West Coast Sourdough franchise
2026 filing · April 20, 2026GrowingShares sales figures
West Coast Sourdough at a glance
A sandwich restaurant serving hot and cold sandwiches on fresh-baked sourdough bread. At the end of 2025 there were 65 West Coast Sourdough locations in the US, 64 franchised and 1 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- WCSD Inc
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 2021
- 5 years of selling franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Sacramento, California
- Typical size
- 1,200–1,800 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $322K–$551K
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $49,500
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of gross sales or a minimum monthly royalty, whichever is greater, paid weekly
- Brand fund
- None now
- Up to 1% of gross sales, not charged at present
- Renewal fee
- See terms
- 12.5% of our then current Initial Franchise Fee
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- Protected
- Protected territory
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 65
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 64
- Company-owned
- 1
- Change in 3 years
- +39
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 3
- Most in California, Indiana and Tennessee
From WCSD Inc’s 2026 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 100; 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
West Coast Sourdough among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | West Coast Sourdough | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $436,250 | Costs more than 58% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $49,500 | Higher than 64% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 65 | More than 69% of franchises |
How much a West Coast Sourdough franchise costs
Opening one West Coast Sourdough costs an estimated $321,500 to $551,000. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are construction and leasehold improvements ($150,000 to $250,000) and furniture, fixtures and equipment ($65,000 to $95,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $49,500 | ||
| Construction and Leasehold Improvements | $150,000 | $250,000 | |
| Lease Deposits and Rent – Two Months | $6,000 | $49,500 | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $65,000 | $95,000 | |
| Signage | $7,000 | $15,000 | |
| Computer, Software, and Point of Sale System | $4,500 | $7,000 | |
| Grand Opening Marketing | $4,500 | $7,000 | |
| Initial Inventory | $6,000 | $12,000 | |
| Utility Deposits | $3,000 | $7,500 | |
| Insurance Deposits – Three Months | $3,000 | $7,000 | |
| Travel for Initial Training | $1,500 | $3,500 | |
| Professional Fees | $7,500 | $26,000 | |
| Licenses and Permits | $2,000 | $4,000 | |
| Additional Funds – Three Months | $12,000 | $18,000 | |
| Total | $321,500 | $551,000 | |
Source: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, page 20
West Coast Sourdough franchise fee
The franchise fee is $49,500. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, page 13
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of gross sales or a minimum monthly royalty, whichever is greater, paid weekly. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | Up to 1% of gross sales, not charged at present. |
| Technology | Up to $500 per month, currently not assessed |
| Renewal | 12.5% of our then current Initial Franchise Fee |
| Franchisee Directed Local Marketing | 1% of Gross Sales |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, page 14
Other fees as filed, from pages 14–17. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures West Coast Sourdough publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, page 50
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $530K–$920K
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
SBA loans to West Coast Sourdough franchisees
Lenders approved 9 SBA 7(a) loans for West Coast Sourdough franchisees from 2023 to 2026, $4.67M in all. One has been paid in full; none 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
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2025 / 2023–2025. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | West Coast Sourdough | Typical sandwich brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | +31% / +156% | 0% / 0% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 2% / 8% | 2% / 13% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 2% / 4% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical sandwich brand is the median of the 35 brands in sandwich franchises with three years of counts.
How West Coast Sourdough compares
Of the 80 sandwich franchises on this site, West Coast Sourdough is the 41st cheapest to open and the 26th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | West Coast Sourdough | Typical sandwich brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $322K | $321K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $551K | $683K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $50K | $32K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 6% | 6% |
| US locations | 65 | 31 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 50 of 80 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 80 brands in sandwich franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 25 (+10) | 0 | – | – |
| 2023 | 35 (+10) | 0 | +11 | −1 |
| 2024 | 49 (+14) | 0 | +14 | 0 |
| 2025 | 64 (+15) | 1 | +17 | −2 |
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.
West Coast Sourdough passes four of the five tests on our list of the best franchises to own; it had fewer than 100 US locations three years ago.
More in the guides: sandwich and sub franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Over 4 years, from the start of 2022 to the end of 2025, franchised locations went from 15 to 64 (+49, +327%). The earlier years come from the brand's 2024 filing.
Source: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, page 81
2022: WCSD Inc, 2024 filing, page 71
Where West Coast Sourdough locations are
At the end of 2025, West Coast Sourdough had locations in 3 states. The most are in California, Indiana and Tennessee.
- California62
- Indiana2
- Tennessee1
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 61 | 1 | 62 |
| Indiana | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Tennessee | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Source: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, page 82
Who owns West Coast Sourdough?
West Coast Sourdough franchises are sold by WCSD Inc. Its filing names no parent company.
From WCSD Inc’s 2026 filing, page 8.
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 10–12. |
|---|---|
| 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: WCSD Inc, 2026 filing, litigation on pages 10–12, bankruptcy on page 12
West Coast Sourdough filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from WCSD Inc’s 2026 filing, issued April 20, 2026; the earlier ones below are on record with the Minnesota Department of Commerce and fill in older location counts.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 20, 2026 | Minnesota | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
| 2024 filing | – | Minnesota | Locations, 2021–2022 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
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