Buffalo Wild Wings Franchise

Buffalo Wild Wings, a Inspire Brands franchise, has been franchising since 1991 - 9 years after the concept was founded in 1982 , currently with 1,260 total locations (1,100 franchised, 160 company-owned, a 87% franchise-to-corporate ratio that signals the operator's reliance on independent owners) in the food & beverage sector, headquartered in MN. Per the 2024 FDD, budget a total initial investment of $1.7M to $4.9M, with the 188% low-to-high spread driven mainly by site size, market, and how extensive the buildout runs. This figure includes the franchise fee of $45K, equipment, leasehold improvements, and initial working capital through the ramp-up period.

Ongoing royalties run 5.0% of gross sales; add the 3.5% advertising-fund contribution and the combined ongoing draw reaches 8.5% of gross sales. Worth noting: Buffalo Wild Wings is among the roughly one-third of U.S. franchisors that voluntarily disclose financial performance data in Item 19. The reported average gross revenue per location is $3.6M, which works out to about $180K in annual royalty for a typical unit. Revenue is not profit, actual franchisee take-home depends on rent, labor, cost of goods, and local demand.

Buffalo Wild Wings's footprint shrank over the past year, down 0.8% with 40 closures on the record. Contraction warrants careful investigation, it can reflect market saturation, unit-level unprofitability, franchisee disputes, or a deliberate pruning of underperforming locations. Call Item 20 contacts and ask specifically about closure reasons.