Quick Verdict · who it fits
Chatime fits first-time franchise buyers looking for an emerging food & beverage concept.
The numbers a buyer needs first — straight from the filing.
Initial investment (Item 7)
$291K - $500K
Franchise fee (Item 5)
$55K
Royalty (Item 6)
5%
System size (Item 20)
16 +2
Agreement term
10 yrs
Years in business
8+ yrs
Training (Item 11)
14 days
Company-owned units
2
Item 3 litigation
2 suits
Model Chatime's costs in the investment calculator → Prefilled from this filing — startup cost, cash flow and break-even.
Buyer qualifications
•No exclusive territory•Owner-operator required✓No bankruptcy disclosed•2 Item 3 cases
Data extracted from the 2026 FDD filed with state regulators. Fees and terms may have changed since filing — request the current FDD from the franchisor before deciding. Not legal, financial, or investment advice. Full disclaimer.
Drag to your projected annual sales. Royalty 5% on gross sales.
PROJECTED ANNUAL SALES$500,000
$100k$2M
Royalty (5%)
—
Total / year
—
▪ Of-sales fees only · excludes rent, labor, COGS, and one-time costs · for illustration
Free AI summary — the first read on the filing.
19
Total units open
3
Units opened last year
0
Units closed last year
+2
Net unit growth
What our analysis flagged across the 2026 filing.
5
Risks to review
3
Strengths identified
4
Questions to ask
How Chatime ranks against 811 Food & Beverage peers we've analyzed.
Initial investment
39th pct · of 811 peers
Franchise fee
94th pct · of 811 peers
System size
45th pct · of 811 peers
Food & Beverage industry averages
Avg investment
$528K - $1.3M
Avg franchise fee
$38K
Avg system size
235
Franchises analyzed
811
Closest concepts by category and investment.
| Brand | Item 19 | Fee | Investment | Royalty | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chatime | Disclosed | $55K | $291K - $500K | 5% | 16 |
| OakobingSimilar price | Disclosed | $35K | $200K - $500K | 7% | 0 |
| Doctor's AssociatesBiggest system | None | $15K | $227K - $630K | 8% | 18,773 |
| Vintage Hospitality GroupTop-rated in category | Disclosed | $50K | $3.5M - $6.4M | 5.5% | 33 |
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Free explainers to go deeper before you sign.
Brand Analysis
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Brand Analysis
Chipotle reported 4,186 company-operated restaurants and 15 international licensed restaurants as of June 30, 2026. None are franchised, there is no FDD, and there is nothing to apply for. Qdoba is the franchised version of the same order line, and its 12/25 FDD puts a traditional restaurant at $548,100 to $1,294,000.
Brand Analysis
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. reported 656 company-operated stores in 43 states as of January 30, 2026, and the brand has never sold a franchise. Huddle House and Another Broken Egg cover the same daypart with filed FDDs, at $555,375 to $1,715,275 and $792,500 to $1,804,000.
Chatime requires a $54,900 initial franchise fee and a total initial investment range of $291,100–$499,900, per the most recent FDD on file.
Chatime franchises are sold by Chatime Franchise LLC, the franchisor entity of record on its Franchise Disclosure Document. Item 1 of the FDD discloses the corporate structure, including any parent companies and predecessors.
Yes. Chatime discloses Item 19 financial performance representations in its FDD. See the financials sub-page for the disclosed figures.
Franchisees pay a royalty of 5.0% on gross sales as defined in Item 6 of the FDD.
As of their 2026 FDD, Chatime has 16 total locations, with 2 new locations opened in the most recent reporting year. This information comes from Item 20 of the FDD.
Yes. Chatime's most recent FDD documents approximately 14 days of initial training, typically split between classroom and on-site components. See Item 11 of the FDD for the full training and support schedule.
No. Chatime does not grant exclusive territory rights under Item 12. The franchisor retains the right to operate or grant additional units inside or adjacent to your trade area.
Per the FDD, Chatime discloses an initial agreement term of 10 years, a transfer fee of $10,000. Review Items 10 and 17 for the full renewal and termination provisions.
This page is part of VetMyFranchise. View all pages: llms.txt · llms-full.txt