Potbelly Sandwich Shop
Food & Beverage · Quick-Service Restaurants
- Active units
- 95
- Avg unit volume
- $1.9M
- Royalty
- 6.0%
Franchised, year-end 2024
of weekly Net Sales
About Potbelly Sandwich Shop
A first-class dive with toasty sandwiches, extra-good salads, hand-dipped shakes, cookies baked daily & lots of good vibes.
Key terms
- Franchise fee
$40k
- 50/50 Incentive Program
For Shops opened early/on time in 2025-2026 under an SDAA, initial franchise fee reduced by 50% to 20000; temporary 50% royalty reduction 1–52 weeks.
- Large Area Developer (LAD) Incentive Program
For qualifying SDAAs with ≥15 Shops over 8 years, 50% reduction of initial franchise fee for early opens; 50% royalty reduction during early period; 50% reduction of development fee.
- Brand fund
3.0% of Net Sales
- Local advertising
1.0% of Net Sales
- Footprint
1,800 – 2,200 sq ft
- SDAA
$40k
- SDAA
$20k
- Veteran discount
Not offered
Brand Percentile Rankings
Rankings compare brands in the same operating year. Fee and investment figures come from the FDD (2025 filing); filings on file: 2024, 2025.
Growth
- Total locations—
Franchised units open at year-end
- New openings—
Gross new units opened during the calendar year
- 1-year unit growth rate—
Net unit growth versus prior year
- 3-year unit CAGR—
Compound annual growth rate of unit count over the trailing 3 years
- Unit growth ratio—
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 rate57.9%
Year-over-year change in median AUV
- Store-level EBITDA Margin—
Median unit-level EBITDA / AUV
Investment profile
- Estimated initial investment$964k
Midpoint of estimated initial investment range
↓ Lower is better - Time to open11 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 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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Location footprint
Showing 74 of 139 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.