What is the standard initial franchise fee for a Browns Chicken franchise?
Browns_Chicken Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
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Item 5 INITIAL FEES
Except as described below, Brown charges an initial franchise fee of $25,000, $15,000 of which is payable upon execution of the Preliminary Agreement. The balance is due and payable immediately prior to the opening of the Store.
Preliminary Agreement. You may, but are not required to, sign a Preliminary Agreement (attached as Exhibit E) and pay a $15,000 deposit for a Brown's franchise. You would sign it if you do not have a location for a Brown's Store and you want to locate your site prior to the execution of a Franchise Agreement. The Preliminary Agreement gives you a period of 60 days in which to locate a site. If a site is not located and approved within the 60 days, Brown will refund all but $3,000 of the deposit. If you locate a site and sign a Franchise Agreement, the $15,000 deposit will be applied toward the initial franchise fee. If you locate a site and it is approved by Brown within the 60 days but you fail to sign a Franchise Agreement within 10 days of the approval, Brown may terminate the Preliminary Agreement and you will not be entitled to any refund of the $15,000 deposit.
Video Gaming Rider. There is no initial franchise fee charged for the Video Gaming Rider.
The initial franchise fee is fully earned by Brown when paid and is non-refundable, with 2 exceptions. A portion of the deposit is refundable as described in the paragraph above. The second exception is if Brown elects to terminate the franchise due to your failure to complete satisfactorily the training program. In that event, Brown will refund to you any payments made of the initial franchise fee, less the expenses Brown incurred in connection with granting you the franchise and training you and your designees.
In its most recent fiscal year, Brown reduced the franchise fee for 2 franchises, as an i
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD page 12)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Browns Chicken's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the standard initial franchise fee is $25,000. A franchisee must pay $15,000 of this fee upon signing a Preliminary Agreement. The remaining balance is due immediately before the Browns Chicken store opens.
Browns Chicken offers a Preliminary Agreement, allowing prospective franchisees 60 days to find a suitable location. If the franchisee does not locate an approved site within 60 days, Browns Chicken will refund the $15,000 deposit, less $3,000. If a site is approved but the franchisee fails to sign a Franchise Agreement within 10 days, Browns Chicken may terminate the Preliminary Agreement, and the franchisee will not receive a refund of the $15,000 deposit.
The initial franchise fee is considered fully earned by Browns Chicken when paid and is generally non-refundable. However, there are two exceptions: a partial refund of the deposit under the Preliminary Agreement terms and a refund (less expenses) if Browns Chicken terminates the franchise agreement due to the franchisee's failure to complete the training program satisfactorily. Browns Chicken may also reduce the franchise fee as an incentive, as they did for two franchises in the most recent fiscal year.