Mahana Fresh Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Mahana Fresh franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2024), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Mahana Fresh 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 made. Franchisor explicitly disclaims any representations about franchisee future or past outlet financial performance.
What a Mahana Fresh franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $49,500 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 4.5% 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 | 6.5% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $222,200 – $696,000 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
Royalty escalates 3% first 26 weeks, then 6%. Ad fund currently 2% (up to 4%). Local marketing 2% minimum required.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
Mahana Fresh system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 6 |
| Ceased operations | 1 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 1 |
| Closure rate | 16.7% of outlets |
2 terminations, 2 ceased operations in 2021-2023 period. Volatile outlet count: 5→7→5→6.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2024. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is Mahana Fresh worth it? — how it compares to 164 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 6.5% of sales | lower than most (median 8%) |
| Startup cost | from $222,200 | cheaper than most (median $481,500) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 16.7% of outlets | worse than 93% 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 Mahana Fresh
The franchisor's framing: No financial performance representations made. Franchisor explicitly disclaims any represe… 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
Mahana Fresh franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Mahana Fresh franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $222,200–$696,000, including a $49,500 initial franchise fee.
- How much do Mahana Fresh franchise owners make?
- Mahana Fresh 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 Mahana Fresh franchise fees?
- Mahana Fresh's FDD discloses a $49,500 initial franchise fee, a 4.5% royalty on gross sales, a 2% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 6.5% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. Royalty escalates 3% first 26 weeks, then 6%. Ad fund currently 2% (up to 4%). Local marketing 2% minimum required.
- What is the Mahana Fresh franchise profit margin?
- Mahana Fresh 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 Mahana Fresh franchise failure rate?
- 2 terminations, 2 ceased operations in 2021-2023 period. Volatile outlet count: 5→7→5→6.
- How many Mahana Fresh locations are there?
- Mahana Fresh's FDD reports 6 total outlets, with 1 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 Mahana Fresh have complaints or lawsuits?
- Mahana Fresh 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 Mahana Fresh franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Mahana Fresh scores F on disclosure honesty, carries about 6.5% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare Mahana Fresh to similar franchises
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Source: MN CARDS 31677-202405-07 (Clean FDD 2024). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Mahana Fresh or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.