Rita’sFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Rita’s franchise requires a total initial investment of $315K – $906K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.5% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $365K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $315K – $906K
- 62nd pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $365K
- 3rd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- 79th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 569
- 89th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
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
At 0.6x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Bottom line
- Total investment $315K – $906K including a $35K franchise fee, 6.5% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $365K/year (median $328K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 16/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- RITA’S FRANCHISE COMPANY, LLC
- Parent company
- RWIFC Holdings, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Rita's TopCo LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer and President
- Linda L. Chadwick
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 1210 NORTHBROOK DRIVE, SUITE 310, TREVOSE, PA 19053
- Auditor
- RSM US LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $49.2M
- vs $51.2M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Rita's franchisees operate seasonal or year-round frozen Italian ice and custard retail locations, typically in high-traffic strip centers or standalone storefronts. Day-to-day operations include product preparation, customer service, inventory management, local marketing, and staff scheduling. Revenue is highly dependent on weather, foot traffic, and local competition.
- CEO
- Linda L. Chadwick
- Headquarters
- PA
- Founded
- 2016
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 30
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 59 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $35K | $35K | |
| Lease Deposit (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $0 | $13K | |
| Leasehold Improvements (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $125K | $400K | |
| Equipment (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $105K | $188K | |
| Permits & Licenses (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $1K | $18K | |
| Signage (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $6K | $26K | |
| Insurance (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $200 | $4K | |
| Initial Order (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $8K | $18K | |
| Minimum New Shop Marketing Expenditure (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $12K | $12K | |
| Training (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $50 | $5K | |
| Architect and Attorney Fees (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $4K | $23K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months (Standard Shop without Drive-Thru) | $20K | $30K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $35K | $35K | |
| Lease Deposit (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $0 | $13K | |
| Leasehold Improvements (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $212K | $400K | |
| Equipment (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $124K | $230K | |
| Permits & Licenses (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $3K | $10K | |
| Signage (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $19K | $89K | |
| Insurance (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $200 | $4K | |
| Initial Order (Standard Shop with Drive-Thru) | $8K | $18K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.1M | $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
$46K
12.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
7%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
13.9 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $315K – $906K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $30K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $150 |
| Training fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $18K |
| Renewal fee | $18K |
| Total fee load | 9.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $365K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $328K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 520 units
- vs category median 28 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $15K→$1.4M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $212K→$545K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.6x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Rita’s Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 569
- Opened
- 30
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 12
- Terminated
- 10
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 2.1%
- Company-owned
- 5
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 99%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +3.3%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +6.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 31
- Transfer rate
- 5.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 97.9%
- Units that stayed open
- Termination rate
- 1.9%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.2%
- 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 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 245
- Loan volume
- N/A
- Amount data pending
- Median loan
- N/A
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
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
- 0
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Rita's presents moderate-to-cautionary risk due to undisclosed profitability data, minimal unit growth, historical litigation over disclosures, and unclear ROI path for new franchisees.
Litigation (Item 3)
Two actions involving Immediate Predecessor: (1) TCPA class action settlement for $3M regarding Cool Alerts text message program, approved and dismissed March 2017; (2) Arbitration case by former franchisee Baugh Corp. (details incomplete in source document).
Largest disclosed settlement: $3,000,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · RSM US LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
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
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 16 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — unable to validate profitability claims against $365K average revenue
- 02MEDUnit growth only 3.3% YoY — suggests stagnant or mature system with limited expansion momentum
- 03HIGHThree separate litigation actions disclosed (TCPA, development fee dispute, multi-franchisee California action) — indicates historical franchisor-franchisee conflict and disclosure concerns
- 04MINORHigh investment range ($315K–$905K) with 6.5% royalty creates significant break-even threshold; profitability unclear without Item 19 data
- 05MINORSeasonal frozen dessert business model carries revenue volatility risk not addressed in available metrics
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 |
| Territory type | Radius/Shopping Area |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory radius | 0.1 mi |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Pennsylvania |
| Litigation count | 3 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Two actions involving Immediate Predecessor: (1) TCPA class action settlement for $3M regarding Cool Alerts text message program, approved and dismissed March 2017; (2) Arbitration case by former franchisee Baugh Corp. (details incomplete in source document).
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 11 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 105 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- POS system
- Clover/Bypass POS system
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Clover/Bypass POS system
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
20 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Rita’s · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Rita’s franchise?
The total investment to open a Rita’s franchise ranges from $315K – $906K, 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 Rita’s franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Rita’s FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $365K. The median is $328K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Rita’s's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Rita’s (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 Rita’s franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Rita’s has 569 total units in the United States, including 528 franchised units and 5 company-owned units. 30 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Rita’s a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Rita’s as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 16 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
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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.