HobbyTown
Retail & Consumer Goods · Specialty Retail
- Active units
- 100
- Avg unit volume
- $1.5M
- Royalty
- 4.8%
Franchised, year-end 2023
of weekly Net Sales
About HobbyTown
HobbyTown is a retail chain with specialty hobby-related merchandise, including RC vehicles, models, toys & games.
Key terms
- Franchise fee
$50k
- Multi-store pricing
Second store 42000; Third 38000; Fourth 36000; Fifth 34000; Sixth 32000; Seventh–Tenth 30000; must sign separate Franchise Agreements at the same time and pay all initial franchise fees upon signing.
- Local advertising
2.0% of Net Sales
- Footprint
3,000 – 6,000 sq ft
- Veteran discount
10000.0% off franchise fee — $10,000 discount; initial fee becomes 39,500. Applies only to newly developed stores; not to transfers or conversions.
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 locations94
Franchised units open at year-end
- New openings2
Gross new units opened during the calendar year
- 1-year unit growth rate-6.0%
Net unit growth versus prior year
- 3-year unit CAGR-7.8%
Compound annual growth rate of unit count over the trailing 3 years
- Unit growth ratio0.3×
Cumulative opens / closures through year-end
Unit economics
- Annual unit volume (Median)—
Per FDD Item 19 disclosure
- Annual unit volume (25th percentile)—
Per FDD Item 19 disclosure
- Annual unit volume (75th percentile)—
Per FDD Item 19 disclosure
- 1-year Median AUV growth rate0.3%
Year-over-year change in median AUV
- Store-level EBITDA Margin—
Median unit-level EBITDA / AUV
Investment profile
- Estimated initial investment$393k
Midpoint of estimated initial investment range
↓ Lower is better - Time to open—
Midpoint of average time from agreement to opening
- Royalty rate4.8%
Percent of net sales paid to the franchisor
↓ Lower is better - Sales-to-investment ratio—
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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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.