Spice Merchants franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a Spice Merchants franchise takes $78,400 – $168,500 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is $25,000 – $30,000. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 8% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 2%. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
Spice Merchants franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | $25,000 | $30,000 | $25,000 to $30,000 | |
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $78,400 | $168,500 | $78,400 to $168,500 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $78,400 | $168,500 | $78,400 to $168,500 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means Spice Merchants's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 8% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 2% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full Spice Merchants cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How Spice Merchants's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where Spice Merchants's disclosed cost sits against the Food & Beverage category:
- Minimum startup cost of $78,400 — about 72% below the Food & Beverage median of $282,500.
- Initial franchise fee of $25,000 — about 29% below the Food & Beverage median of $35,000.
Category medians are computed from the Food & Beverage brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Food & Beverage franchises
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How Spice Merchants's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2017: began the window at 0 units; 13 units opened, 4 closed, ending at 9 units.
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for Spice Merchants or anyone else. The only primary source is Item 19 of the brand's own franchise disclosure document (FDD), and no law requires a franchisor to publish one, so the "average owner income" numbers circulating elsewhere are usually unsourced or survivorship-biased. Ask Spice Merchants for its current FDD and read Item 19 yourself — and if there is no Item 19, that silence is information too.
What this data can't tell you
Everything on this page comes from disclosure filings — fees, ranges, and unit counts. Four questions that matter just as much are not in any filing we can source, so we say so instead of guessing:
- The hours and the labor
- No dataset field says whether Spice Merchants is a manage-from-a-laptop business or a 60-hour week in disguise. Item 15 of the FDD states whether you're obligated to run the business personally, and Item 11 lists what the franchisor actually does for you — then ask current owners what their week looks like (validation calls), not the sales team.
- How hands-on the ownership really is
- "Semi-absentee" is a pitch, not a filing field. Treat any hands-off claim as unverified until it's consistent with Item 15 and with what multiple current franchisees tell you — what absentee ownership actually means.
- Your territory — whether it's protected, and whether it's open
- Two territory questions sit outside our data. Whether Spice Merchants grants a protected or exclusive area is set in Item 12 of the FDD and varies brand to brand — some grant none, and the carve-outs (online sales, national accounts) matter as much as the map. And filing data can't say what's open in your market this month; only Spice Merchants can confirm current availability. Ask both before you inquire, and get the answer in writing.
- What owners earn
- Covered honestly above: our dataset has no earnings fields, the only primary source is the brand's own Item 19, and here is how to read that evidence.
About the Spice Merchants franchise
Spice Merchants is a food & beverage franchisor with 9 units at the end of 2017 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2017, it began the window at 0 units; its filings record 13 unit openings and 4 closures, ending at 9 units. Its parent company is Spice Merchants Entities Corp..
No franchise-related lawsuits reported in the disclosure data we hold (FDD Item 3, as of 2026-05) — an absence in our sources, not a guarantee; confirm against the brand's current FDD.
From the franchisor's materials
We offer franchises for retail businesses that sell spices, spice blends, teas and related items. You will use the trade name, "Spice Merchants" or “Spice & Tea Merchants.” You can expect to compete with other independent and franchised businesses offering similar products and services to your potential customers including businesses that specialize in the sale of spices and teas. In addition, health food stores, discount chain retailers and grocery stores also might sell spices and teas in varying types and quantities. You should be aware that you may have to obtain a license from your county health department or Department of Agriculture in your state prior to opening for business. We are not aware of any other industry specific factors or legal requirements that you have to know about as part of running your business such as particular licenses or governmental regulations pertinent only to the sale of spices, spice blends and teas.
Spice Merchants franchise: quick answers
- How much does a Spice Merchants franchise cost?
- $78,400 – $168,500 all-in to open, per Spice Merchants's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many Spice Merchants units are there?
- 9 units at the end of 2017 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have Spice Merchants's units held up?
- 84.6% of units at risk between 2015 and 2017 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).