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Popbar franchise — is it worth it?

Food & beverage · FDD-based assessment · registered 2024

Medium risk

Popbar offers a focused dessert franchise opportunity within the food & beverage sector, with an initial investment ranging from $217,000 to $458,400.

Everything below is free, read straight off Popbar's registered filing, with where the numbers land against food & beverage peers. Weighing Popbar against other options? Get a free shortlist of franchises that fit your budget.

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Total initial investment
$217,000 – $458,400
Below the food & beverage median · median $379,725
Initial franchise fee
$35,000
FDD Item 5
Royalty
6%
FDD Item 6
Item 19 earnings
Not disclosed
no franchisor earnings
Litigation (Item 3)
Disclosed
in Item 3

Figures above are as disclosed in Popbar's most recent FDD (registered 2024). Source: California Dept. of Financial Protection and Innovation — Franchise Registration · filing app-28348 — check it yourself. See every other California-registered franchise.

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Popbar franchise profit — what the FDD discloses

Plainly: Popbar does not disclose franchise profit or revenue. Its most recent FDD makes no Item 19 financial performance representation, so there is no franchisor-backed earnings figure for Popbar — any number quoted elsewhere is an estimate, not a disclosure. The absence is itself worth weighing (42% of food & beverage franchisors in our corpus do disclose); the fees, litigation and outlet churn Popbar's FDD does contain are on this page. For brands that put earnings on paper, see Food & beverage franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings.

Popbar lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)

Popbar's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2024) does disclose 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 Popbar 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. Item 3 of the source FDD describes each case.

Popbar closures & failure rate

Before you sign, Popbar 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 Popbar'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. Popbar's outlet tables did not machine-read cleanly; Item 20 of the source FDD has them.

Who owns Popbar?

Popbar's franchise is offered by Pop Bar Franchising, LLC — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2024), 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.

Food & beverage franchises at a similar investment level

Anyone weighing Popbar 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.

Mama's Meatball$253,300 – $415,400Caf‚ 86$216,500 – $454,667 · Item 19 disclosedAPCF$238,000 – $434,000Beard Papa's$200,900 – $477,000Haraz Coffee House (Area Representative)$263,000 – $415,800 · Item 19 disclosedChocolate Fish Roasters$244,200 – $435,700 · Item 19 disclosedFed Up Kitchen$170,500 – $511,250 · Item 19 disclosedMister Softee$297,000 – $385,000Potato Corner$400,000 – $815,000Playa Bowls$281,960 – $1,055,594PopUp Bagels$842,300 – $1,283,350Play PKL$3,179,200 – $7,528,700 · Item 19 disclosed

Popbar franchise — frequently asked

Who owns Popbar — who is the franchisor?

Popbar's most recently filed FDD (2024) names Pop Bar Franchising, 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 Popbar franchise cost?

Popbar's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at $217,000 – $458,400, with an initial franchise fee of $35,000 and a 6% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote. Against food & beverage peers it sits in the upper quartile (median $379,725).

How much profit does a Popbar franchise make?

Popbar makes no Item 19 financial performance representation, so there is no franchisor-disclosed revenue or profit figure for Popbar at all — and profit would never be disclosed even where earnings are, because it depends on your rent, labor and how you operate. Any profit figure quoted elsewhere is an estimate, not a disclosure.

Does Popbar disclose financial performance (Item 19)?

No — Popbar's most recent FDD makes no Item 19 financial performance representation. Its absence is worth weighing: 42% of food & beverage franchisors in our corpus do disclose.

Are there lawsuits against Popbar?

Popbar's most recently filed FDD (2024) discloses 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 Popbar itself, and a disclosure is not a finding of wrongdoing.

Is Popbar a good franchise to buy?

Nobody can answer that from Popbar'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.

Just watching Popbar?

Get a free email when something changes on Popbar 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.

This report compiles and structures publicly filed Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) data from state franchise registrations. It is not legal, financial, or investment advice, is not affiliated with or endorsed by any franchisor, and does not replace reading the full FDD or consulting a franchise attorney or accountant. All figures are as disclosed by the franchisor in its most recent registered FDD. Item 19 financial performance representations are made at the franchisor’s option and may be absent or limited.