Are the Initial Franchise Fee and Development Fee refundable once paid to Bambu?
Bambu Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- (c) Other than to have applied the portions of the Development Fee to a portion of the initial franchise fee for subsequent Franchise Agreements as described in Section 2.1(b), all fees hereunder are nonrefundable once paid to Bambu and under no circumstances will Franchisee be entitled to a refund, return or rebate of any portion of initial franchise fees paid hereunder.
INITIAL FEES
Franchise Agreement
The initial franchise fee ("Initial Franchise Fee") is $49,000. The Initial Franchise Fee is due in four installments: (1) a non-refundable payment of $15,000 due when you sign the Franchise Agreement for your Bambū shoppe; (2) a non-refundable payment of $10,000 when your lease for your Bambū shoppe is presented to us for review; (3) a non-refundable payment of $15,000 when you take possession of the leased premises, and (4) a non-refundable payment of $9,000 when your opening training program is scheduled. We may reduce or waive the Initial Franchise Fee for franchisees in non-traditional locations or for a franchisee who obtained a suitable location prior to signing the Franchise Agreement, in our discretion. We will discount your initial fee for a second or subsequent shoppe if you qualify to open more than one shoppe at a time pursuant to a MUD Agreement as described below.
If you enter into a MUD Agreement, you will sign that agreement together with the Franchise Agreement for your first Bambū shoppe. You will pay the Initial Franchise Fee for the first Bambū shoppe in accordance with the terms of the Franchise Agreement, as described above, and under the MUD Agreement, you will also pay a development fee equal to $19,000 times the number of additional shoppes to be developed under the MUD Agreement (the "Development Fee").
The Initial Franchise Fee for the second and each subsequent Bambū shoppe to be opened under the MUD Agreement will be $39,000. The $19,000 portion of the Development Fee paid for each of the second and subsequent Bambū shoppes to be developed under the MUD Agreement is credited toward the Initial
Source: Item 5 — (FDD pages 13–14)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bambu's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, both the Initial Franchise Fee and the Development Fee are generally nonrefundable. The Initial Franchise Fee is paid in installments, with $15,000 due upon signing the Franchise Agreement, $10,000 when the lease is presented for review, $15,000 upon taking possession of the premises, and $9,000 when the opening training program is scheduled; all these payments are non-refundable. For franchisees entering into a Multi-Unit Development (MUD) Agreement, a Development Fee is paid, calculated as $19,000 multiplied by the number of additional shoppes to be developed beyond the first.
The FDD specifies that all fees paid under the MUD Agreement are nonrefundable once paid to Bambu, except for a portion of the Development Fee which is credited towards the initial franchise fee for subsequent locations. Specifically, $19,000 of the Development Fee is credited to the $39,000 initial franchise fee for each additional shoppe opened under the MUD Agreement. The balance of $20,000 is due upon execution of the Franchise Agreement for that shoppe, or by the deadline in the Development Schedule.
In summary, once the Initial Franchise Fee or Development Fee are paid to Bambu, they are nonrefundable under any circumstances, except for the credit applied from the Development Fee towards subsequent franchise fees under a MUD Agreement. This means a prospective franchisee should be certain of their decision before paying these fees, as they will not be entitled to a refund, return, or rebate once the fees are paid.