Franchise Facts Report → brands → Fat Shack
Fat Shack franchise — is it worth it?
Low risk Growing network Item 19 disclosed
Fat Shack is a quick-service restaurant brand with a growing network of 28 outlets.
Everything below is free, read straight off Fat Shack's registered filing, with where the numbers land against quick-service restaurant peers. Weighing Fat Shack against other options? Get a free shortlist of franchises that fit your budget.
Figures above are as disclosed in Fat Shack's most recent FDD (registered 2026). Source: Wisconsin Dept. of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration · filing 640652 — check it yourself. See every other Wisconsin-registered franchise.
Considering Fat Shack? See what else fits your budget
Tell us your budget and the industries you're open to. We'll match you with 5–10 franchises whose own FDDs fit — ranked by earnings disclosure, growth and closure rate — and email you the list. Fat Shack will be on it if it fits.
How much does a Fat Shack franchise make?
Fat Shack is one of the franchisors that answers this on the record: its most recent FDD makes an Item 19 financial performance representation — actual unit earnings figures, disclosed by the franchisor itself. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly from this filing, so we don't print one; Item 19 of the source FDD has the tables. See every quick-service restaurant brand that discloses earnings in the Fast food & quick-service restaurant franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings ranking.
Fat Shack franchise profit vs. revenue
Revenue is not profit. An Item 19 almost always reports sales — what a location takes in — not what an owner keeps. Out of that number come Fat Shack's 6% royalty, the ad fund, rent, payroll, supplies and debt service. No FDD tells you a Fat Shack franchise's profit, because profit depends on your site, your rent and how you run it — so treat any "Fat Shack franchise profit" figure quoted elsewhere as someone's estimate, not a disclosure.
Fat Shack lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)
Fat Shack's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2026) discloses no litigation in Item 3. That is a real signal rather than a gap: the FTC Franchise Rule requires a franchisor to disclose material litigation involving itself, its predecessors, parents, affiliates and management, so an empty Item 3 in a current filing means there was nothing it was required to report. It is worth reading alongside the churn numbers — a system can have a clean Item 3 and still be losing franchisees, which is what Item 20 shows.
Fat Shack closures & failure rate
Before you sign, Fat Shack will hand you a list of current owners to call as references — and they choose who's on that list. It won't include the owners who quit, got bought out, or were forced out last year. The FDD does report that number, even though the reference list leaves those people off. Below is what Fat Shack's most recent filing shows, and whether it's normal for a quick-service restaurant of this kind.
The closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate is Item 20 — outlet openings, closures, terminations and non-renewals, reported by the franchisor. Fat Shack's latest tables show a growing franchised network. Its franchised-outlet closure rate — closures, terminations and non-renewals against outlets — is 0%, against a quick-service restaurant median of 2.9% — at or better than the category. Net franchised outlets moved +4 to 28 in the latest reported year.
Who owns Fat Shack?
Fat Shack's franchise is offered by Fat Shack Inc. — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2026), and the entity a franchisee actually signs with. That name comes straight off the filing at WI DFI; it identifies the franchisor, not necessarily the ultimate parent company behind it.
Quick-service restaurant franchises at a similar investment level
Anyone weighing Fat Shack is really weighing it against the other brands their money could go into. These are the closest by total initial investment (FDD Item 7), each with its own FDD-based page.
Fat Shack franchise — frequently asked
Who owns Fat Shack — who is the franchisor?
Fat Shack's most recently filed FDD (2026) names Fat Shack Inc. as the franchisor — the entity you would actually sign the franchise agreement with, as stated on the disclosure document itself. A registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent company.
How much does a Fat Shack franchise cost?
Fat Shack's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at $183,250 – $487,600, with an initial franchise fee of $18,000 and a 6% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote. Against quick-service restaurant peers it sits in the top quartile (median $604,609).
How much profit does a Fat Shack franchise make?
Fat Shack discloses unit earnings in Item 19, but that figure is revenue — sales — not profit. Royalties (6% of gross for Fat Shack), the ad fund, rent, payroll and supplies all come out of it, and no FDD discloses what an owner nets. Any Fat Shack franchise profit number quoted elsewhere is an estimate.
Does Fat Shack disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
Yes — Fat Shack reports unit-level earnings in Item 19. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly, so check Item 19 of the source FDD for the numbers.
Are there lawsuits against Fat Shack?
No — Fat Shack's most recently filed FDD (2026) discloses no litigation in Item 3. Franchisors must disclose material litigation involving themselves, their predecessors, parents, affiliates and management, so an empty Item 3 is a genuine signal rather than an omission.
Is Fat Shack a good franchise to buy?
Nobody can answer that from Fat Shack's numbers alone — it comes down to how its investment, earnings, litigation and franchisee churn stack up against quick-service restaurant peers and against your own budget. Our read on this filing is low risk. Every figure behind that read is on this page for free. If you're comparing options, the free shortlist on this page matches you with 5–10 franchises that fit your budget and industry.
Get a free email when something changes on Fat Shack or quick-service restaurant: a new FDD registration, a new lawsuit, an outlet count that shifts, or Item 19 earnings going from undisclosed to disclosed. Pulled straight from the same state registries this page is built on.