Waters Edge Winery & Bistro franchise
2026 filing · March 23, 2026Shares sales figures
Waters Edge Winery & Bistro at a glance
A winery and bistro that makes and sells its own wine, teaches winemaking and serves a bistro menu. At the end of 2025 there were 11 Waters Edge Winery & Bistro locations in the US, all franchised.
The business
- Franchisor
- Waters Edge Wineries, Inc
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 2012
- 14 years of selling franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Rancho Cucamonga, California
- Typical size
- 4,000–7,000 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $584K–$1.34M
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $57,500
- Plus a $20,000 application fee
- Royalty
- 6%
- 5% of gross sales for the first 12 months and 6% after that, paid monthly, plus 2% for advertising
- Brand fund
- 2%
- 2% of gross sales, paid monthly (full franchises only)
- Renewal fee
- $5,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- None
- No exclusive territory
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 11
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 11
- Company-owned
- 0
From Waters Edge Wineries, Inc’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Waters Edge Winery & Bistro among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Waters Edge Winery & Bistro | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $963,552 | Costs more than 82% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $57,500 | Higher than 84% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 6% | Higher than 35% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 11 | Fewer than 60% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $822,365 | Higher than 52% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 0.9× | Lower than 86% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a Waters Edge Winery & Bistro franchise costs
Opening one Waters Edge Winery & Bistro costs an estimated $584,250 to $1,342,854. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are leasehold improvements ($352,000 to $953,500) and winery equipment ($73,000 to $90,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $57,500 | ||
| Leasehold Improvements | $352,000 | $953,500 | |
| Winery Equipment | $73,000 | $90,000 | |
| Computer System & Label Printing; data storage, Phone System, internet access and other hardware and software costs needed to implement and maintain these. | $2,957 | $14,660 | |
| Orderport POS System Software, Hardware, and first 3 months of Technology Fee | $8,150 | $10,650 | |
| Added Services Fee | $5,940 | ||
| Rent, Lease & Utility Security Deposits | $9,000 | $40,000 | |
| Initial Inventory | $35,000 | $55,000 | |
| Insurance (initial deposit) | $1,000 | $6,000 | |
| Training Expenses | $2,000 | $9,500 | |
| Custom Winery System Training | $4,000 | ||
| Pre-Opening Marketing Package | $15,000 | ||
| Reunion Deposit Fee | $375 | ||
| Winery Licenses,; licensing compliance | $5,500 | $10,900 | |
| Professional Fees | $1,000 | $5,000 | |
| Uniforms | $500 | $1,500 | |
| Payroll Service | $180 | $750 | |
| Local Organizations (Optional) | $0 | $500 | |
| Bank Charges for first 3 months | $60 | $150 | |
| Janitorial for first 3 months | $500 | $1,000 | |
| Entertainment for first 3 months | $0 | $7,500 | |
| Printing and Reproduction | $100 | $1,000 | |
| Security System | $100 | $300 | |
| Televisions | $0 | $1,500 | |
| Food Protection Training, Testing and Certification | $388 | $629 | |
| Additional Funds (3 month period) | $10,000 | $50,000 | |
| Total | $584,250 | $1,342,854 | |
Source: Waters Edge Wineries, Inc, 2026 filing, page 14
Waters Edge Winery & Bistro franchise fee
The franchise fee is $57,500, plus a $20,000 application fee. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Waters Edge Wineries, Inc, 2026 filing, page 9
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of gross sales for the first 12 months and 6% after that, paid monthly, plus 2% for advertising. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2% of gross sales, paid monthly (full franchises only). |
| Technology Fee | $550 per month |
| Transfer Fee | 50% of our then current Initial Franchise Fee |
| Renewal Fee | $5,000 |
| Additional Training Fee | $400 per day |
| Local Advertising | 3% of Gross Sales |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Waters Edge Wineries, Inc, 2026 filing, page 11
Other fees as filed, from pages 11–12. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Waters Edge Winery & Bistro publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average sales
- $822,365
- Median sales
- $538,505
Yearly figures for 2025, covering franchised stores open at least 12 months in 2025. The average is about 0.9 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: Waters Edge Wineries, Inc, 2026 filing, pages 40–41
SBA loans to Waters Edge Winery & Bistro franchisees
Lenders approved 10 SBA 7(a) loans for Waters Edge Winery & Bistro franchisees from 2018 to 2026, $8.61M in all. Of the 2 that have ended, 1 was paid in full and 1 was charged off. The other 8 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
How Waters Edge Winery & Bistro compares
Of the 302 retail franchises on this site, Waters Edge Winery & Bistro is the 277th cheapest to open and the 202nd largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Waters Edge Winery & Bistro | Typical retail brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $584K | $198K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $1.34M | $425K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $58K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 6% | 5.7% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 2% | 2% | 2% |
| Sales per location | $822K | $724K | $794K |
| US locations | 11 | 38 | 21 |
| Change in franchised locations, 0 yrs | −21.4% | 0% | – |
| 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 12 (−2) | 0 |
| 2024 | 11 (−1) | 0 |
| 2025 | 11 (0) | 0 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating. Some of the counted locations are private-branded wineries.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: franchise failure rates.
Source: Waters Edge Wineries, Inc, 2026 filing, page 43
Who owns Waters Edge Winery & Bistro?
Waters Edge Winery & Bistro franchises are sold by Waters Edge Wineries, Inc.
From Waters Edge Wineries, Inc’s 2026 filing.
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 8–9. |
|---|---|
| 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: Waters Edge Wineries, Inc, 2026 filing, litigation on pages 8–9, bankruptcy on page 9
Waters Edge Winery & Bistro filings
The figures on this page come from Waters Edge Wineries, Inc’s 2026 filing, issued March 23, 2026, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | March 23, 2026 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
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