OFFICIAL FILING · MN · 2026
COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER FDD (Franchise Disclosure Document) — 2026
The FDD is the 23-item legal disclosure every U.S. franchisor must hand you at least 14 days before you sign or pay anything (FTC Franchise Rule, 16 CFR 436). COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER's most recent FDD tracked here was filed in 2026 with the Minnesota Department of Commerce (public CARDS portal) — and because registration-state filings are public records, you can read it free, without giving a broker your phone number.
THE SAME DOCUMENT SITES SELL OR GATE BEHIND LEAD FORMS. FILED 2026 · SOURCE STATE MN
| ITEM 5 | Initial franchise fee | $40K |
| ITEM 6 | Ongoing royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| ITEM 7 | Total initial investment | $267K–$966K |
| ITEM 3 | Disclosed litigation matters | 0 |
| ITEM 19 | Earnings disclosure (FPR) | Yes — median unit volume $1.3M (Table 2: "U.S. Average Gross Sales for Cousins Maine Lobster® Restaurants owned by franchisees that operated for a full 12 months For the Period January 1, 2025 – December 31, 2025." Number of Units = 2; Average Annual Gross Sales $1,299,825.37; Median $1,299,825.37; (Min – Max) ($1,285,422.38 - $1,314,228.35); Number of Units at or Above Average = 1 (50%). Narrative basis: "Gross Sales for the period of January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2025, of all franchised Storefronts open during 2025. These franchisees were open for all 12 months in 2025. We did not include data from one Georgia Storefront and one Florida Storefront as they closed in 2025 (and were not open for the entire year). In 2025, a total of two franchised Storefronts closed (one in Georgia and one in Florida). No company-owned Storefronts closed during this period, and no excluded Storefronts closed after being open less than 12 months. The annual gross sales information was obtained by us directly from franchisees' point of sales systems.") |
| ITEM 20 | Outlets (fiscal 2025) | 2 franchised at year end · 2 exits (50.0% annualized) |
| ITEM 21 | Franchisor financial statements | clean (unqualified) audit opinion — Velez & Hardy (Velez·Hardy, CPAs and Advisors), Las Vegas, NV |
Citation discipline: every figure above is extracted from the 2026 COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER FDD as filed and links back to that document. Fields the filing did not state are omitted — nothing here is estimated, surveyed, or filled in from marketing material. FDDs are reissued annually; verify against the current issuance before relying on any number.
COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER FDD questions, answered
Where can I download the COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER FDD for free?
COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document is a public record, filed with the Minnesota Department of Commerce (public CARDS portal). It can be downloaded free from the source link on this page — no broker form, no email signup required.
What year is COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER's most recent FDD on file?
The most recent COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER FDD tracked here was filed in 2026 with the Minnesota Department of Commerce (public CARDS portal). Franchisors must update their FDD annually, so confirm you are reading the current issuance before signing.
Does COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER's FDD disclose earnings (Item 19)?
Yes — COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER makes a financial performance representation in Item 19 of its 2026 FDD, reporting a median unit volume of $1.3M. Read the basis fine print: franchisors choose which units and metrics to include.
What does COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER's FDD Item 20 show?
In fiscal 2025, COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER ended with 2 franchised outlets; 2 of 4 open at the start of the year left the system — an annualized exit rate of 50.0% (terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons").
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. An independent CPA is paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing COUSINS MAINE LOBSTER's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.
Talk to an independent CPA before you buy →