Aroma Joe's franchise
2022 filing · April 8, 2022GrowingShares sales figures
Aroma Joe's at a glance
A coffee chain serving espresso drinks, energy drinks and snacks from drive-thru kiosks and cafés. At the end of 2021 there were 82 Aroma Joe's locations in the US, 81 franchised and 1 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchisor based in
- South Portland, Maine
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $296K–$1.05M
- An Aroma Joe's coffee shop or drive-thru kiosk
- Franchise fee
- $25,000
- With reduced fees for qualified additional shops and $12,500 for honorably discharged veterans
- Royalty
- 8%
- 8% of gross sales, paid weekly
- Brand fund
- Yes
- 2.5% to 4.5% of gross sales, paid weekly
- Agreement length
- 20 years
- Territory
- None
- No exclusive territory
- Franchisor financing
- Introductions to lenders
Where it is
- US locations, 2021
- 82
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 81
- Company-owned
- 1
- Change in 3 years
- +20
- Franchised locations, 2019–2021
- States
- 6
- Most in New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts
From Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC’s 2022 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Aroma Joe's among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Aroma Joe's | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $671,250 | Costs more than 74% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $25,000 | Lower than 82% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 8% | Higher than 85% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 82 | More than 73% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $890,820 | Higher than 56% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 1.3× | Lower than 61% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a Aroma Joe's franchise costs
Opening an Aroma Joe's coffee shop or drive-thru kiosk costs an estimated $296,000 to $1,046,500. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, page 21
Aroma Joe's franchise fee
The franchise fee is $25,000, with reduced fees for qualified additional shops and $12,500 for honorably discharged veterans. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, page 11
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales, paid weekly. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2.5% to 4.5% of gross sales, paid weekly. |
| Technology Fee | $275.00 per coffee shop payable to third party. |
| Transfer | $12,500 |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, page 13
Other fees as filed, from pages 13–14. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Aroma Joe's publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average sales
- $890,820
- Median sales
- $854,948
Yearly figures for 52 weeks ended December 31, 2021, covering coffee shops and drive-thru kiosks open the whole 52 weeks (73 locations). The average is about 1.3 times the midpoint of the cost to open.
Sales are what a location takes in before rent, payroll, royalties and other costs, not what its owner keeps.
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, pages 50–52
SBA loans to Aroma Joe's franchisees
Lenders approved 29 SBA-backed loans for Aroma Joe's franchisees from 2014 to 2025, $10.2M in all: 21 7(a) loans and 8 504 loans. All 10 that have ended were paid in full; none was charged off. The other 19 haven’t ended yet.
A charged-off loan is one written off as uncollectible. See SBA franchise loans for how 7(a) and 504 loans work.
Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 loan data, as of September 30, 2026
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2021 / 2019–2021. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Aroma Joe's | Typical coffee brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | +13% / +33% | +13% / +73% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 0% / 0% | 2.2% / 13% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical coffee brand is the median of the 29 brands in coffee franchises with three years of counts.
How Aroma Joe's compares
Of the 117 coffee franchises on this site, Aroma Joe's is the 43rd cheapest to open and the 20th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Aroma Joe's | Typical coffee brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $296K | $350K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $1.05M | $741K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $25K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 8% | 6% | 6% |
| Sales per location | $891K | $913K | $794K |
| US locations | 82 | 8 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 69 of 117 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 117 brands in coffee franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 66 (+5) | 1 | +5 | 0 |
| 2020 | 72 (+6) | 2 | +6 | 0 |
| 2021 | 81 (+9) | 1 | +9 | 0 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: coffee franchise costs, franchises for veterans and franchise failure rates.
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, page 53
Where Aroma Joe's locations are
At the end of 2021, Aroma Joe's had locations in 6 states. The most are in New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts.
- New Hampshire38
- Maine32
- Massachusetts7
- Florida2
- Pennsylvania2
- Rhode Island1
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | 38 | 0 | 38 |
| Maine | 31 | 1 | 32 |
| Massachusetts | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Florida | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Pennsylvania | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Rhode Island | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, page 54
Who owns Aroma Joe's?
Aroma Joe's franchises are sold by Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC.
From Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC’s 2022 filing.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | None. The filing says no litigation has to be disclosed. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | None. The filing says no bankruptcy has to be disclosed. |
Franchisors must disclose lawsuits and bankruptcies involving the company, its parents and affiliates, and its executives. Many cases are routine disputes with franchisees over fees or contracts; read the descriptions in the filing and ask current owners about anything that worries you.
Source: Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC, 2022 filing, litigation on page 11, bankruptcy on page 11
Aroma Joe's filings
The figures on this page come from Aroma Joe's Franchising, LLC’s 2022 filing, issued April 8, 2022, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 filing | April 8, 2022 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2019–2021 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
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