Protein Bar & Kitchen Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Protein Bar & Kitchen is a fast-casual franchise serving protein-packed bowls, smoothies, and healthy meals. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing fresh prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Protein Bar & Kitchen franchise requires a total initial investment of $370K – $685K, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% 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
- $370K – $685K
- 61st pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned only
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 16
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-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 $370K – $685K including a $40K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 disclosed $1.3M average from 5 affiliate-owned outlets. This is franchisor-operated data, not franchisee results.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 61/100 (higher is better).
- FLAGBankruptcy history disclosed in the FDD. Review Item 4 for details before proceeding.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Protein Bar and Kitchen Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Protein Bar, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Catterton Growth Partners II, L.P.
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Jeff Drake
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 231 South LaSalle Street, Suite 2100, Chicago, Illinois 60604
- Auditor
- Plante & Moran, PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- Most recent fiscal year
Affiliated brands
- PB Restaurants
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Jeff Drake
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2023
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 3
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 20% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown15 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $40K | $40K | |
| Expenses Associated with Initial Training Program | $10K | $25K | |
| Real Property (Rent, Security Deposit) | $25K | $50K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $75K | $120K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $135K | $290K | |
| Architectural Design | $20K | $30K | |
| Professional Fees | $1K | $5K | |
| Licenses and Permits | $2K | $10K | |
| Computer System and Technology Fee | $10K | $20K | |
| Opening Inventory, Supplies and Smallwares | $15K | $25K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $10K | $15K | |
| Insurance | $2K | $5K | |
| Signage | $8K | $20K | |
| Other Deposits | $2K | $5K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months) | $15K | $25K | |
| Total initial investment | $370K | $685K |
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
- $370K – $685K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $25K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $400 |
| Training fee | $9K |
| Transfer fee | $40K |
| Renewal fee | $40K |
| Inventory (initial) | $15K – $25K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Protein Bar & Kitchen 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 Protein Bar & Kitchen unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
19%
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
Item 19 disclosed $1.3M average from 5 affiliate-owned outlets. This is franchisor-operated data, not franchisee results.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
- Item 19 type
- Affiliate-owned outlets
- Range (low → high)
- $957K→$1.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- The FDD edition these figures were read from
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 782 Quick-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 8.0% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants average).
Disclosure
Item 19 reports Affiliate-owned outlets rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Operator retention
System expanding at 23.1% CAGR over 3 years across 16 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
Multi-unit rate
Only 10% 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 Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Protein Bar & Kitchen Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 16
- Opened
- 2
- 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
- 13
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 19%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 10.0%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +23.1%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +23.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 2
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Ceased ops
- 12.5%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 3 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- California
- Hawaii
- Michigan
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
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 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
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
Early-stage food franchisor (began 2023) with negative net worth (-$171,893) and net loss (-$203,501) typical of a startup, but NO going-concern note or financial-distress flag. Mostly company-owned (13 of 16 units), audited, Item 19 disclosed. Negative equity is the single concern, mitigated by startup status.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
Bankruptcy Code; (b) obtained a discharge of its debts under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code; or (c) was a principal officer of a company or a general partner in a partnership that either filed as a debtor (or had filed against it) a petition to start an action under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or that obtain
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Plante & Moran, PLLC
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- 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 61 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNegative net worth -$171,893 and net loss -$203,501 (startup, franchising since 2023)
- 02MINORNo going-concern note, no financial_distress flag, no litigation
- 03MEDAudited, item19_disclosed=true; growth +23.1%, 0% turnover
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 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 | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| 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 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 0 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 240 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- POS system
- Toast
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Toast
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
3 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Protein Bar & Kitchen · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Protein Bar & Kitchen franchise?
The total investment to open a Protein Bar & Kitchen franchise ranges from $370K – $685K, with an initial franchise fee of $40K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Protein Bar & Kitchen franchise owners earn?
Protein Bar & Kitchen 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 Protein Bar & Kitchen 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 Protein Bar & Kitchen FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Protein Bar & Kitchen's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Protein Bar & Kitchen (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 Protein Bar & Kitchen franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Protein Bar & Kitchen has 16 total units in the United States, including 3 franchised units and 13 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Protein Bar & Kitchen a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Protein Bar & Kitchen as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 61 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.