Once Upon A Child Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $356K – $486K
- Disclosed sales
- $1.3M
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 3.6%
- on 228 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Once Upon A Child is a resale-retail franchise buying and selling gently used children's clothing, toys, and gear. Franchisees run stores sourcing inventory directly from local families, then pricing, merchandising, and reselling.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Once Upon A Child franchise requires a total initial investment of $356K – $486K, including a $15K – $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.3M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 3.6% charge-off rate across 228 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
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
- $356K – $486K
- 38th pct Retail
- Avg gross sales
- $1.3M
- 16th pct Retail
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 6th pct Retail
- Units
- 441
- 40th pct Retail
- SBA charge-off
- 3.6%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Retail · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Retail 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 $356K – $486K including a $25K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.3M/year (median $1.2M).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 89/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 3.6% across 228 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHPositive: net +11 franchised outlets in the latest year (17 opened, 6 closed) (Item 20).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Winmark Corporation
- Parent company
- None (Winmark has no parent)
- CEO title
- Chair of the Board, Director and Chief Executive Officer
- Brett D. Heffes
- Incorporated in
- MN
- HQ
- 605 Highway 169 N, Suite 400, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55441
- Auditor
- Grant Thornton LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $86.1M
- vs $81.3M prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Same owner · FDD Item 1
12 other brands on this site name None (Winmark has no parent) as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
- 9ROUNDC
- ADVANTAGE COLLEGE PLANNINGB
- AMRAMPA
- AlignLifeC
- Body Alive StudioC
- Ivybrook AcademyA
- JAN-PRO Commercial CleaningA
- ONEZOC
- Original Rainbow ConeC
- Pizza SchmizzaB
- SarahCareF
- True RESTC
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2026 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
- Brett D. Heffes
- Headquarters
- MN
- Founded
- 1988
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 46
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 25% above the typical retail franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $25K | $25K | |
| Fixtures and Supplies | $60K | $75K | |
| Signs | $10K | $15K | |
| Security System and/or Cameras | $2K | $4K | |
| Point-of-Sale (POS) Systemnot refundable | $23K | $31K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $11K | $21K | |
| Build-Out | $35K | $55K | |
| Deposits and Business Licenses | $5K | $15K | |
| Opening Inventory | $75K | $85K | |
| Miscellaneous Pre-Opening Expenses | $50K | $80K | |
| Rent - First 3 Months | $20K | $30K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Monthsnot refundable | $40K | $50K | |
| Total initial investment | $356K | $486K |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $356K – $486K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $40K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $25K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $0 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Inventory (initial) | $75K – $85K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 58% above the retail norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · 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 Once Upon A Child 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
$466K
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 Once Upon A Child 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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.3M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.2M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- average sales and gross profit
- Sample size
- 408 outlets
- vs category median 46 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $269K→$3.7MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 43 of the 2026 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $689K→$2.0M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 3 / 10 · above
Compared against 278 Retail 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 $1.3M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 3.0x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% (near the Retail median).
Disclosure
Transparency score 6/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 6.0% CAGR over 3 years across 441 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 Retail medians
How Once Upon A Child Compares
Category median of published Retail 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 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 441
- Opened
- 17
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 6
- Terminated
- 6
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 2.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +6.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +6.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 6
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 15
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 29
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 46 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
449 current owners across 53 states.
- TX 38
- ON 33
- FL 31
- OH 28
- IN 19
- NC 18
- MI 16
- VA 16
- MN 15
- GA 13
- PA 13
- CA 12
- +41 more states
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20; 4 entries carry no state. 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
- 228
- Loan volume
- $48.9M
- Median loan
- $178K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 3.6%
- on 228 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)
- 96.4%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 108
- Defaults
- 6
- Typical loan rate
- 7.2%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 9.4%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 2,645
- 5.4 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 7%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 56% went to startups / new businesses, 44% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in children's and infants' clothing stores, franchised businesses charge off at 9.4% vs 26.1% for independents — franchising is associated with 64% lower SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
Once Upon A Child charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Once Upon A Child franchisees
Showing 3 of 108 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 Once Upon A Child from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 1.4%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 72%
- Avg interest rate
- 7.22%
- Avg chargeoff amount
- $114K
- Lender concentration
- 7.5%
- Job velocity
- 5.4 per $100K
- Startup risk premium
- 0.0pp
- NAICS benchmark
- 8.3%
- NAICS 448130
- Jobs supported
- 2,645
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 7% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 17 | $3.2M | 0.0% |
| 2 | Truist Bank | 14 | $2.5M | 0.0% |
| 3 | Fifth Third Bank | 8 | $1.1M | 0.0% |
| 4 | The Huntington National Bank | 8 | $1.2M | 0.0% |
| 5 | First Bank of the Lake | 7 | $2.6M | N/A |
| 6 | JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association | 6 | $732K | 0.0% |
| 7 | PNC Bank, National Association | 5 | $503K | 0.0% |
| 8 | Readycap Lending, LLC | 5 | $934K | 25.0% |
| 9 | KeyBank National Association | 5 | $413K | 0.0% |
| 10 | Stearns Bank National Association | 5 | $1.6M | 0.0% |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 24 | 2 | 10.5% |
| MNMinnesota | 15 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FLFlorida | 13 | 0 | 0.0% |
| OHOhio | 12 | 1 | 10.0% |
| MIMichigan | 11 | 0 | 0.0% |
| PAPennsylvania | 11 | 0 | 0.0% |
| VAVirginia | 11 | 0 | 0.0% |
| CACalifornia | 9 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 9 | 1 | 20.0% |
| NCNorth Carolina | 9 | 0 | 0.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 3.6% — 77% below the 16.0% national norm, i.e. lower 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
Moderate-to-caution risk profile: respectable revenue scale but anemic growth, missing profitability disclosure, and high capital requirement demand thorough franchisee reference validation before commitment.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Grant Thornton LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Winmark Corporation (parent/franchisor of Once Upon A Child) consolidated total revenue for fiscal year ended December 27, 2025: $86,055,700, including Royalties $76,352,800, Leasing income $2,631,800, Merchandise sales $3,282,800, Franchise fees $1,525,800, Other $2,262,500. Figures are consolidated across all Winmark brands, not Once Upon A Child alone.
ⓘ 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
Score breakdown · what drove the 89 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 — unable to verify profitability claims against $1.27M average revenue
- 02MINORSlow unit growth of 2.6% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee underperformance in used children's goods retail
- 03MINORUsed goods retail model is margin-sensitive and vulnerable to economic downturns and consumer spending shifts
- 04MINORNo 'going concern' flag is positive, but lack of net income data prevents assessment of unit-level sustainability
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Exclusive territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory radius | 5 mi |
| Territory population | 50,000 |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | MN |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 41 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 19 hrs
- Training location
- Minneapolis, MN
- Ongoing training
- Optional
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with Winmark approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Winmark POS System with Proprietary Software
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Winmark POS System with Proprietary Software
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
453 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 Once Upon A Child franchise?
The total investment to open a Once Upon A Child franchise ranges from $356K – $486K, 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 Once Upon A Child franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Once Upon A Child FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.3M. The median is $1.2M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Once Upon A Child?
Once Upon A Child is franchised by Winmark Corporation. Its parent company is None (Winmark has no parent). Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Once Upon A Child 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 Once Upon A Child FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Once Upon A Child's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Once Upon A Child has a charge-off rate of 3.6% across 228 loans, meaning 3.6% 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 Once Upon A Child franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Once Upon A Child has 441 total units in the United States, including 441 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 17 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Once Upon A Child a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Once Upon A Child as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 89 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.