Is the development fee for a Monicals Pizza Development Agreement refundable?
Monicals_Pizza Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
You must pay a development fee if and when you sign a Development Agreement. The development fee is paid to us in a lump sum and is nonrefundable. The development fee is equal to $15,000 for each Monical's restaurant you agree to develop in addition to the franchise fee. The number of Monical's restaurants you will open will be determined before you sign the Development Agreement.
For example, assuming you agree to develop 5 Monical's restaurants, your initial investment will include a franchise fee of $30,000 for the first Monical's restaurant and a development fee of $60,000 for the remaining 4 Monical's restaurants to be developed in the future.
Each time you sign a Franchise Agreement for one of the additional Monical's restaurants, you must pay us $15,000 which is the balance of the discounted franchise fee for that franchise.
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD pages 9–10)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Monicals Pizza's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the development fee associated with a Development Agreement is nonrefundable. The development fee is paid in a lump sum when the Development Agreement is signed. This fee is calculated by multiplying $15,000 by the number of Monicals Pizza restaurants the developer agrees to develop, excluding the first restaurant.
For instance, if a developer commits to developing five Monicals Pizza restaurants, they would pay a franchise fee of $30,000 for the first restaurant. Additionally, they would pay a development fee of $60,000 for the remaining four restaurants to be developed in the future. This fee structure is uniformly applied to all developers, although the actual amount varies based on the number of restaurants to be developed.
However, Monicals Pizza will credit $15,000 of the development fee against the franchise fee for the second and each subsequent Monicals Pizza restaurant opened under the Development Agreement. This credit reduces the balance due on the franchise fee to $15,000 for each restaurant included in the development fee calculation, until the total credits equal the development fee. In no event will Monicals Pizza issue an aggregate amount of credit greater than the amount of the development fee.
Prospective franchisees should note that while the initial development fee is nonrefundable, a portion of it is applied as a credit towards subsequent franchise fees, effectively reducing the overall cost of opening multiple Monicals Pizza locations under a Development Agreement.