams include in-store sales, wholesale accounts, and seasonal promotions.
- CEO
- James Carnrite
- Headquarters
- UT
- Founded
- 2004
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 25
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $35K | $35K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses While Training | $2K | $3K | |
| Real Estate Lease | — | — | |
| Improvements and Equipment | $107K | $387K | |
| Opening Product and Soft Goods Inventory | $5K | $10K | |
| Grand Opening Promotion (New Store) | $10K | $10K | |
| Local Store Marketing | $2K | $2K | |
| Deposits and Other Prepaid Expenses | $4K | $5K | |
| Professional Fees | $9K | $10K | |
| Insurance (3 months) | $3K | $4K | |
| Coffee Preparation and Serving Equipment | $3K | $10K | |
| Computer Hardware and Software | $2K | $8K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $8K | $12K | |
| Total initial investment | $189K | $496K |
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
$49K
13.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
14%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.2 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $189K – $496K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $8K – $12K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $35K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Revenue · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $0 |
| Transfer fee | $18K |
| Renewal fee | $7K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $378K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $332K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 75 units
- vs category median 28 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $113K→$1.0M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $184K→$647K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Mrs. Fields Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 113
- Opened
- 5
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 13
- Turnover rate
- 11.5%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -9.6%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -9.6%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 8
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
- Transfer rate
- 2.6%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 89.7%
- Units that stayed open
- Ceased ops
- 11.5%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 10 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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- $516K
- Median loan
- $516K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- 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)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 1
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Mrs. Fields's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Mrs. Fields presents elevated risk due to a contracting franchise system, undisclosed profitability metrics, unprotected territories, and historical financial concerns that obscure true franchisee earnings potential.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $50,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · GBQ Partners LLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 84 / 100 rating
- 01MINORFranchise system declining 9.6% YoY with only 113 units remaining—indicates shrinking brand relevance and market headwinds
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19—prevents accurate ROI assessment and suggests franchisees may not be highly profitable
- 03MINORNo protected territory—franchisee revenue is vulnerable to cannibalization by company-owned or other franchised locations
- 04MINORHigh initial investment ($188k-$496k) combined with 6% royalty creates significant fixed costs with unproven profitability returns
- 05HIGHGoing concern status is False, which may indicate historical financial stress or uncertainty in the franchisor's long-term viability
- 06MINORWide revenue variance (avg $378k) with no net income disclosure suggests highly inconsistent unit economics across franchise base
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 |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Protected territory | No |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Delaware |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 24 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 17 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
13 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Mrs. Fields · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Mrs. Fields franchise?
The total investment to open a Mrs. Fields franchise ranges from $189K – $496K, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Mrs. Fields franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Mrs. Fields FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $378K. The median is $332K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Mrs. Fields's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Mrs. Fields (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 Mrs. Fields franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Mrs. Fields has 113 total units in the United States, including 125 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 5 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Mrs. Fields a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Mrs. Fields as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 84 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.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Mrs. Fields, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Quick-Service Restaurants franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Quick-Service Restaurants category
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.