The Dog Stop Franchise Review (2026): Costs, Fees, Revenue Potential

• Category: Pet services / facility-based animal care
• Initial Investment: $553,500 to $1,112,800
• Franchise Fee: $60,000
• Royalty: 6% of gross sales
• Marketing / Ad Fee: 2% brand fund contribution plus local advertising of 5% of gross sales in year 1, then 3% thereafter
• Key additional recurring fees: $100 monthly technology fee; convention attendance fee of $1,000 per person annually
• Number of locations: 32 franchised locations and 6 affiliate-owned locations as of December 31, 2024; a separate table shows 31 franchised outlets at year-end 2024, so the disclosure does not clearly establish a single reconciled year-end count
• Best Fit: Manager-led owner with active oversight

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The estimated initial investment ranges from $553,500 to $1,112,800, which places this in a high-cost startup category. The midpoint is roughly $833,150.

Major cost drivers appear to include the physical facility, buildout, equipment, and working capital needs implied by the size of the locations shown in Item 19. Reporting-group stores averaged about 8,973 square feet and 66 kennels, which suggests a sizable real estate footprint rather than a small-format service business.

The initial franchise fee is $60,000. The disclosure also lists additional funds of $23,200 to $104,000, which indicates a meaningful cash buffer may be needed beyond opening costs.

For multi-unit development, the disclosure lists lower per-unit development fees: $55,000 for 2 units, $45,000 for 3–5 units, $40,000 for 6–9 units, and $35,000 for 10 or more. That may reduce upfront franchise fee cost per unit for developers, but it does not change the underlying capital intensity of each location.

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• Royalty: 6% of gross sales, due weekly
• Brand Development Fund: 2% of gross sales
• Local Advertising: 5% of gross sales in the first year; 3% in the second year and after
• Technology Fee: $100 per month
• Convention Attendance Fee: $1,000 per person annually
• Renewal Fee: $10,000
• Transfer Fee: $10,000 total, including a $1,000 nonrefundable deposit
• Training fees for additional trainees or additional training: currently $500 in the situations described in the disclosure, plus expenses
• Late Payment Fee: $100 per occurrence plus interest

In practical terms, the recurring fee load is not limited to the royalty. A new operator is looking at 13% of gross sales in year 1 before considering the monthly technology fee, and 11% thereafter, assuming the local advertising requirement is met through direct spending rather than a shortfall payment.

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Yes, the FDD includes Item 19 financial performance data.

For the 12-month period ending December 31, 2024, the reporting group included 24 locations: 18 franchised locations that provided financial data and 6 affiliate locations that were open for the full calendar year. The system had 32 franchised locations at that date, and 14 franchised locations were excluded because they opened after January 1, 2024.

2024 revenue for locations open the full year

• Average revenue: $917,252
• Median revenue: $721,034
• Range: $378,602 to $2,599,757

The spread is wide. The average is well above the median, which suggests higher-volume units pull the average up. At the low end, one location reported $378,602 in revenue, while the highest reported $2,599,757.

Average disclosed expense profile

For the same full-year reporting group, the disclosure shows average annual amounts of:

• Revenue: $917,252
• COGS: $35,717 (4% of revenue)
• Rent: $142,118 (16%)
• Utilities: $30,577 (4%)
• Labor & payroll tax: $445,965 (49%)
• Supplies: $26,024 (3%)
• Royalties: $53,911
• Brand fund: $16,640
• Tech fee: $5,186
• Revenue less disclosed expenses: $161,113

That last figure is not profit. It is only revenue minus the listed expenses. The disclosure does not establish that this amount includes all operating costs, debt service, owner compensation, taxes, depreciation, insurance, repairs, or other location-specific expenses.

Range in revenue less disclosed expenses

• Low: $12,526
• High: $669,780
• Average: $161,113

This again shows substantial variability across locations.

Newer-location monthly revenue data

The disclosure also includes monthly revenue for locations opened after January 1, 2024. Reported monthly averages rise from:

• Month 1: $14,231
• Month 6: $39,601
• Month 12: $41,289
• Month 18: $66,207

Median monthly revenue for newer locations was:

• Month 1: $8,984
• Month 6: $30,459
• Month 12: $35,702
• Month 18: $61,604

These figures suggest ramp-up can take time and is not uniform. For example, month-18 revenue ranged from $41,618 to $95,398 among the locations with that much operating history.

The Item 19 figures rely on unaudited affiliate profit and loss statements and franchised-location reports submitted through the franchisor's reporting system. The data is prepared on an accrual basis. Because the sample excludes 14 newer franchised locations from the full-year comparison, the full-year averages reflect a more seasoned subset rather than the entire franchised system.

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• Primary model: B2C pet services
• Revenue pattern: Mix of recurring and repeat-use services, with additional retail revenue
• Operating format: Large physical facility with kennel capacity, boarding space, daycare space, grooming area, and retail area
• Staffing profile: Labor-intensive; average labor and payroll tax in Item 19 was 49% of revenue
• Technology / equipment: The disclosure indicates a meaningful technology component and a monthly technology fee; the business also appears equipment-heavy
• Ownership structure: The business must be managed by the franchisee or, if the franchisee is an entity, by one designated owner responsible for decisions and communication with the franchisor

This is not a simple low-overhead service model. The disclosed store sizes, kennel counts, labor ratios, and rent levels point to a hands-on operating business with substantial fixed-cost exposure.

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Advantages

• Item 19 provides actual revenue and expense-category data for a defined reporting group, not just top-line sales.
• The business appears to have multiple revenue streams within one location, including boarding, daycare, grooming, and retail.
• The disclosure includes monthly ramp data for locations opened after January 1, 2024, which helps frame early-stage sales progression.
• Franchised outlet count increased from 19 to 31 in 2024 in one disclosed table, indicating recent unit growth.

Considerations

• Startup cost is high at $553,500 to $1,112,800.
• The fee stack is meaningful: 6% royalty, 2% brand fund, and 5% local advertising in year 1 / 3% thereafter, plus technology and other fees.
• Revenue outcomes vary widely, from $378,602 to $2,599,757 among full-year reporting locations.
• Labor is a major operating cost, averaging 49% of revenue in the disclosed expense table.
• Territory is non-exclusive, which limits territorial protection.

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This franchise may fit an operator comfortable with a large-format, staff-heavy service business and willing to actively oversee a manager-led location. It is more suited to someone prepared for facility operations, recurring payroll management, and a sizable upfront capital commitment.

It likely does not fit buyers seeking a low-cost startup, a passive ownership structure, or a business with simple operations and limited fixed overhead.

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• The franchise term is 10 years, so the commitment is long relative to the capital required upfront.
• Disputes generally must be mediated, arbitrated, and if applicable litigated in the principal city closest to the franchisor's principal place of business, currently Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, subject to applicable state law.
• The disclosure references litigation, so a buyer should review the relevant FDD sections directly.
• Default provisions include relatively short cure periods, including 15 days for monetary defaults and 30 days for operational defaults.
• Certain defaults are listed as non-curable, including issues such as failure to open on time, failure to equip the business, failure to complete training, abandonment, unapproved transfers, and loss of required licenses.

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The Dog Stop presents a tradeoff between a relatively detailed operating picture and a business model that is expensive and operationally demanding. The main question is not whether units can generate revenue—they clearly can—but whether a buyer is equipped for the capital needs, labor intensity, fee load, and variability shown in the FDD.

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