FIREHOUSE Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a FIREHOUSE franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
FIREHOUSE 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
Item 19 not provided in FDD excerpts. No financial performance representations disclosed.
What a FIREHOUSE franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $20,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 6% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 5% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 11% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $405,350 – $1,577,750 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
6% royalty, 5% marketing fund, $1,200 MIS system fee, plus digital/tech fees. Development incentives up to $150k per unit.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
FIREHOUSE system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 1,291 |
| Ceased operations | 9 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 6 |
| Transferred to new owners | 88 |
| Closure rate | 0.7% of outlets |
Low terminations/closures; growth in system, transfers increasing suggesting sales activity.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2026. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is FIREHOUSE worth it? — how it compares to 22 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 11% of sales | steeper than 81% of sandwich & sub shops franchises |
| Startup cost | from $405,350 | cheaper than most (median $436,176) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 0.7% of outlets | better than most (median 1.2%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 11 | more litigious than 78% of peers |
Benchmarked against every sandwich & sub shops franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a FIREHOUSE
The franchisor's framing: Item 19 not provided in FDD excerpts. No financial performance representations disclosed.… 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
FIREHOUSE franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a FIREHOUSE franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $405,350–$1,577,750, including a $20,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do FIREHOUSE franchise owners make?
- FIREHOUSE 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 FIREHOUSE franchise fees?
- FIREHOUSE's FDD discloses a $20,000 initial franchise fee, a 6% royalty on gross sales, a 5% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 11% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 6% royalty, 5% marketing fund, $1,200 MIS system fee, plus digital/tech fees. Development incentives up to $150k per unit.
- What is the FIREHOUSE franchise profit margin?
- FIREHOUSE 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 FIREHOUSE franchise failure rate?
- Low terminations/closures; growth in system, transfers increasing suggesting sales activity.
- How many FIREHOUSE locations are there?
- FIREHOUSE's FDD reports 1,291 total outlets, with 9 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 88 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does FIREHOUSE have complaints or lawsuits?
- FIREHOUSE discloses 11 legal matters in Item 3 of its FDD. Item 3 covers the franchisor's litigation history, which is the closest thing to a public record of how it treats franchisees — read the case descriptions, not just the count.
- Is a FIREHOUSE franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. FIREHOUSE scores F on disclosure honesty, carries about 11% of sales in ongoing fees, and discloses 11 legal matters. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare FIREHOUSE to similar franchises
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Source: MN CARDS 35581-202603-09 (Clean FDD 2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with FIREHOUSE or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.