Little Susie's Coffee & Pie Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Little Susie's Coffee & Pie discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it D.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Single affiliate-owned Philadelphia outlet gross sales 2020-2025. No franchises operating. Data unaudited; cherry-picks affiliate outlet exempt from territorial restrictions and royalty/brand fund fees.
What a Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $40,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 1% 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 | $143,500 – $317,000 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
8% royalty, 1% (up to 3%) brand fund, $100/month local marketing minimum, $50/month tech fee, multiple ancillary fees.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
Little Susie's Coffee & Pie system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 4 |
| Ceased operations | 0 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 0 |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets |
Zero franchised outlets; only affiliate-owned stores. Early-stage system with no franchisee track record.
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 Little Susie's Coffee & Pie worth it? — how it compares to 32 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 9% of sales | steeper than 63% of coffee & donuts franchises |
| Startup cost | from $143,500 | cheaper than most (median $350,000) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade D | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets | better than most (median 5.6%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every coffee & donuts franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a Little Susie's Coffee & Pie
The franchisor's framing: Single affiliate-owned Philadelphia outlet gross sales 2020-2025. No franchises operating.… 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
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Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $143,500–$317,000, including a $40,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise owners make?
- Single affiliate-owned Philadelphia outlet gross sales 2020-2025. No franchises operating. Data unaudited; cherry-picks affiliate outlet exempt from territorial restrictions and royalty/brand fund fees. We grade this disclosure D for honesty.
- What are the Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise fees?
- Little Susie's Coffee & Pie's FDD discloses a $40,000 initial franchise fee, a 8% royalty on gross sales, a 1% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 9% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 8% royalty, 1% (up to 3%) brand fund, $100/month local marketing minimum, $50/month tech fee, multiple ancillary fees.
- What is the Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise profit margin?
- Little Susie's Coffee & Pie does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: Single affiliate-owned Philadelphia outlet gross sales 2020-2025. No franchises operating. Data unaudited; cherry-picks affiliate outlet exempt from territorial restrictions and royalty/brand fund fees. Recurring fees alone take about 9% 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 Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise failure rate?
- Zero franchised outlets; only affiliate-owned stores. Early-stage system with no franchisee track record.
- How many Little Susie's Coffee & Pie locations are there?
- Little Susie's Coffee & Pie's FDD reports 4 total outlets, with 0 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 Little Susie's Coffee & Pie have complaints or lawsuits?
- Little Susie's Coffee & Pie 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 Little Susie's Coffee & Pie franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Little Susie's Coffee & Pie scores D 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 Little Susie's Coffee & Pie to similar franchises
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Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Little Susie's Coffee & Pie or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.