FRANCHISE·WATCH·DESK

SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · CALIFORNIA

Medicine Shoppe franchise in California: what the public record shows

Franchisees of Medicine Shoppe in California have taken 14 SBA loans in the FY1991–present FOIA files (average $802,614). Fewer than 30 of them were approved through FY2020 and have resolved, so no local loss ratio is published. Medicine Shoppe's national ratio is 0.4×.

SBA loan outcomes · Californiavs same-year franchise loans

Loans in CA

14

Charged off (all years)

0 of 7

Loss ratio in CA

—

Loss ratio nationally

0.4×

Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = CA. Loss ratio = charge-offs among loans approved through FY2020 ÷ the charge-offs expected if each had defaulted at the national rate for franchise loans approved the same year; 1.0× is the same. Only charged-off and paid-in-full loans count. A ratio is shown at 30+ such loans; “not clear” marks a ratio chance alone could produce. The all-years count mixes every era and is evidence, not a rate to compare. Borrowers are matched to the brand by name and SBA franchise code; some matches may be wrong or missing.

Market density · California vs nationalDense market

Businesses in this industry

5,553

statewide, all operators

Per 100k residents

14.1

national 11.6

Versus the country

+22%

denser

Every business in Medicine Shoppe's industry operating in California — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across the brand-state cells in the loan data, denser markets have historically charged off less often than the thinnest (see the research page). A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.

Labor cost · California vs nationalHigh wage pressure

Avg weekly wage, this industry

$961

California, BLS QCEW 2025

National average

$806

same industry, all states

Versus the country

+19%

costlier to staff

What Medicine Shoppe's industry actually pays workers in California, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This cost signal is independent of the FDD: a market can look demand-rich above and still carry a margin headwind here if local wages run hot for the sector.

Same-sector systems with SBA loan history in California12 systems
SystemLoans in CACharged off (all years)Loss ratio in CAUnits in CA
MASSAGE ENVY838 of 700.7×NOT CLEAR126
Gameday Men's Health270 of 1——
AFC/AMERICAN FAMILY CARE200 of 2—19
HEALTH MART170 of 9—461
The Joint...the chiropractic place150 of 7—33
Perspire Sauna Studio130 of 2—21
Heights Wellness Retreat121 of 5—13
THE NOW9———
Elements Therapeutic Massage80 of 7——
Restore Hyper Wellness7———
beem Light Sauna6——3
Hand and Stone60 of 6——

Other systems in Medicine Shoppe's sector whose franchisees borrowed in California. A loss ratio appears only where at least 30 loans approved through FY2020 have resolved; “—” means too few.

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