ShareteaFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Sharetea franchise requires a total initial investment of $225K – $649K, including a $12K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 3.3% charge-off rate across 30 loans[1]. Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $225K – $649K
- 40th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 59th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 44th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 153
- 78th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 3.3%
- system-wide median varies by category
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
Franchised units fell from 153 to 146 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $225K – $649K including a $12K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 68/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 3.3% across 30 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- No Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Lilian USA LLC
- Parent company
- Lian Fa International Dining Business Corporation
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 1201 Orange Street #600, Wilmington, DE 19899
- Auditor
- Kaizen CPA PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $4.7M
- vs $4.2M prior year
Overview
About
Sharetea franchisees operate bubble tea/milk tea retail locations, managing daily operations including beverage preparation, inventory management, point-of-sale transactions, and customer service in a QSR environment. The business model relies on high-volume transactions at relatively low per-unit margins with significant labor and ingredient costs.
- CEO
- Kai-Lung Cheng
- Headquarters
- DE
- Founded
- 2015
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 29
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $12K | $12K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $20K | $80K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $193K | $557K |
| Total initial investment | $225K | $649K |
Source: Sharetea 2025 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $225K – $649K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $80K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $12K – $12K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $50 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $26K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Sharetea Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 153
- Opened
- 10
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 16
- Turnover rate
- 10.5%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -3.8%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +4.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 9
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 14 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
- 30
- Loan volume
- $11.9M
- Median loan
- $338K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 3.3%
- 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)
- 90.9%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 21
- Defaults
- 1
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Sharetea's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 7 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 10-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Sharetea presents HIGH RISK due to a contracting franchise system, active multi-jurisdictional litigation, regulatory investigations, and complete absence of earnings disclosure—indicating both franchisor instability and franchisee profitability concerns.
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kaizen CPA PLLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Score breakdown · what drove the 68 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 3.8% YoY (153 units) signals system contraction and potential market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02HIGHMultiple active litigation cases including trademark infringement (domestic and Australia), territory violation claims, and personal injury tort create legal/financial exposure
- 03MINORState regulatory investigations in Minnesota and Hawaii for unregistered franchise offers suggest compliance failures and potential franchise disclosure violations
- 04MINORNo average revenue or net income disclosure (no Item 19) prevents validation of ROI claims and profitability benchmarks
- 05HIGHGoing Concern status False raises questions about franchisor financial stability and ability to support franchisees long-term
- 06MEDHigh investment ceiling ($648,800) paired with declining units and undisclosed earnings creates significant downside risk
- 07MINOR6% royalty on gross sales (not net) compounds profitability pressure in low-margin beverage retail
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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Governing law | California |
| Litigation count | 6 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 6 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 62 hrs
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
20 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Sharetea · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Sharetea franchise?
The total investment to open a Sharetea franchise ranges from $225K – $649K, with an initial franchise fee of $12K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Sharetea franchise owners earn?
Sharetea 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 Sharetea's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Sharetea has a charge-off rate of 3.3% across 30 loans, meaning 3.3% 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 Sharetea franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Sharetea has 153 total units in the United States, including 153 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 10 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Sharetea a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Sharetea as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 68 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.