EARL OF SANDWICH Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a EARL OF SANDWICH franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2025), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
EARL OF SANDWICH discloses little or no owner-earnings data (Item 19) — the franchisor won't put real profit in writing.
What their own earnings claim actually says
No financial performance representations disclosed. Franchisor explicitly states it does not make representations about franchisee future financial performance or past outlet performance.
What a EARL OF SANDWICH franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $25,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 6% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 3% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 9% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $307,500 – $584,000 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
6% royalty + 3% marketing (2% brand fund + 1% local store marketing). Weekly marketing obligation capped at 5% of gross sales.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
EARL OF SANDWICH system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 31 |
| Ceased operations | 3 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 0 |
| Closure rate | 9.7% of outlets |
3 ceased operations in 2024; system declining from 34 to 31 units year-over-year.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2025. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is EARL OF SANDWICH worth it? — how it compares to 164 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 9% of sales | steeper than 68% of quick service restaurants franchises |
| Startup cost | from $307,500 | cheaper than most (median $481,500) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 9.7% of outlets | worse than 85% of peers |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every quick service restaurants franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a EARL OF SANDWICH
The franchisor's framing: No financial performance representations disclosed. Franchisor explicitly states it does n… We reconstruct what an owner actually keeps, from their own FDD.
- Reconstructed owner P&L — net take-home after royalty, ad fund, rent, labor & debt
- Break-even timeline + cash-on-cash ROI
- Full fee stack + required-purchase markups
- Decoded real failure / closure rate
- How it ranks vs comparable franchises
- Validation-call playbook — the exact questions to ask
See a full sample report → · 30-day guarantee
EARL OF SANDWICH franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a EARL OF SANDWICH franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $307,500–$584,000, including a $25,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do EARL OF SANDWICH franchise owners make?
- EARL OF SANDWICH discloses little or no earnings data (Item 19) — meaning the franchisor won't put real owner profit in writing. That's a red flag worth questioning.
- What are the EARL OF SANDWICH franchise fees?
- EARL OF SANDWICH's FDD discloses a $25,000 initial franchise fee, a 6% royalty on gross sales, a 3% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 9% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 6% royalty + 3% marketing (2% brand fund + 1% local store marketing). Weekly marketing obligation capped at 5% of gross sales.
- What is the EARL OF SANDWICH franchise profit margin?
- EARL OF SANDWICH discloses no Item 19 earnings representation, so no profit margin can be derived from the FDD at all. Any margin figure quoted elsewhere is an estimate, not a disclosure.
- What is the EARL OF SANDWICH franchise failure rate?
- 3 ceased operations in 2024; system declining from 34 to 31 units year-over-year.
- How many EARL OF SANDWICH locations are there?
- EARL OF SANDWICH's FDD reports 31 total outlets, with 3 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 0 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does EARL OF SANDWICH have complaints or lawsuits?
- EARL OF SANDWICH discloses no material litigation in Item 3 of the filing we reviewed. That's a positive signal, though it covers only what the franchisor is required to report.
- Is a EARL OF SANDWICH franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. EARL OF SANDWICH scores F on disclosure honesty, carries about 9% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare EARL OF SANDWICH to similar franchises
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Source: MN CARDS 34826-202509-09 (Clean FDD 2025). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with EARL OF SANDWICH or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.