Tabu Shabu franchise
2023 filing · April 25, 2023GrowingShares sales figures
Tabu Shabu at a glance
A restaurant serving Japanese hot pot (shabu-shabu) with house sauces and drinks. At the end of 2022 there were 8 Tabu Shabu locations in the US, 4 franchised and 4 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Costa Mesa, California
- Typical size
- 1,500–2,000 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $281K–$726K
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $35,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of gross sales, paid monthly, plus up to 2% (currently 1%) to the marketing fee
- Brand fund
- 1%
- 1% of gross sales, paid monthly; it can rise to 2%
- Renewal fee
- $5,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- Limited
- Limited protection
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2022
- 8
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 4
- Company-owned
- 4
- Change in 3 years
- +3
- Franchised locations, 2020–2022
- States
- 2
- Most in California and Texas
Support and records
From Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC’s 2023 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 52; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Franchisor revenue is the company that sells the franchises (royalties, fees and anything else it earns), not what a location makes.
Where it ranks
Tabu Shabu among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Tabu Shabu | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $503,700 | Costs more than 64% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $35,000 | Lower than 61% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 8 | Fewer than 65% of franchises |
How much a Tabu Shabu franchise costs
Opening one Tabu Shabu costs an estimated $281,300 to $726,100. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 16
Tabu Shabu franchise fee
The franchise fee is $35,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 10
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of gross sales, paid monthly, plus up to 2% (currently 1%) to the marketing fee. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 1% of gross sales, paid monthly; it can rise to 2%. |
| POS, Music, and Computer Systems (Hardware and Software) | $5,000 to $20,000 |
| Renewal Fee | $5,000 |
| Local Marketing Expenditure | $1,500 per calendar quarter |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 10
Other fees as filed, from pages 11–15. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Tabu Shabu publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 37
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $760K–$1.4M
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
SBA loans to Tabu Shabu franchisees
Lenders approved one SBA 7(a) loan for a Tabu Shabu franchisee in 2021, for $515K. It hasn’t been paid off or charged off 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, 2022 / 2020–2022. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Tabu Shabu | Typical restaurant brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | +33% / +300% | 0% / +3% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 0% / 0% | 2.5% / 13% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical restaurant brand is the median of the 301 brands in restaurant franchises with three years of counts.
How Tabu Shabu compares
Of the 813 restaurant franchises on this site, Tabu Shabu is the 218th cheapest to open and the 474th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Tabu Shabu | Typical restaurant brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $281K | $408K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $726K | $866K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $35K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| US locations | 8 | 14 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 474 of 813 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 813 brands in restaurant franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 1 (0) | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 3 (+2) | 4 | +2 | 0 |
| 2022 | 4 (+1) | 4 | +1 | 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: franchise failure rates.
Source: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 39
Where Tabu Shabu locations are
At the end of 2022, Tabu Shabu had locations in 2 states. The most are in California and Texas.
- California7
- Texas1
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| Texas | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Source: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 40
Who owns Tabu Shabu?
Tabu Shabu franchises are sold by Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC. Its filing names no parent company.
From Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC’s 2023 filing, page 8.
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: Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC, 2023 filing, litigation on page 10, bankruptcy on page 10
Tabu Shabu filings
The figures on this page come from Tabu Shabu Holdings, LLC’s 2023 filing, issued April 25, 2023, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 filing | April 25, 2023 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2020–2022 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other restaurant franchises
All restaurant franchises
Tabu Shabu is also on these lists: food franchises.