FRIOS GOURMET POPS Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
FRIOS GOURMET POPS discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it C.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Gross sales data for 56 operational outlets by tenure, operational status, and monthly single-day sales. Excludes 18 new and 39 non-operational outlets. Data unaudited; historical only.
What a FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $37,500 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 6.5% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 2% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 8.5% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $64,548 – $219,917 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
Royalty tiered: $541.67/mo (Y1-2), $625/mo (Y3-4), $708.33/mo (Y5-10). Tech fee $250/mo, Brand dev up to 2% (currently waived).
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
FRIOS GOURMET POPS system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 114 |
| Ceased operations | 0 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 10 |
| Transferred to new owners | 1 |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets |
39 outlets (34%) excluded from Item 19; 10 terminations in 2025; only 1 transfer in 2025.
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 FRIOS GOURMET POPS worth it? — how it compares to 59 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 8.5% of sales | steeper than 69% of bakery, dessert & ice cream franchises |
| Startup cost | from $64,548 | cheaper than most (median $209,354) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade C | typical for the category |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets | better than most (median 0.9%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every bakery, dessert & ice cream franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a FRIOS GOURMET POPS
The franchisor's framing: Gross sales data for 56 operational outlets by tenure, operational status, and monthly sin… 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
FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $64,548–$219,917, including a $37,500 initial franchise fee.
- How much do FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise owners make?
- Gross sales data for 56 operational outlets by tenure, operational status, and monthly single-day sales. Excludes 18 new and 39 non-operational outlets. Data unaudited; historical only. We grade this disclosure C for honesty.
- What are the FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise fees?
- FRIOS GOURMET POPS' FDD discloses a $37,500 initial franchise fee, a 6.5% royalty on gross sales, a 2% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 8.5% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. Royalty tiered: $541.67/mo (Y1-2), $625/mo (Y3-4), $708.33/mo (Y5-10). Tech fee $250/mo, Brand dev up to 2% (currently waived).
- What is the FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise profit margin?
- FRIOS GOURMET POPS does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: Gross sales data for 56 operational outlets by tenure, operational status, and monthly single-day sales. Excludes 18 new and 39 non-operational outlets. Data unaudited; historical only. Recurring fees alone take about 8.5% of gross sales, before rent, labor, food or debt service. Margin has to be reconstructed from the disclosure, not read off it.
- What is the FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise failure rate?
- 39 outlets (34%) excluded from Item 19; 10 terminations in 2025; only 1 transfer in 2025.
- How many FRIOS GOURMET POPS locations are there?
- FRIOS GOURMET POPS' FDD reports 114 total outlets, with 0 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 1 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does FRIOS GOURMET POPS have complaints or lawsuits?
- FRIOS GOURMET POPS 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 FRIOS GOURMET POPS franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. FRIOS GOURMET POPS scores C on disclosure honesty, carries about 8.5% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with FRIOS GOURMET POPS or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.