FRANCHISE·WATCH·DESK

From the filed FDD — automated extraction, check the source

2024 FDD · 1+ year old

Genji Sushi Bars

Grocery & kiosk sushi counters · parent company: not identified

Genji Sushi operates sushi bars and counters, commonly located inside grocery stores like Whole Foods, where staff prepare fresh sushi for grab-and-go and made-to-order sales. A franchisee runs one or more in-store sushi counters, managing chefs, daily fresh preparation, and the small retail operation.

Genji Sushi Bars net unit count declined 1.3% over 2022–2024 per its FDD Item 20.

New to franchising? Start here

A franchise is a business where you (the franchisee) pay a company (the franchisor) for the right to open and run a location using their brand and system — think a local Anytime Fitness or Taco John's owned by a small-business owner, not the corporation.

Before you can buy in, U.S. law requires the franchisor to give you a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) — a long legal filing covering its fees, finances, and history. Most numbers on this page come from that document; others come from federal SBA loan records and labor and census data, each labelled with its source:

  • Franchise fee — the one-time cost to buy in.
  • Royalty — the ongoing cut of your sales you pay the franchisor.
  • Item 20 — how many locations opened, transferred and left the system, the main basis for our verdict, which rates how strong the disclosed record is, or says when the system is too new, the filing too old, or the disclosure too thin to judge.

Our rating · opinion

Too new to judge

37 franchised units over 3 disclosed years of Item 20 is too little history for a rating — a young system's record hasn't had time to show how units perform over a full loan term. Judge the disclosures, not a rating.

Exit rate · fiscal 2024

0.0%

vs 13.3% median across 8 comparable systems (grocery & kiosk sushi counters)

Cost to open

$42K–$134K

Item 7 total investment range

SBA loan losses

No loan record

no SBA 7(a)/504 loans found for this brand

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Data as of 2026-10-29. Figures come from Genji Sushi Bars's public FDD filings (latest: MN 2024, extracted 2026-06-18) and SBA FOIA loan records (through FY2026), extracted by us and possibly containing errors. The rating is our opinion, not investment, legal, or tax advice. Franchisor or owner and see something wrong? Report a correction — we review every request.

What each source says

FDD record · SBA loans · model · auditor

Our answer: Too new to judge

The Item 20 record is too short or too small to rate; the loan record and model are context, not a verdict.

FDD record · Item 20

Too little history

Units fell 1% (2022–2024: 228 → 225); exit rate 0.0% (fiscal 2024) vs 13.3% median.

SBA loans · vs same-year loans

No SBA loans found

No 7(a)/504 loans matched to this brand.

Modeled risk

Not scored

Too little evidence for the model.

Auditor opinion · Item 21

Not extracted

We did not extract the audit opinion.

Behind the verdict

the record, factor by factor · Item 20

hi-1.0.0
Net unit growth41%

latest consecutive years · Item 20 Table 1

Fair
Exit quality29%

terminations + ceased-ops vs. all exits · Table 3

Strong
Transfer / churn18%

transfers vs. base · Table 3

Strong
Promise-keeping12%

actual vs. projected openings · Table 5

Not Disc.
Transparencynot in verdict

Item 19 disclosure + completeness · shown, not counted in the verdict

Weak

Systemwide units

2022–2024

-1.3%
228202222820232252024

Survival record

FDD Item 20 · outlet status by year

In fiscal 2024, 0 of 13 franchised outlets left the system — an exit rate of 0.0% (fiscal 2024), vs a 13.3% median across 8 comparable systems (grocery & kiosk sushi counters). An exit is not a failure: this counts terminations, non-renewals and "ceased — other reasons" as reported, and excludes transfers to new owners.

Show the outlet tables ↓
Status (FTC)202220232024
Outlets at start226228228
Opened01324
Transfers000
Terminations000
Non-renewals000
Reacquired by franchisor000
Ceased — other reasons000
Outlets at end228228225
Net change+20-3

What it costs — and what it drags

FDD Items 5–7 · fees, investment, royalty

Buying in means a $4,500 franchise fee (Item 5) and a total investment of $42K–$134K (Item 7). The franchisor publishes no earnings claim (Item 19) — ask current and former franchisees for real numbers.

