Nothing Bundt Cakes Franchise Cost 2026: Fee and Royalty

Nothing Bundt Cakes’ 2026 FDD Item 7 estimates $475,200 to $994,100 for a 1,600 to 1,800 sq. ft. bakery, or $490,900 to $1,156,200 for one larger than 1,800 sq. ft. The initial franchise fee is $45,000. The FDD was issued April 30, 2026 and amended May 26, 2026; the Restaurant Finance Monitor copy has a 2025 filename but contains the 2026 disclosure.

Investment by bakery size: Item 7

FDD investment scenario	Estimated initial investment	Paid to franchisor or affiliate, per cover
Bakery of 1,600 to 1,800 sq. ft.	$475,200 to $994,100	$71,784 to $76,784
Bakery larger than 1,800 sq. ft.	$490,900 to $1,156,200	$71,784 to $76,784
First prototype bakery with development rights for three bakeries	$520,200 to $1,039,100	$116,784 to $121,784

The single-bakery tables include lease costs, but exclude real estate purchase costs. Both include $75,000 in additional funds for three months. Item 7 Note 15 says an estimated initial investment is incurred for each bakery established under a Development Rights Rider. The development-rights figure therefore covers the first bakery and the disclosed development fees, not three completed bakeries.

The official franchise page, checked October 14, 2026, lists $667,100 to $1,032,500. That range differs from the FDD’s size-specific estimates. Use the applicable FDD table when building a site budget.

The bakery franchise cost comparison places these size-specific ranges beside other bakery concepts.

For a cookie-focused comparison, review the Great American Cookies franchise cost breakdown.

Before treating another cookie brand as a franchise option, read whether Insomnia Cookies franchises.

Upfront payments: Item 5

These payments are components of the disclosed investment, not amounts to add again to Item 7’s total.

Payment	Amount and terms
Initial franchise fee	$45,000, payable in full when signing the Franchise Agreement; non-refundable
Development Rights Rider	$45,000 for the first bakery plus 50% of the $45,000 fee for each additional bakery at signing; the remaining $22,500 per additional bakery is due when its Franchise Agreement is signed; non-refundable
Initial purchases from NBC Distribution	Approximately $16,034 for required ingredients, accessories, smallwares and supplies; non-refundable
Opening Advertising Program	$10,000 payable when signing; the franchisor may require up to $5,000 more
Master Architect Program	$750 for the preliminary floor plan with up to three revisions

Fees, and the basis the FDD states

Item 6 states 6% of weekly Net Revenues for the royalty and 5% of weekly Net Revenues combined for the Marketing Production Fund and Paid Media Fund. Note 3 says the franchisor sets the allocation between the two funds in its sole discretion and may change it. These two percentages total 11% of weekly Net Revenues, before other applicable fees.

Item 6 defines the basis exactly:

“Net Revenues” mean all of your revenue from operating your Bakery, including delivery, shipping, and E-Commerce Revenues, revenues paid to you by any third-party delivery provider in connection with delivery services related to your Bakery and revenues made from sales to National Accounts (See Item 11), but excluding taxes collected from Guests and paid to taxing authorities and reduced by amount of any documented refunds, credits, allowances, and charge-backs made by the Bakery in accordance with our standards and specifications.

This is a revenue definition, not profit after operating expenses. Note 2 also includes a third-party delivery provider’s commission or other fee in Net Revenues when that provider remits the customer’s purchase price less its charge.

Item 6 fee	Amount and basis	Timing or qualification
Royalty	6% of weekly Net Revenues	Tuesday for the prior week ending Sunday
Marketing Production Fund plus Paid Media Fund	Combined 5% of weekly Net Revenues	Tuesday for the prior week; split set by franchisor under Note 3
Renewal	50% of the then-current initial franchise fee	Upon request for renewal
Transfer upon sale of bakery	$10,000 plus $5,000 transfer opening advertising, plus broker fees or commissions the franchisor incurs	Upon request for transfer; approval required
Training for additional or replacement operators	$2,500 per person plus expenses; may increase if costs increase	Beginning of training; initial training for two people has no additional training fee
Additional training or assistance during the term	Currently $300 per trainer per day plus expenses at the franchisor’s location; $500 per day plus expenses in your territory; may increase if costs increase	When training or assistance begins; travel time billed separately hourly

The franchise page lists 6% and 5% without stating a basis, as checked October 14, 2026. The FDD supplies that basis. The Item 6 guide explains how to compare fee definitions and payment terms.

