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COFFEE NEWS
Coffee News franchisees publish and distribute a free weekly tabloid newspaper featuring advertising, fun facts, and light content, placed in restaurants, coffee shops, and other food-related businesses for patrons to read while dining or waiting. Franchisees generate revenue primarily through selling advertising space to local businesses, with no limits on where ads can be sold. The target market includes advertisers seeking exposure to a captive audience in high-traffic eateries and readers enjoying quick, entertaining content in waiting areas.
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Franchise Costs
$80/mo content fee for initial franchise + $25/additional franchise (staggered) + optional $25-$50/mo Coffee News Online
Financial Performance
Item 19 Financial Performance
This franchise did not provide Item 19 financial performance data.
Be careful if you are interested in investing. The lack of financial performance representations may indicate limited data or varying results across franchises.
Extracted Item 19 Section
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Unlock financial performance dataCOFFEE NEWS Franchise Analysis
Ever thought about owning a quirky newspaper that lands in coffee shops and diners, pulling in ad revenue from local businesses without the grind of daily news? Coffee News has been franchising since 1996, but recent FDD data uncovers some eyebrow-raising shifts in its network size and franchisee turnover. Item 19 stays silent on earnings, while SBA financing records and expansion projections hint at a system fighting to rebound—what's the real story behind the contraction?
Item 7 lays out a razor-thin initial investment of $11,050 to $12,250, including the $9,900 franchise fee, making this one of the cheapest ways to enter franchising—think printing, distribution setup, and basic marketing without hefty buildouts. Ongoing fees are modest: $80 monthly for content on your first territory, dropping to $25 for extras, plus optional $25-$50 for online tools. No Item 19 means no official revenue or profit figures, forcing buyers to dig into alternatives like the two SBA loans averaging $63,000, suggesting some owners scale with debt but at a fraction of typical franchise borrowing.
The system's health shows cracks: 191 units in 2023 shrank to 168 in 2024—a 12% drop—with 32 terminations and just 9 transfers, signaling potential dissatisfaction or market pressures in media publishing. Yet, Item 20 projects 39 new units, hinting at optimism amid three corporate spots. For a hands-on operator targeting ad sales to eateries, the low entry tempts, but that contraction rate demands scrutiny—could this be a bargain buy in a niche or a red flag for fading demand? Weigh the numbers against your hustle for local ads.
Analysis based on the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document. All figures should be independently verified before making investment decisions.
How COFFEE NEWS Compares
Key Insights
- Lower investment than 95% of Business Services franchises
- Higher than average SBA loan default rate in Business Services
| Franchise | Investment | Fee | Royalty | Locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
COFFEE NEWS Current | $11K – $12K | $10K | N/A | 168 |
| Bimbo Foods Bakeries Distribution, LLC | $14K – $607K | N/A | N/A | 6,454 |
| THE UPS STORE (TRADITIONAL) | $216K – $609K | $30K | 5.0% | 4,500 |
| RE/MAX | $37K – $337K | $35K | 1.0% | 2,994 |
| JACKSON HEWITT TAX SERVICE | $71K – $105K | $25K | 15.0% | 2,744 |
| CRUISE PLANNERS | $2K – $21K | $11K | 3.0% | 2,655 |
Business Services Average 198 franchises | $121K – $289K | $47K | 10.2% | – |
* Comparison based on latest FDD filings. Investment ranges from Item 7, fees from Item 5. Showing top 5 of 198 Business Services franchises by location count.
Locations & Growth
Outlet Growth Over Time
Total outlets at end of each year
Geographic Distribution (2024)
Outlets by state across the United States
+16 more states
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Unlock location growth dataSBA Loan History
Historical SBA 7(a) loan data for COFFEE NEWS franchisees (2022 – 2022)
Loans by Year
SBA 7(a) loan activity over time
* Data sourced from SBA 7(a) FOIA loan records. Default rate calculated from charged-off loans.
2 SBA loans on record
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Unlock SBA loan historyFranchisee Contacts
115 franchisee contacts on file from official FDD filings.
115 Contacts Available
Unlock all COFFEE NEWS franchisee contacts with verified contact information
Unlock contactsDue Diligence
Litigation (Item 3)
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
System Health (Item 20)
Franchise system changes reported in the most recent fiscal year
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Unlock due diligence reportsFrequently Asked Questions
The total initial investment to open a COFFEE NEWS franchise ranges from $11,050 to $12,250.07. This includes a franchise fee of $9,900.
