Carvel Ice Cream Shoppe
Food & Beverage · Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts
- Active units
- 326
- Avg unit volume
- $524k
- Royalty
- 3.0%
Franchised, year-end 2023
of weekly Net Sales
About Carvel Ice Cream Shoppe
Detailed brand overview is not available yet for this profile.
Key terms
- Franchise fee
$31k
- Case-by-case reductions
We reserve the right to reduce the Initial Franchise Fee under certain circumstances (economic incentive, additional units, reopening/takeover, professional multi‑unit, or to allow funds for improvements/marketing).
- Apply portion to improvements
We may allow a new franchisee to apply part of their Initial Franchise Fee to the cost of needed improvements or equipment.
- Installment payments
In certain rare circumstances, we may permit installment payments of the Initial Franchise Fee on terms negotiated with the franchisee.
- Brand fund
2.6% of Net Sales
- Local advertising
2.0% of Net Sales
- Footprint
800 – 1,600 sq ft
- Veteran discount
10500.0% off franchise fee — VetFran: Initial Franchise Fee for a Full Shoppe is $20,000 for qualifying veterans or members of the Armed Forces.
Brand Percentile Rankings
Rankings compare brands in the same operating year. Fee and investment figures come from the FDD (2026 filing); filings on file: 2024, 2025, 2026.
Growth
- Total locations336
Franchised units open at year-end
- New openings15
Gross new units opened during the calendar year
- 1-year unit growth rate3.1%
Net unit growth versus prior year
- 3-year unit CAGR—
Compound annual growth rate of unit count over the trailing 3 years
- Unit growth ratio3.0×
Cumulative opens / closures through year-end
Unit economics
- Annual unit volume (Median)$470k
Item 19 cohort year 2025
- Annual unit volume (25th percentile)$471k
Net Sales excludes initial gift card sales, discounts, refunded sales, the discounted portion of employee meals, sales/meals/use/excise taxes paid to a governm…
- Annual unit volume (75th percentile)$612k
Net Sales excludes initial gift card sales, discounts, refunded sales, the discounted portion of employee meals, sales/meals/use/excise taxes paid to a governm…
- 1-year Median AUV growth rate-3.0%
Year-over-year change in median AUV
- Store-level EBITDA Margin—
Median unit-level EBITDA / AUV
Investment profile
- Estimated initial investment$741k
Midpoint of estimated initial investment range
↓ Lower is better - Time to open8 months
Midpoint of average time from agreement to opening
↓ Lower is better - Royalty rate6.0%
Percent of net sales paid to the franchisor
↓ Lower is better - Sales-to-investment ratio0.6×
Median AUV / estimated initial investment midpoint
- Cash-on-cash returns—
Median unit-level EBITDA / estimated initial investment midpoint. Steady-state estimate; year 1 returns will be lower as the unit ramps to median volumes.
Franchisee healthLocked
- Unit closure ratio
- Transfer vs. closure ratio
- Percent multi-unit franchisees
- Litigation rate
- EBITDA multiple on sales & transfers
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Location footprint
Showing 286 of 392 mapped locations
Sources
Financial and operating figures are sourced from the brand's Franchise Disclosure Documents. Brand percentile rankings are based on comparisons to other brands that include the same metrics in their Franchise Disclosure Documents.