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Gong Cha franchise — is it worth it?
Medium risk Growing network Item 19 disclosed
Gong Cha is a food & beverage franchise with a disclosed Item 19, indicating a degree of financial transparency.
Everything below is free, read straight off Gong Cha's registered filing. Weighing Gong Cha against other options? Get a free shortlist of franchises that fit your budget.
Figures above are as disclosed in Gong Cha's most recent FDD (registered 2025). Source: California Dept. of Financial Protection and Innovation — Franchise Registration · filing app-30004 — check it yourself. See every other California-registered franchise.
Considering Gong Cha? See what else fits your budget
Tell us your budget and the industries you're open to. We'll match you with 5–10 franchises whose own FDDs fit — ranked by earnings disclosure, growth and closure rate — and email you the list. Gong Cha will be on it if it fits.
How much does a Gong Cha franchise make?
Gong Cha is one of the franchisors that answers this on the record: its most recent FDD makes an Item 19 financial performance representation — actual unit earnings figures, disclosed by the franchisor itself. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly from this filing, so we don't print one; Item 19 of the source FDD has the tables. See every food & beverage brand that discloses earnings in the Food & beverage franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings ranking.
Gong Cha franchise profit vs. revenue
Revenue is not profit. An Item 19 almost always reports sales — what a location takes in — not what an owner keeps. Out of that number come Gong Cha's 6% royalty, the ad fund, rent, payroll, supplies and debt service. No FDD tells you a Gong Cha franchise's profit, because profit depends on your site, your rent and how you run it — so treat any "Gong Cha franchise profit" figure quoted elsewhere as someone's estimate, not a disclosure.
Gong Cha lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)
Gong Cha's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2025) does disclose 3 legal proceedings in Item 3 . Item 3 is the item where a franchisor must put its material legal history on the record. Two things it is not: it covers the franchisor and its predecessors, parents and affiliates, so a disclosed case is not necessarily a suit against Gong Cha itself; and a disclosure is a fact, not a finding of wrongdoing — most entries are contract disputes with former franchisees, which every large system accumulates. 2 of those proceedings were brought by franchisees against the franchisor — the split that actually matters, because franchisees suing their franchisor is the signal a buyer is looking for. Item 3 of the source FDD describes each case.
Gong Cha closures & failure rate
Before you sign, Gong Cha will hand you a list of current owners to call as references — and they choose who's on that list. It won't include the owners who quit, got bought out, or were forced out last year. The FDD does report that number, even though the reference list leaves those people off. Below is what Gong Cha's most recent filing shows, and whether it's normal for a food & beverage of this kind.
The closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate is Item 20 — outlet openings, closures, terminations and non-renewals, reported by the franchisor. Gong Cha's latest tables show a growing franchised network. Its franchised-outlet closure rate — closures, terminations and non-renewals against outlets — is 0.9%, against a food & beverage median of 3.3% — at or better than the category. Net franchised outlets moved +42 to 157 in the latest reported year.
Who owns Gong Cha?
Gong Cha's franchise is offered by Gong Cha CA Franchise, LLC — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2025), and the entity a franchisee actually signs with. That name comes straight off the filing at CA DFPI; it identifies the franchisor, not necessarily the ultimate parent company behind it.
Other food & beverage franchises
Anyone weighing Gong Cha is really weighing it against the other brands their money could go into. These are the closest by total initial investment (FDD Item 7), each with its own FDD-based page.
Gong Cha franchise — frequently asked
Who owns Gong Cha — who is the franchisor?
Gong Cha's most recently filed FDD (2025) names Gong Cha CA Franchise, LLC as the franchisor — the entity you would actually sign the franchise agreement with, as stated on the disclosure document itself. A registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent company.
How much does a Gong Cha franchise cost?
Gong Cha's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at a range disclosed in Item 7, with an initial franchise fee of $30,000 and a 6% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote.
How much profit does a Gong Cha franchise make?
Gong Cha discloses unit earnings in Item 19, but that figure is revenue — sales — not profit. Royalties (6% of gross for Gong Cha), the ad fund, rent, payroll and supplies all come out of it, and no FDD discloses what an owner nets. Any Gong Cha franchise profit number quoted elsewhere is an estimate.
Does Gong Cha disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
Yes — Gong Cha reports unit-level earnings in Item 19. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly, so check Item 19 of the source FDD for the numbers.
Are there lawsuits against Gong Cha?
Gong Cha's most recently filed FDD (2025) discloses 3 legal proceedings in Item 3. Item 3 covers the franchisor, its predecessors, parents and affiliates — so a disclosed case is not necessarily a suit against Gong Cha itself, and a disclosure is not a finding of wrongdoing. 2 of the disclosed proceedings were brought by franchisees against the franchisor.
Is Gong Cha a good franchise to buy?
Nobody can answer that from Gong Cha's numbers alone — it comes down to how its investment, earnings, litigation and franchisee churn stack up against food & beverage peers and against your own budget. Our read on this filing is medium risk. Every figure behind that read is on this page for free. If you're comparing options, the free shortlist on this page matches you with 5–10 franchises that fit your budget and industry.
Get a free email when something changes on Gong Cha or food & beverage: a new FDD registration, a new lawsuit, an outlet count that shifts, or Item 19 earnings going from undisclosed to disclosed. Pulled straight from the same state registries this page is built on.