Start a Wetzel's Pretzels Franchise in 2025

2025 Franchise 500 Rank: #410 Not ranked last year

Initial investment: $179K - $690K

Units as of 2024: 426 24.9% over 3 years

Wetzel’s Pretzels is based in Pasadena, California. It is a chain of fast-food restaurants that aim to satisfy customers’ soft pretzel and hot dog cravings. Wetzel’s Pretzels aims for its hand-rolled, freshly-baked, soft, and served hot pretzels to be famous, with continued consumer base growth.

Founded in 1994, Wetzel's Pretzels began franchising in 1996. Since beginning to franchise, Wetzel’s Pretzels has opened hundreds of bakeries across the United States, with its prime locations being at the Disneyland Resort and the Disney World Resort. Every Wetzel’s Pretzels franchise strives to provide the same quality in adherence to what the founders had in mind.

Why You May Want to Start a Wetzel’s Pretzels Franchise

Whether you are in for a single Wetzel’s Pretzels bakery, multiple Wetzel’s Pretzels, or a single Wetzel’s Pretzels franchise concession truck or trailer option, becoming a franchisee may allow you to make business operations simple and fun. If you are passionate about satisfying consumers’ cravings for handheld snacks on the go, have an entrepreneurial spirit, possess good leadership skills, and are willing to follow a proven business system, becoming a part of Wetzel’s Pretzels may be a viable option.

The benefits of becoming a franchisee of this heavyweight may be plentiful. For instance, a Wetzel’s Pretzels franchise can serve as a tourist attraction, especially in Disney locations, the Staples Center, and Dodger Stadium.

Opening a Wetzel’s Pretzels franchise may offer a more predictable outcome than investing in a completely new brand that could struggle to thrive in an already crowded and competitive industry.

What Might Make a Wetzel Pretzels Franchise a Good Choice?

All Wetzel’s Pretzels’ locations should offer bold, bright colors that keep their customers’ imaginations rolling. Also, customers can witness the pretzel-making magic—they can watch as the dough gets rolled, twisted, and baked into different shapes and flavors. For its franchisees, Wetzel’s Pretzels is very supportive from the beginning. Apart from the initial training held at its headquarters, Wetzel’s Pretzels offers on-location ongoing annual training and support on how to handle customers, proceed with operations, and sales and marketing.

To be part of the Wetzel’s Pretzels team, you should make sure you’re financially ready for an initial investment made up of a franchise fee and other startup costs. In addition, you should prepare yourself for ongoing fees that will include advertising, royalty, and potential renewal fees. Franchisees will also need to meet the company's set net worth and liquid capital requirements.

Wetzel’s Pretzels may offer a discount on the franchise fee to veterans who were honorably discharged if they meet the qualifications.

How to Open a Wetzel’s Pretzels Franchise

Before making any financial commitment or signing an agreement, you must perform your due diligence and establish if this is the right opportunity for you. As part of your due diligence, you may want to speak to existing franchisees and ask the Wetzel’s Pretzels franchising team questions.

It may be a good idea to speak with an attorney or financial advisor to ensure that you have the necessary financial resources to own and operate a Wetzel’s Pretzels location.

Company Overview

About Wetzel's Pretzels

Industry	Food
Related Categories	Pretzels, Baked Goods, Miscellaneous Baked Goods, Desserts
Founded	1994
Parent Company	Wetzel's Pretzels LLC
Leadership	Hillary Frei, CMO
Corporate Address	35 Hugus Alley, #300 Pasadena, CA 91103
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok

Business Overview

Franchising Since	1996 (29 years)
# of employees at HQ	35
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises throughout the US. This company is offering new franchises in the following international regions: Asia, Central America, Canada
# of Units	426 (as of 2024)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a Wetzel's Pretzels franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$40,000
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$178,500 - $689,750
Net Worth Requirement Definition: The minimum net worth you must have in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company What you need to know: Net worth is the value of a person's assets minus liabilities. Assets include cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate. Liabilities include items like mortgages, car payments, and credit card debt.	$300,000 - $500,000
Cash Requirement Definition: The minimum liquid capital you must have available in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company.	$75,000 - $150,000
Veteran Incentives Definition: A discount or other incentive offered to military veterans who buy a franchise with this company.	25% off franchise fee
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	7%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	1%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	10 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Financing Options

Some franchisors offer in-house financing, while others have relationships with third-party financing sources to which they refer qualified franchisees.

Third Party Financing	Wetzel's Pretzels has relationships with third-party sources which offer financing to cover the following: franchise fee, startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, payroll

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	40 hours
Classroom Training	40 hours
Ongoing Support	Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security & Safety Procedures Lease Negotiation Field Operations Site Selection
Marketing Support	Regional Advertising Social Media SEO Website Development Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	Yes
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	Yes
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
# of employees required to run	10
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	Yes