Meals of Hope Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Meals of Hope franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2023), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Meals of Hope 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 Item 19 earnings disclosure provided. NY addendum states franchisor cannot estimate earnings; actual results vary by unit.
What a Meals of Hope franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $40,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Advertising fund | 5% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 5% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $61,050 – $71,925 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
Initial fee deferred until business opens. 5% Brand Fund from Program Sales. Up to 2% local advertising required.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
Meals of Hope system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 5 |
| Ceased operations | 1 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 0 |
| Closure rate | 20.0% of outlets |
1 ceased operations in 2024; 3 signed but unopened; minimal system maturity.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2023. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is Meals of Hope worth it? — how it compares to 436 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 5% of sales | lower than most (median 8%) |
| Startup cost | from $61,050 | cheaper than most (median $138,750) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 20.0% of outlets | worse than 95% of peers |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every other franchises franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a Meals of Hope
The franchisor's framing: No Item 19 earnings disclosure provided. NY addendum states franchisor cannot estimate ear… 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
Meals of Hope franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Meals of Hope franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $61,050–$71,925, including a $40,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do Meals of Hope franchise owners make?
- Meals of Hope 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 Meals of Hope franchise fees?
- Meals of Hope's FDD discloses a $40,000 initial franchise fee, a 5% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 5% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. Initial fee deferred until business opens. 5% Brand Fund from Program Sales. Up to 2% local advertising required.
- What is the Meals of Hope franchise profit margin?
- Meals of Hope 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 Meals of Hope franchise failure rate?
- 1 ceased operations in 2024; 3 signed but unopened; minimal system maturity.
- How many Meals of Hope locations are there?
- Meals of Hope's FDD reports 5 total outlets, with 1 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 Meals of Hope have complaints or lawsuits?
- Meals of Hope 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 Meals of Hope franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Meals of Hope scores F on disclosure honesty, carries about 5% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2023). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Meals of Hope or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.