Franchise Failure Rates

SBA 7(a) loan outcomes · FY2010–FY2019 cohort · Statuses as of June 30, 2026 · Last updated August 17, 2026

Bruster's Franchise Failure Rate on SBA Loans: 2 of 15 Charged Off (Federal Data)

2 of 15
SBA 7(a) loans to Bruster's franchisees (FY2010–2019) ended in charge-off
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019 — Bruster's against its industry and all franchises
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019: Bruster's 13.3%; Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars 10.1%; All franchises 10.2%Bruster's 13.3%; Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars 10.1%; All franchises 10.2%0%5%10%Bruster's13.3% (small sample)Snack and NonalcoholicBeverage Bars10.1%All franchises10.2%
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019: Bruster's 13.3%; Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars 10.1%; All franchises 10.2%Bruster's 13.3%; Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars 10.1%; All franchises 10.2%0%5%10%Bruster's13.3% (small sample)Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars10.1%All franchises10.2%

Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Figures also in the comparison table below.

2 of 15 Bruster's SBA borrowers failed to repay — too few loans to call a rate; read it as a flag, not a verdict.

2 of 15 SBA 7(a) loans to Bruster's franchisees (2010–2019) ended in charge-off. The sample is small; treat this as a diligence flag, not a verdict. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.

What is the Bruster's franchise failure rate on SBA loans?

Bruster's is a Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to Bruster's franchisees: 15 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 2 were charged off. Loan statuses are as of June 30, 2026, and the cohort has matured, so these are settled outcomes rather than projections.

How does Bruster's compare with other Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars franchises?

The table sets Bruster's's charge-off rate beside its Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars peers and the two economy-wide benchmarks. All figures use the same cohort — SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026 — and the same denominator of resolved loans, so they are directly comparable.

Bruster's versus benchmarks, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset.
MeasureBruster'sSnack and Nonalcoholic Beverage BarsAll franchisesAll SBA borrowers
Default (charge-off) rate13.3% (small sample)10.1%10.2%8.0%
Loans in sample15———
Defaults2———
Average loan size$319,933———
Charge-off rate by approval year — share of each fiscal year's Bruster's SBA 7(a) loans that later defaulted (FY2010–FY2019); years with fewer than 10 loans are outlined, not filled
Charge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 1 loans; FY2011 0% of 1 loans; FY2012 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 6 loans; FY2016 33% of 3 loans; FY2017 33% of 3 loansCharge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 1 loans; FY2011 0% of 1 loans; FY2012 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 6 loans; FY2016 33% of 3 loans; FY2017 33% of 3 loans0%5%10%0%2010n=10%2011n=10%2012n=10%2015n=633%2016n=333%2017n=3
Charge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 1 loans; FY2011 0% of 1 loans; FY2012 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 6 loans; FY2016 33% of 3 loans; FY2017 33% of 3 loansCharge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 1 loans; FY2011 0% of 1 loans; FY2012 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 6 loans; FY2016 33% of 3 loans; FY2017 33% of 3 loans0%5%10%0%’10n=10%’11n=10%’12n=10%’15n=633%’16n=333%’17n=3

Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026.

Show the numbers behind this chart
Fiscal yearLoansCharged offRate
FY2010100.0%
FY2011100.0%
FY2012100.0%
FY2015600.0%
FY20163133.3%
FY20173133.3%

How to read this

A charge-off means a franchisee borrowed, operated, and failed severely enough that the SBA wrote off the government-guaranteed loan. Unlike franchisor marketing or Item 19 disclosures, this is an observed outcome recorded by a federal agency. One caveat cuts the other way: SBA borrowers are typically less capitalized than all-cash buyers, so these rates can overstate risk for well-funded operators.

How reliable is this number?

Bruster's's figure rests on 15 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019 — a matured cohort, so the count is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 15 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 6.7 percentage points. Loans approved since 2020 are excluded from the rate because most are still outstanding; they appear on this page as counts only. Every Bruster's figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.

Small sample (15 loans). A single default moves this figure substantially.

Frequently asked

What is Bruster's's franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
2 of 15 SBA 7(a) loans to Bruster's franchisees (2010–2019) ended in charge-off. The sample is small; treat this as a diligence flag, not a verdict. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Is Bruster's a safe franchise investment?
Between 2010–2019, 2 of 15 SBA loans to Bruster's franchisees were charged off. The sample is small. This data is one input for due diligence; it is not investment advice.

Cite this page

Franchise Default Rates (2026). Bruster's franchise SBA 7(a) loan outcomes, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 2 of 15 loans charged off. Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.

https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/brusters/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)