European Wax Center Franchise Costs $476K (2023 Stats)
This article was updated with the 2023 Franchise Disclosure Document
Undeniably the largest waxing franchise in the US with close to 900 salons in total, European Wax Center is a very popular franchise among entrepreneurs. This is (partly) due to a very simple reason: European Wax Center is an incredibly profitable business.
Think about it: European Wax Center salons make on average $884,000 turnover per year, yet the total investment cost is (only) $476,000. All in all, European Wax Center has one of the best payback in the industry.
How much does it really cost to open a new European Wax Center franchised salon in the US today? How much money can you really make as a franchisee? Is this a good investment? Let’s find out!
Key figures
| Franchise fee | $45,000 |
| Royalty fee | 6.0% |
| Marketing fee | 3.0% |
| Investment (mid-point) | $476,000 |
| Revenue per unit | $884,000 |
| Revenue per sq. ft. | [franchise_value_revenue_per_sq_ft] |
| Sales to investment ratio | 1.9x |
| Minimum net worth | $1,000,000 |
| Minimum liquid capital | $500,000 |
Compare European Wax Center vs. 1,000+ franchises
Investment, turnover, royalties, profits and more
About European Wax Center
European Wax Center is an American chain of franchised hair removal salons based in Plano, Texas.
It was founded by siblings Joshua and David Coba in Aventura, Florida in 2004.
The chain offers waxing services and skincare, body and brow products.
European Wax Center started franchising in 2006 and now has more than 893 locations worldwide, including 888 in the United States.
European Wax Center franchise pros and cons
The Pros:
- Site selection and buildout support: The franchisor provides its franchisees with site selection assistance to identify the most viable salon location considering traffic and growth potential. In addition, it helps them with the design layout, construction and access to nationally preferred vendors.
- Comprehensive training and education: The brand has a comprehensive training and education curriculum to train its franchisees about its systems, best operation practices, onboarding and grand opening launch support. Also, it offers them ongoing training on training their staff and sales marketing.
- Extensive corporate and ongoing support: European Wax Center has dedicated and experienced corporate support to help franchisees establish and grow their salons. It offers franchise business consultants, a national conference and regional meetings with multiple learning sessions.
- Aggressive marketing strategies: The brand has results-driven marketing and advertising strategies and tools in place to help its franchisees attract new guests and drive growth and profitability. Franchisees get national and local traffic-building media, pre-approved local programs, regional advertising and promotional campaigns.
- Third-party financing: The brand has established relationships with third-party sources to help its franchisees with finances. It provides them with funding for their franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory and payroll.
- Multiple income channels: The franchise presents the franchisees with a variety of income streams to improve and diversify their earning potential. These include memberships, waxing and facial services.
- Simple business model: The brand embraces a small footprint of 1400–1600 sq. ft., which enables franchisees to utilize available real estate opportunities in their areas. Franchisees can get started quickly and scale into multiple units.
The cons:
- Not a home-based business: The franchise cannot be operated from a home or mobile unit. The franchisor requires its franchisees to have fixed office space, a retail facility, or a warehouse.
- No absentee ownership: A European Wax Center franchise does not present a passive investment opportunity. Franchisees must participate fully in the decision-making and operations of their salons.
- No exclusive territory protection: The brand does not allow its franchisees to operate in an exclusive territory market. Franchisees may face competition from other franchises licensed by the franchisor or brands and affiliates it controls.
- Not a part-time business. The franchise cannot be operated part-time or as a side business. Franchisees must adhere to the agreed operating schedule.
European Wax Center franchise costs
You would need to invest $476,000 to open a European Wax Center franchise on average.
The investment amount is an average that depends on factors like the studio’s location, size, etc. Generally, the investment ranges between $397,000 and $555,000.
Interestingly this amount is in line compared to other salon franchises as per our own salon franchises benchmarks ($450,000).
Startup costs
The investment covers all the startup costs you may need to start a salon. You must pay an initial franchise fee of $45,000 (or $36,000 if you are opening a 2nd location or more).
In addition to the initial franchise fee the investment also covers:
- Formation Costs: training expenses, leasehold improvements, equipment, furniture, signage, computer system, POS system, music system, permits, business licenses, professional fees (legal, accounting, architecture, etc.), etc.
- Initial Marketing: grand opening advertising, new center launch kit, etc.
- Operating Costs: waxing supplies, facial supplies, initial inventory of retail products, insurance, utility deposits, and working capital for the first 3 months, etc.
| Type of Expenditure | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $45,000 | $45,000 |
| Formation Costs | $279,400 | $385,450 |
| Initial Marketing | $15,500 | $29,000 |
| Operating Costs | $56,700 | $95,500 |
| Total | $396,600 | $554,950 |
Compare European Wax Center vs. 1,000+ franchises
Investment, turnover, royalties, profits and more
European Wax Center franchise fees
The initial franchise fee for a European Wax Center franchise is $45,000.
In addition to the initial franchise fee, you must pay to the franchisor a royalty fee of 6.0% of revenues.
European Wax Center franchise revenue
We estimate that a European Wax Center franchised salon generates $884,000 in revenue per year.
Note that European Wax Center does not disclose any revenue revenue data for its franchised-owned salon in the Franchise Disclosure Document. Instead we obtained revenue per salon by dividing the total franchises revenue by the total number of franchises (see below).
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royalty fee paid to Franchisor | 33,306,809 | 36,737,000 | 29,919,000 | 43,648,000 | 49,733,000 |
| Royalty fee | 6.0% | 6.0% | 6.0% | 6.0% | 6.0% |
| Total revenue of all franchises | 555,113,483 | 612,283,333 | 498,650,000 | 727,466,667 | 828,883,333 |
| Number of franchises | 697 | 743 | 789 | 848 | 938 |
| Revenue | 796,433 | 824,069 | 632,003 | 857,862 | 883,671 |
Compare European Wax Center vs. 1,000+ franchises
Investment, turnover, royalties, profits and more
Disclaimer
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