Potbelly / the report
Potbelly
Everything in the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, in plain English, cited to the page. $49.
Buy the report Delivered the moment you pay. Thirty-day refund, no questions.
These five are free, on the brand page. The report is the other hundreds of pages.
What's inside
- The one-paragraph readwhat you buy, what it costs, what the count did
- Every fee, Items 5 and 643 rows
- What it costs to open, Item 7totals, biggest lines, what's excluded
- Item 19, decodedmethod, sample, exclusions
- Three years of units, Item 20openings, closures, transfers, by year
- Litigation and bankruptcy, Items 3 and 4one line per matter
- Territory, renewal, transfer, termination, Items 12 and 17the clauses that bind you
- Questions to ask existing franchiseesraised by this filing's own numbers
- Provenancestate, filing, date, method
About 4000 words. Web page and PDF, link good for 30 days.
Two pages from it
Every fee · the first 7 of 43
| Successor franchise fee (paid in 2025) | $5,000 to $10,000 received in fiscal 2025 | p. 15 |
| Asset transfer fee | $5,000 | p. 15 |
| Sublease security deposit | Estimated $1,900 to $45,000, refundable | p. 15 |
| Architectural review fee | $2,000 | p. 18 |
| Successor franchise fee | 25% of then-current initial franchise fee | p. 19 |
| Transfer — non-controlling | $500 | p. 19 |
| Transfer — convenience of ownership | $500 | p. 19 |
Three years of units · system totals
| Year | Start | Opened | Closed | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 45 | 39 | 4 | 80 |
| 2024 | 80 | 24 | 2 | 102 |
| 2025 | 102 | 22 | 2 | 122 |
Net gain of 41 outlets, 2023 to 2025.p.75
Where the numbers come from
The Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions registry, filing 641233, effective 4/24/2026. Read line by line by two independent models, one of them blind to the other; a figure is published only when both agree and the quoted words are on the cited page. Nothing is estimated. The method, in full.
Who it's for
- Someone about to sign a Potbelly franchise agreement who wants to know what the document says before the attorney's meter starts.
- An operator comparing Potbelly against two or three other brands on the same terms.
- A lender, landlord or partner who needs the figures with page numbers, not a brochure.
$49
Card, Apple Pay or Google Pay through Stripe. Delivered instantly. Thirty-day refund on request, no questions. Sales tax added at checkout where it applies.
Questions
- Is this the filing itself?
- No. The filing is public and you can get it from the state. This is the filing read for you: every figure with the page it came from, in plain English.
- Is it legal advice?
- This is a summary of a public filing, not legal advice. Take the filing to a franchise attorney before signing. The report makes that meeting shorter and cheaper.
- How current is it?
- It is read from the 2026 filing, effective 4/24/2026. When the franchisor files again the report is re-read, and buyers get the new one.
- What if it isn't what I needed?
- Reply to your receipt within thirty days and the charge is refunded. No questions.