Verified — real FDD extraction
SBA-eligible · directory code S0656 since 2017
Fleet Feet
Other · independent · est. —
Fleet Feet is a specialty running store chain selling running and walking shoes, apparel, and accessories with personalized shoe fitting and gait analysis. A franchisee operates a retail store, training staff in fitting expertise and often hosting local running events and groups.
Fleet Feet net unit count grew +8.3% from 2018–2024 per its FDD Item 20.
New to franchising? Start here
A franchise is a business where you (the franchisee) pay a company (the franchisor) for the right to open and run a location using their brand and system — think a local Anytime Fitness or Taco John's owned by a small-business owner, not the corporation.
Before you can buy in, U.S. law requires the franchisor to give you a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) — a long legal filing covering its fees, finances, and history. The numbers on this page come straight from that document:
- Franchise fee — the one-time cost to buy in.
- Royalty — the ongoing cut of your sales you pay the franchisor.
- Item 20 — how many locations opened and closed, the basis for our verdict (from Proven & strong down to Distressed — or Too new to judge).
The verdict
Proven & strong
Distress
Enough units and history to judge, and the record is good: growing or stable units with clean exits by the standards of its disclosed record. The standout in the record: owner turnover is low.
Exit rate · latest year
0.5%
fiscal 2024, per Item 20
Cost to open
$229K–$545K
Item 7 total investment range
SBA loan defaults
5.6%
vs 14.8% avg across rated brands
Behind the verdict
the record, factor by factor · Item 20
3-yr trend · Item 20 Table 1
terminations + ceased-ops vs. all exits · Table 3
transfers vs. base · Table 3
actual vs. projected openings · Table 5
Item 19 disclosure + completeness
Systemwide units
2022–2024
Survival record
FDD Item 20 · outlet status by year
In fiscal 2024, 1 of 183 franchised outlets left the system — a 0.5% annualized exit rate. Not every exit is a failure — but this is the measurable floor.
Show the outlet tables ↓Hide the evidence ↑
| Status (FTC) | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outlets at start | 173 | 175 | 182 | 192 | 254 | 269 |
| Opened | 5 | 15 | 3 | 15 | 17 | 10 |
| Transfers | 4 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 8 | 4 |
| Terminations | 4 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Non-renewals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reacquired by franchisor | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ceased — other reasons | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Outlets at end | 175 | 182 | 182 | 254 | 269 | 275 |
| Net change | +2 | +7 | 0 | +62 | +15 | +6 |
The lender's view
SBA 7(a)/504 loan performance · FY1991–present
Banks have made 72 SBA-backed loans to Fleet Feet franchisees since 2014. Of the 36 that have resolved, 5.6% were charged off (defaulted) rather than paid in full, versus 14.8% across 576 rated brands.
5.6%
2 of 36 resolved defaulted
41.5%
avg. charged-off $ ÷ approved $
2.3%
default rate × loss severity
$429,590
what recent franchisees borrowed
48 mo
approval → charge-off, defaulted loans
16 vs 13
distinct banks still lending
Charge-off rate by loan approval year (%)
Loan performance by state
SOURCE: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA LOAN DATA (DATA.SBA.GOV), FY1991–PRESENT · MATCHED TO FLEET FEET BY FRANCHISE NAME · RESOLVED = CHARGED-OFF + PAID-IN-FULL
The owner's side of the deal
FDD × federal loan record
Who finances it
Wells Fargo Bank National Association
19.7% of this brand's loans
That lender charges off 15.6% of its loans to other franchise brands, vs 14.8% nationally.
Who buys it
39.7%
first-time franchise owners
The rest already owned at least one other franchise. Across the corpus, brands bought mostly by repeat operators charge off at roughly 10% versus 17% for brands sold mostly to newcomers.
Does experience help here?
−13.3pp
multi-unit vs single-unit owners
Owners of multiple units default at 0.0%; single-unit owners at 13.3%.
Computed from 72 SBA 7(a)/504 loans to Fleet Feet franchisees joined to the brand's own FDD. Debt service assumes level amortization at the average disclosed term and rate. A lender's rate excludes its loans to this brand, so it reads the lender, not the brand.
What it costs — and what it drags
FDD Items 5–7 · fees, investment, royalty
Buying in means a $45K franchise fee (Item 5) and a total investment of $229K–$545K (Item 7). The franchisor publishes an earnings claim (Item 19) — read its methodology closely.
To open (Item 7)
$229K–$545K
all-in investment range
Franchise fee (Item 5)
$45K
upfront, one-time
Royalty (Item 6)
4%
of sales, ongoing
Your figure — cross-check against this brand's Item 19 and current-owner validation.
Royalty you'd pay / yr
$40K
4% of sales, before profit
Over a 10-yr term
$400K
royalties alone, excl. ad fund
This is not profit. It's the only money the FDD actually pins down — what you put in, and the royalty you owe on every dollar of sales. Your real take-home depends on labor, rent, food cost, and ramp-to-breakeven, none of which any FDD discloses.
Build a real pro-forma for Fleet Feet with an independent CPAModeled risk
FDD Risk Score · modeled from the public record
Modeled from the public record, this brand looks safer than 71% of systems we score.
Risk percentile
29 / 100
Loan-corroborated
Modeled SBA charge-off
9.9%
Observed SBA charge-off
5.6%
Top drivers: Share financed by high-loss lenders (lowers) · Item 20 exit rate (lowers) · Single-lender dependence (raises) · Share of buyers who are first-time operators (lowers). 15+ resolved loans stand behind this estimate. A linear scorecard built from this brand's own disclosure figures plus the federal loan record behind its franchisees; full spec and cross-validated accuracy on the methodology page. A score is context, not a verdict.
Distress signals
news-sourced · bankruptcies, closures, lawsuits
CourtListener/RECAP · 28mo ago
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. An independent CPA is paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing Fleet Feet's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
Talk to an independent CPA before you buy →Fleet Feet franchise questions, answered from the filings
What percentage of Fleet Feet franchises closed last year?
In Fleet Feet's latest FDD Item 20 (fiscal 2024), 1 of 183 franchised outlets left the system — an annualized exit rate of 0.5%. That counts terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons." There is no official failure rate, and not every exit is a failure, but this is the measurable floor.
How much does a Fleet Feet franchise cost?
Per Fleet Feet's 2025 FDD, buying in requires an initial franchise fee of $45K (Item 5) and a total initial investment of $229K–$545K (Item 7).
What royalty does Fleet Feet charge?
Fleet Feet charges an ongoing royalty of 4.0% of gross sales, per Item 6 of its 2025 FDD.
Does Fleet Feet disclose earnings (Item 19)?
Yes — Fleet Feet makes a financial performance representation in Item 19 of its 2025 FDD. Read it closely: franchisors choose which units and which metrics to include.
How often do SBA loans for Fleet Feet franchises default?
Across 72 SBA-backed loans to Fleet Feet franchisees since 2014, 2 of the 36 that have resolved were charged off — a 5.6% default rate, versus about 14.8% across all rated franchise brands. This is the lender's-eye view of franchisee failure, drawn from public SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA data and independent of the franchisor's own disclosures.