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DICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT
Dickey’s Barbecue Pit franchises restaurants specializing in freshly prepared barbecue-style meats and related food and beverage items, offered in Traditional (stand-alone or shopping centers), Non-Traditional (food courts, convenience stores, mobile units), and Delivery-Carryout formats. The business model licenses a comprehensive system including Proprietary Marks, confidential recipes, operational procedures, training, and manuals to franchisees, with options for single units or multi-unit Development Agreements. It targets consumers seeking quick, affordable, high-quality barbecue in fast-casual and quick-service settings, competing with other barbecue and counter-service restaurants.
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Franchise Costs
6% royalty + 3% marketing fund + $691-$715/mo technology, software, and support fees
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 dataDICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT Franchise Analysis
Dickey's Barbecue Pit grabs attention with a barbecue empire that's suddenly contracting in a competitive fast-casual market, raising eyebrows among investors eyeing quick-service growth plays. Absent Item 19 earnings disclosure leaves revenue foggy, but SBA loan history and outlet trends whisper cautionary tales of franchisee struggles. Is this a pitfall disguised as slow-smoked opportunity, or a buy-low chance in a flavorful niche?
Startup hurdles hit hard per Item 7: $20,000 franchise fee, 6% royalty, 3% ad fund, plus $691-$715 monthly tech fees pile on ongoing costs without total investment range detailed. No Item 19 means no official AUV or profit figures, forcing reliance on indirect signals like 266 SBA loans averaging $335,243 but a stark 21.4% default rate—far above industry norms—signaling cash flow squeezes for many operators. Litigation history bulges with franchisee suits over fraudulent inducement, fee disputes, and contract breaches, plus franchisor counters on abandonments, painting a fractious relationship.
System health via Items 20-21 reveals contraction: 442 locations in 2023 shrank 19% to 358 in 2024 (385 franchised, 9 corporate), with 97 terminations, 71 transfers, and just 20 projected new units amid a bankruptcy-stained past. High transfers suggest resale churn, while modest growth plans clash with BBQ rivals expanding aggressively. For investors, this screams high-risk turnaround bet—strong brand since 1994, but weakening metrics demand deep due diligence on local markets and multi-unit potential before committing.
Analysis based on the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document. All figures should be independently verified before making investment decisions.
How DICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT Compares
| Franchise | Investment | Fee | Royalty | Locations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
DICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT Current | N/A | $20K | 6.0% | 385 |
| Tropical Smoothie Cafe | $276K – $771K | $35K | 6.0% | 1,650 |
| TROPICAL SMOOTHIE CAFÉ | $300K – $721K | $35K | 6.0% | 1,371 |
| FIREHOUSE SUBS RESTAURANTS (UNIT) | $405K – $1.6M | $20K | 6.0% | 1,249 |
| Zaxby's | $1.4M – $3.8M | $35K | 6.0% | 826 |
| Qdoba | $548K – $1.3M | $40K | 5.0% | 652 |
Fast Casual Average 107 franchises | $529K – $1.2M | $39K | 5.6% | – |
* Comparison based on latest FDD filings. Investment ranges from Item 7, fees from Item 5. Showing top 5 of 107 Fast Casual 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
+30 more states
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Unlock location growth dataSBA Loan History
Historical SBA 7(a) loan data for DICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT franchisees (2013 – 2025)
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.
266 SBA loans on record
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Unlock SBA loan historyFranchisee Contacts
358 franchisee contacts on file from official FDD filings.
358 Contacts Available
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Unlock contactsDue Diligence
Litigation (Item 3)
Primarily fraudulent inducement, breach of contract, franchise agreement rescission, wrongful withdrawals of funds and fees, violations of franchise and consumer protection laws, with franchisor counterclaims for unauthorized terminations and restaurant abandonments.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Stanford Sonoma Corp. and ORS.COM, Inc. (companies that sold equipment to franchisees) filed Chapter 11 petitions on April 17, 2023; plan confirmed October 2023, consummated February 28, 2024, final decree March 27, 2024.
System Health (Item 20)
Franchise system changes reported in the most recent fiscal year
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Unlock due diligence reportsFrequently Asked Questions
As of the 2025 FDD, DICKEY'S BARBECUE PIT has 385 franchise locations. The company has been franchising since 1994.
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