Puffy Cotton Candy Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Puffy Cotton Candy is a dessert franchise selling spun cotton candy in creative flavors from kiosks and shops. Franchisees run the locations, managing production, inventory, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Puffy Cotton Candy franchise requires a total initial investment of $178K – $323K, 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: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $178K – $323K
- 18th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned onlyn=1
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 2
- 9th 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 $178K – $323K including a $40K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 reports Actual Performance rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 41/100 (higher is better).
- DATAItem 19 reports Actual Performance rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Puffy Franchise LLC
- CEO title
- Co-Founder/Owner
- Brendon Curtis
- Incorporated in
- Tennessee
- HQ
- 1800 Galleria Blvd. Suite 2320, Franklin, TN 37067
- Auditor
- Metwally CPA PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $127K
- Most recent fiscal year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Brendon Curtis
- Headquarters
- TN
- Founded
- 2024
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 62% 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 | |
| Rent | $4K | $8K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $50K | $75K | |
| Fixtures & Equipment | $2K | $3K | |
| Initial Inventory | $2K | $3K | |
| Insurance | $3K | $6K | |
| Signage | $5K | $7K | |
| Office Equipment & Supplies | $300 | $400 | |
| Computer Equipment (Hardware, Software, POS System, etc.) | $2K | $3K | |
| Pre-Opening Expenses | $5K | $8K | |
| Training | $0 | $4K | |
| Licenses & Permits | $1K | $3K | |
| Legal & Accounting | $2K | $5K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $500 | $2K | |
| Additional Funds - three months | $15K | $50K | |
| Total initial investment | $130K | $214K |
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
- $178K – $323K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Revenues · 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 | $200 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| 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
Puffy Cotton Candy 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 Puffy Cotton Candy unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
36%
Within 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
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
- Item 19 type
- Actual Performance
- Sample size
- 1
- vs category median 20 · small
- Reported figure
- $464K
- A single outlet — not a range
- 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 Actual Performance rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
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 Puffy Cotton Candy Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 2
- Opened
- 0
- 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
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- 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 · 1 state 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.
1
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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
Brand-new confectionery franchisor (began 2024, only 2 company-owned units, 0 franchised) with no litigation, no bankruptcy and no going-concern note. Audited financials and Item 19 disclosed. Very limited operating history is the primary concern.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 3 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Metwally CPA PLLC
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: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 41 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDLimited history: began franchising 2024, only 2 units (0 franchised)
- 02MINORNo litigation, no bankruptcy, no going-concern
- 03MEDAudited, item19_disclosed=true
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 | 10 years |
| Territory type | Radius/Population |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| 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 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Tennessee |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 3 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 16 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 102 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and off-site
- POS system
- Square POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Square POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
2 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Puffy Cotton Candy · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Puffy Cotton Candy franchise?
The total investment to open a Puffy Cotton Candy franchise ranges from $178K – $323K, 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 Puffy Cotton Candy franchise owners earn?
Puffy Cotton Candy 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 Puffy Cotton Candy 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 Puffy Cotton Candy FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Puffy Cotton Candy's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Puffy Cotton Candy (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 Puffy Cotton Candy franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Puffy Cotton Candy has 2 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is Puffy Cotton Candy a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Puffy Cotton Candy as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 41 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.