Sauce Pizza / Wine Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $1.3M – $3.5M
- Disclosed sales
- $1.9M
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Sauce Pizza & Wine is a fast-casual franchise serving wood-fired pizza, pasta, and salads with wine and beer. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing food prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Sauce Pizza / Wine franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.3M – $3.5M, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.9M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Limited operating history: franchising since 2024. A system this young has fewer than three years of Item 20 outlet history and rarely enough SBA loans for a charge-off rate, so its grade rests on less evidence than an established system's. Read its Item 20 tables and talk to its first franchisees before relying on the grade. Other new franchisors
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 scored7 of 7 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $1.3M – $3.5M
- 95th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.9M
- Company-owned only
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 13
- 43rd 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 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 $1.3M – $3.5M including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.9M/year (median $2.2M) (company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance).
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 36/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHFlat: no net change in franchised outlets in the latest year (0 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
- LEGAL18 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3, higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- BQ Concepts, LLC
- Parent company
- BBQ Holdings, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 9 of the 2026 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- MTY Food Group, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 10 of the 2026 FDD
- Predecessor
- Sauce, LLC / Sauce Holdings, LLC (Sauce Prior Owners)
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer (MTY)
- Eric Lefebvre
- CEO experience
- 2018 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- Arizona
- HQ
- 12701 Whitewater Drive, Suite 100, Minnetonka, Minnesota 55343-4164
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $604.2M
- vs $597.5M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 10
26 other brands on this site name MTY Food Group, Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
- Barrio QueenC
- BlimpieD
- Chicken Strips and DipsD
- Cold Stone CreameryC
- Extreme PitaF
- Famous Dave’sB
- Ginger Sushi + Poke ShopC
- GrabbagreenC
- Great SteakC
- Kahala Coffee TradersB
- La DiperieB
- Manchu WOKB
- Maui WowiD
- Mucho BurritoB
- NrGize Lifestyle CafeB
- Papa Murphy'sA
- PinkberryB
- Planet SmoothieC
- Samurai Sam’s Teriyaki GrillB
- Surf City SqueezeD
- TacoTimeC
- Thai ExpressD
- Village InnD
- Wetzel’s PretzelsA
- +2 more
Portfolio: MTY Food Group
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
- Eric Lefebvre
- Headquarters
- MN
- Founded
- 2022
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 399% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown15 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $40K | $40K | |
| Leasehold Improvements (3) | $500K | $2.0M | |
| Land, Building and Construction (4) | — | — | |
| Travel and Living Expenses for You and Your Management Staff During Training (5) | $25K | $40K | |
| Reimbursement of Expenses for Opening Team | $55K | $100K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, Decor, and Equipment (6) | $500K | $800K | |
| Architectural and Engineering Fees | $50K | $170K | |
| Exterior Signs | $45K | $100K | |
| Liquor License Costs (7) | $25K | $75K | |
| Site Review Report Fee (13) | $1K | $5K | |
| Restaurant Lease Payments - 3 Months (8) | $11K | $25K | |
| Employee Salaries - 3 Months (9) | $60K | $110K | |
| Miscellaneous (10) | $5K | $10K | |
| Grand Opening Celebration (11) | $15K | $25K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Months [these figures have not been offset by operating revenues] (12) | $5K | $10K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.3M | $3.5M |
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
- $1.3M – $3.5M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $5K – $10K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $325 |
| Training fee | $750 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $50 |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 96% above the quick-service restaurants norm.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
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 Sauce Pizza / Wine 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
$2.4M
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 Sauce Pizza / Wine 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
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.9M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $2.2M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales
- Sample size
- 13 outlets
- vs category median 19
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 781 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.8x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
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 $1.9M/year in gross sales. Median ($2.2M) exceeds the average — distribution is bottom-heavy but most units perform well. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.8x. Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 6.0% — below the Quick-Service Restaurants median of 7.5%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Multi-unit rate
Only 1% 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 medians
How Sauce Pizza / Wine Compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants 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
- 13
- 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
- N/A
- Company-owned
- 13
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 1.0%
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 0
- 0.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
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)
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
1 current owner across 1 state.
- MN 1
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. 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.
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
New franchisor (2024) with parent-level financials (MTY-affiliated); parent shows strong net worth $271M and net income $30.7M. The 15 disclosed litigation matters are all historical actions involving affiliated MTY/Kahala brands, not this brand (which has zero franchisees). Only real note is limited operating history and affiliate-litigation disclosure.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
Two concluded litigation matters disclosed: (1) Purav Enterprises, L.L.C., Balwant Bahia, and Paramjit Samra v. The Extreme Pita Franchising USA, Inc., et al. (Washington Superior Court, Case No. 15-2-15120-7) - Filed June 2015, alleged FIPA violations and misrepresentation regarding franchise financial performance. Settled March 2016 for $20,000. (2) KOHO, Inc. v. Kahala Franchising, L.L.C. (California Superior Court, Case No. BC572565) - Filed February 2015, alleged breach of contract and unjust enrichment. Cross-complaint filed. Bench trial concluded June 2016 with judgment for Kahala. Attorney's fees awarded to Kahala in amount of $205,000. Parties settled in June 2017 with Kahala repurchasing KOHO's Area Developer territory for $75,000.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Revenue and financials reported are for parent/Guarantor MTY Franchising USA, Inc. on a consolidated basis (fiscal year ended November 30); MTY USA and subsidiaries derived $47,054,607 from supplier product/service/vendor-allowance revenue (7.8% of consolidated recognized revenue), of which $29,352,205 came from vendor allowances.
ⓘ 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: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 36 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGH15 litigation items but all affiliate/historical, none against this brand
- 02MINORParent-level financials strong ($271M net worth, $30.7M net income)
- 03MINORNew franchisor (2024), 0 franchised units
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.0% 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 |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| 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 | 14 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | franchisee_state |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | State where Franchised Business is located |
| Litigation count | 18 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Two concluded litigation matters disclosed: (1) Purav Enterprises, L.L.C., Balwant Bahia, and Paramjit Samra v. The Extreme Pita Franchising USA, Inc., et al. (Washington Superior Court, Case No. 15-2-15120-7) - Filed June 2015, alleged FIPA violations and misrepresentation regarding franchise financial performance. Settled March 2016 for $20,000. (2) KOHO, Inc. v. Kahala Franchising, L.L.C. (California Superior Court, Case No. BC572565) - Filed February 2015, alleged breach of contract and unjust enrichment. Cross-complaint filed. Bench trial concluded June 2016 with judgment for Kahala. Attorney's fees awarded to Kahala in amount of $205,000. Parties settled in June 2017 with Kahala repurchasing KOHO's Area Developer territory for $75,000.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 75 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 280 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisor_assists
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
1 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 Sauce Pizza / Wine franchise?
The total investment to open a Sauce Pizza / Wine franchise ranges from $1.3M – $3.5M, 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 Sauce Pizza / Wine franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Sauce Pizza / Wine FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.9M. The median is $2.2M. Important context: Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Sauce Pizza / Wine?
Sauce Pizza / Wine is franchised by BQ Concepts, LLC. Its parent company is BBQ Holdings, Inc.. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is MTY Food Group, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Sauce Pizza / Wine 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 Sauce Pizza / Wine FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Sauce Pizza / Wine's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Sauce Pizza / Wine (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 Sauce Pizza / Wine franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Sauce Pizza / Wine has 13 total units in the United States.
Is Sauce Pizza / Wine a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Sauce Pizza / Wine as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 36 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
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.