Flip Flop Shops franchise
2025 filing · April 15, 2025Fewer locationsShares sales figures
Flip Flop Shops at a glance
A retail shop selling flip flops, sandals and beach lifestyle accessories. At the end of 2024 there were 47 Flip Flop Shops locations in the US, all franchised.
The business
- Industry
- Retail
- Franchisor
- Flip Flop Shops, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 2007
- 18 years of selling franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Citrus Heights, California
- Typical size
- 800–1,200 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $183K–$349K
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $30,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of gross sales, paid weekly
- Brand fund
- 1%
- 1% of gross sales, paid with the royalty
- Agreement length
- 8 years
- Territory
- Limited
- Limited protection
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2024
- 47
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 47
- Company-owned
- 0
- Change in 3 years
- −2
- Franchised locations, 2022–2024
- States
- 12
- Most in Florida, California and Hawaii
From Flip Flop Shops, LLC’s 2025 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Flip Flop Shops among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Flip Flop Shops | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $266,150 | Costs less than 60% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $30,000 | Lower than 72% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 47 | More than 63% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $473,319 | Lower than 75% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 1.8× | Higher than 57% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a Flip Flop Shops franchise costs
Opening one Flip Flop Shops costs an estimated $182,900 to $349,400. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are initial inventory/supplies ($80,000 to $120,000) and additional funds – 3 months ($0 to $55,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Fee | $30,000 | ||
| On-site Opening Assistance and Evaluation | $1,000 | $5,000 | |
| Rent for First 3 Months | $12,900 | $18,000 | |
| Security Deposit | $5,000 | $15,000 | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $20,000 | $50,000 | |
| Signage | $8,000 | ||
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment | $15,000 | $22,000 | |
| Initial Training Expenses | $1,500 | $3,000 | |
| Point of Sale and Computer Hardware and Software | $3,500 | $7,000 | |
| Initial Inventory/Supplies | $80,000 | $120,000 | |
| Professional Services | $2,500 | $5,000 | |
| Promotional Expenses | $2,500 | $5,000 | |
| Insurance | $1,000 | $6,000 | |
| Additional Funds – 3 Months | $0 | $55,000 | |
| Total | $182,900 | $349,400 | |
Source: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, page 16
Flip Flop Shops franchise fee
The franchise fee is $30,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, page 13
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of gross sales, paid weekly. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 1% of gross sales, paid with the royalty. |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, page 13
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Flip Flop Shops publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average sales
- $473,319
- Median sales
- $333,235
Yearly figures for 2024, covering franchised U.S. shops in malls and strip malls open at least one full year (36 locations). The average is about 1.8 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: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, page 41
SBA loans to Flip Flop Shops franchisees
Lenders approved 26 SBA 7(a) loans for Flip Flop Shops franchisees from 2011 to 2026, $3.85M in all. Of the 20 that have ended, 10 were paid in full and 10 were charged off (50%). The other 6 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, 2024 / 2022–2024. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Flip Flop Shops | Typical retail brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | −4.1% / −4.1% | −0.4% / 0% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 24% / 71% | 5.4% / 18% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical retail brand is the median of the 114 brands in retail franchises with three years of counts.
How Flip Flop Shops compares
Of the 302 retail franchises on this site, Flip Flop Shops is the 135th cheapest to open and the 131st largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Flip Flop Shops | Typical retail brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $183K | $198K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $349K | $425K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $30K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5.7% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| Sales per location | $473K | $724K | $794K |
| US locations | 47 | 38 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 187 of 302 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 302 brands in retail franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49 (+2) | 0 | – | – |
| 2022 | 56 (+7) | 0 | +15 | −8 |
| 2023 | 49 (−7) | 0 | +8 | −15 |
| 2024 | 47 (−2) | 0 | +10 | −12 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating. Counts are shops in the US and its territories.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: franchise failure rates.
Over 4 years, from the start of 2021 to the end of 2024, franchised locations went from 47 to 47, no change. The earlier years come from the brand's 2024 filing.
Source: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, page 45
2021: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2024 filing, page 45
Where Flip Flop Shops locations are
At the end of 2024, Flip Flop Shops had franchised locations in 12 states. The most are in Florida, California and Hawaii.
- Florida23
- California7
- Hawaii5
- North Carolina3
- Arizona2
- Colorado1
| State | Franchised |
|---|---|
| Florida | 23 |
| California | 7 |
| Hawaii | 5 |
| North Carolina | 3 |
| Arizona | 2 |
| Colorado | 1 |
| Georgia | 1 |
| Mississippi | 1 |
| Nevada | 1 |
| Oklahoma | 1 |
All 12 states
| South Carolina | 1 |
|---|---|
| Texas | 1 |
Source: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, page 46
Who owns Flip Flop Shops?
Flip Flop Shops franchises are sold by Flip Flop Shops, LLC. It is a subsidiary of Bearpaw Holdings, LLC.
From Flip Flop Shops, LLC’s 2025 filing, page 9.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | Yes. The filing describes past or pending cases involving the franchisor, its affiliates or its executives on pages 11–12. |
|---|---|
| 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: Flip Flop Shops, LLC, 2025 filing, litigation on pages 11–12, bankruptcy on page 12
Flip Flop Shops filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from Flip Flop Shops, LLC’s 2025 filing, issued April 15, 2025; the earlier ones below are on record with the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository and fill in older location counts.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 filing | April 15, 2025 | Minnesota | Costs, fees and locations, 2022–2024 |
| 2024 filing | – | NASAA depository | Locations, 2021 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