For other fee structures, review Smoothie King and Robeks, then compare the definitions in their disclosures. The same approach applies when comparing bakery costs with Firehouse Subs or Freddy’s: use each agreement’s stated basis and applicable charges.

Read “per bakery” as the multiplier it is

The franchise page checked October 14, 2026 states $750,000 minimum net worth per bakery and at least $250,000 in liquid capital per bakery. These are qualification thresholds, separate from Item 7’s cost estimates.

For a development plan, apply those per-bakery thresholds to the number of bakeries and budget each opening separately. The FDD offers a single-bakery Franchise Agreement and a Development Rights Rider for multiple bakeries. The franchise page says most bakeries open 9 to 12 months after signing, depending on site selection, permitting and construction timelines.

Compare the unit commitments and qualification terms in the IHOP, Tropical Smoothie and Charleys guides before treating any per-unit threshold as a one-time requirement.

Multiply it out for your development plan

Our free startup-cost worksheet lets you run Item 7 per bakery and total a multi-unit commitment. Plus the due-diligence kit.

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Ownership and dated outlet counts

Per 2026 FDD Item 1, the KKR Acquisition closed May 18, 2026. Bloom Buyer, LLC acquired NBC Holdings from affiliates of Roark Capital Group under a Merger Agreement dated March 17, 2026. At closing, Bloom Topco, LLC became the indirect parent of NBC Franchisor LLC. Bloom Topco is controlled by investment funds affiliated with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. (KKR).

Item 1 reports 765 U.S. franchises, 8 U.S. company-owned locations and 6 Canadian franchises as of December 28, 2025. Item 20 Table 1 gives 771 franchised and 8 company-owned bakeries, 779 total, at the end of 2025. The franchise page checked October 14, 2026 advertises 800-plus bakeries without an as-of date in the captured statement; keep that marketing count separate from the dated FDD totals.

Utah’s 2025 Sunday-operation law

Franchise Times reported in 2025 that Nothing Bundt Cakes required seven-day operation, including Sundays, beginning in February 2025, and that nine of ten Utah locations opposed the change on religious-observance grounds. Deseret News reported March 18, 2025 that Governor Spencer Cox signed HB 441 on March 17, 2025.

The enrolled HB 441 text enacts the protections in Utah Code 13-75-201. Its prohibition reads:

(1) Except as provided in Subsection (2), when a franchisee asserts a sincerely held religious belief, a franchisor may not: (a) unilaterally impose a religious day operation requirement; (b) require a franchisee to accept a religious day operation requirement as a part of an amendment to the franchise agreement; or (c) refuse to renew a franchise agreement based solely on a franchisee’s failure to comply with a religious day operation requirement.

The exceptions read:

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply when: (a) the original franchise agreement provides a religious day operation requirement; (b) the franchisee agrees through a renewal or an amendment to the franchise agreement to a religious day operation requirement; or (c) the franchisor and the franchisee enter into a franchise agreement to develop an additional franchise location that contains a religious day operation requirement.

Subsection (3) states that the protections are not transferable. Under subsection (4), if a court with jurisdiction finds reasonable cause to believe a franchisor violated subsection (1), it may order damages, attorney fees and costs, injunctive relief and civil penalties. The penalty ceilings read:

(c) civil penalties against the franchisor in an amount not exceeding: (i) $10,000 for a first violation; (ii) $25,000 for a second violation within three years after the day on which the franchisee filed the complaint for the first violation; or (iii) $50,000 for a violation subsequent to a second violation within five years after the day on which the franchisee filed the complaint for the first violation.

Section 3(1) specifies May 7, 2025 as the effective date, subject to Section 3(2)’s conditional earlier-effective-date provision for approval by two-thirds of each house. The signing date and the date stated in Section 3(1) are distinct.

No later public update on the dispute was found as of October 14, 2026. The 2026 FDD text does not mention Sunday-operation requirements or the Utah dispute. Its references to Sunday concern accounting and fee-reporting periods. That absence does not establish the current operating-hours policy or the outcome for any particular bakery.

SBA Franchise Directory: Nothing Bundt Cakes appears in the SBA’s Franchise Directory file effective October 9, 2026 (SBA Franchise Identifier Code S1195; franchisor certification marked received). A listing is what a lender checks for brand eligibility; it is not an endorsement, and your own eligibility as a borrower is assessed separately. See how to check the SBA Franchise Directory. The file notes a collateral condition when real estate secures the loan.