To open (Item 7)

$42K–$134K

all-in investment range

Franchise fee (Item 5)

$4,500

upfront, one-time

Royalty (Item 6)

45%

a revenue split, not a royalty on sales

Item 6 lists 45% — at that level it is a revenue split between franchisor and franchisee, not a royalty charged on your sales. This estimator can't model a split; read Item 6 and the franchise agreement for what the percentage applies to and who collects the revenue.

This is not profit. It covers what the FDD fixes: what you put in, and the royalty you owe on sales. Your take-home depends on food and packaging cost, labor, rent, and the months to breakeven, none of which the FDD fixes for your unit (some Item 19s include cost data — read it).

Build a real pro-forma for Genji Sushi Bars with a buyer-paid CPA

Public records

Bankruptcy, closure & federal court records · coverage is selective · dockets are not scored

We have no verified public-record signals published for Genji Sushi Bars. This is not evidence that no events exist. Check PACER, the FDD's Item 3 (litigation) and Item 4 (bankruptcy), and recent news yourself.

6 questions to ask a Genji Sushi Bars franchisee

Built from this brand's own disclosures · take it to your validation calls

The franchisor will give you a list of owners to call. Most buyers ask whether they like it. These questions come from what Genji Sushi Bars has disclosed. Each one carries the number it came from, so you can check the answer against the record.

  1. 01

    The system went from 228 units to 225 over 3 disclosed years. What's the explanation you've been given, and do you believe it?

    A shrinking system means fewer owners funding the ad fund and support staff you're paying for.

    FDD Item 20 · FY2022–FY2024

  2. 02

    Genji Sushi Bars’ FDD makes no financial performance representation at all — legally, they've told buyers nothing about earnings. What did your first 24 months actually look like, month by month?

    When a franchisor won't publish numbers, existing owners are the only source. Silence in Item 19 is a choice, not a requirement.

    FDD Item 19 · 2024

  3. 03

    How many months did it take to cover your own costs, and how much cash did you burn getting there?

    Ramp-to-breakeven working capital is the most underestimated line in any franchise purchase, and the most common reason otherwise-good units fail.

    Not disclosed in any FDD — ask an owner

  4. 04

    What does the franchisor charge for that you didn't expect — required tech fees, mandatory remodels, approved-supplier pricing?

    Required spending appears across Items 6, 8 and 11 rather than in one place, so buyers routinely miss the total.

    FDD Items 6, 8, 11

  5. 05

    If your agreement came up for renewal tomorrow at current terms, would you sign again?

    The single most predictive question you can ask. A hesitation is the answer.

    Ask every owner you speak to

  6. 06

    Who else should I call — including someone who left?

    The franchisor's list is curated by definition. Former franchisees are where the unflattering truth lives, and current owners usually know how to reach them.

    Ask every owner you speak to

Want this as a checklist you can take to the calls?

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This page is what buyers see before they call you for validation. If the record above is wrong — or right in a way the numbers can't show — say so. Franchisors: send corrections with the page reference and we will review them against the filing and update or annotate the page. Corrections are checked against the filings; nothing you write is published with your name unless you agree to it.

Genji Sushi Bars franchise questions, answered from the filings

How many Genji Sushi Bars franchised outlets left the system last year?

In Genji Sushi Bars's latest FDD Item 20 (fiscal 2024), 0 of 13 franchised outlets left the system — an exit rate of 0.0% — compared with a 13.3% median across 8 comparable systems (grocery & kiosk sushi counters) tracked here. That counts terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons" as the franchisor reported them; it excludes transfers to new owners. The FDD does not say why each outlet left, and an exit is not the same as a failure.

How much does a Genji Sushi Bars franchise cost?

Per Genji Sushi Bars's 2024 FDD, buying in requires an initial franchise fee of $4,500 (Item 5) and a total initial investment of $42K–$134K (Item 7).

What royalty does Genji Sushi Bars charge?

Genji Sushi Bars charges an ongoing royalty of 45.0% of gross sales, per Item 6 of its 2024 FDD.

Does Genji Sushi Bars disclose earnings (Item 19)?

No — Genji Sushi Bars's 2024 FDD makes no financial performance representation in Item 19. That is legal and common, but it means the franchisor publishes no earnings claim; ask current franchisees for real numbers.