La Madeleine Franchise AUV, Costs & Stats (2023)

Since it started franchising, La Madeleine has expanded and today has 89 bakeries across the US, of which 60 are franchise-owned. In addition to a unique concept and menu, La Madeleine is a great franchise opportunity if you want to get into the bakery / coffee shop industry.

Indeed, even though the cost is on the higher-end vs. most other bakeries (you would need to invest on average $1,305,000 to set up a new La Madeleine), one bakery makes on average $2.2 million in sales per year in comparison, not bad.

In this article we are investigating La Madeleine from the angle of its Franchise Disclosure Document to find out how much it (really) costs, and how much money you can make as a franchisee (realistically). Let’s dive in!

Key stats

Franchise fee$40,000
Royalty fee5.00%
Marketing fee4.00%
Investment (mid-point)$1,305,000
Average sales$2,202,000
Sales to investment ratio27.0x
Minimum net worth$3,500,000
Minimum liquid capital$800,000
Source: Franchise Disclosure Document 2023

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About La Madeleine

La Madeleine is a leading American bakery and restaurant chain that focuses on a French breakfast-style cuisine.

The restaurant chain is all about good food and heartfelt conversations, spreading the French culture with an award-winning menu to satisfy any craving.

It serves sandwiches, soups, salads, French favorites, all-day breakfasts, and seasonal foods.

Founded in 1983 by Patrick Esquerre, the restaurant chain is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and operates as a subsidiary of Groupe Le Duff.

La Madeleine has been franchising since 2011 and operates today over 89 units, all of which are franchise-owned in the US.

How much do you need to invest?

You would need to invest around $1,305,000 to open a La Madeleine franchised bakery cafe, on average. There are actually 2 different formats you can choose from:

  • Bakery Cafe ($2,048,000 initial investment)
  • Express Cafe ($562,000 initial investment)

Startup costs

Here’s the full breakdown of costs:

Type of ExpenditureLowHigh
Initial Franchise Fee$40,000$40,000
Formation Costs$943,158$2,707,095
Initial Marketing$10,000$30,000
Operating Costs$49,700$276,500
Total$1,042,858$3,053,595
Source: Franchise Disclosure Document 2023

What’s the franchise fee?

The initial franchise fee for a La Madeleine franchise is $40,000

In addition to the initial franchise fee, you must pay to the franchisor a royalty fee of 5.00% of revenues, as well as a variable marketing fee of 4.00% of revenues.

What’s the turnover of a La Madeleine franchise?

On average, a La Madeleine franchise generates $2,202,000 in revenue per year.

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