SBA 7(a) loan outcomes · FY2010–FY2019 cohort · Statuses as of June 30, 2026 · Last updated August 17, 2026
Great Harvest Bread Co. Franchise Failure Rate: 16.9% SBA Loan Defaults (2010–2019 Federal Data)
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Figures also in the comparison table below.
About 1 in 6 Great Harvest Bread Co. SBA borrowers failed to repay — more than double the Retail Bakeries average of 8.1%.
Between 2010 and 2019, 65 Great Harvest Bread Co. franchisees financed with SBA 7(a) loans. 11 defaulted — a 16.9% charge-off rate, 2.1x the Retail Bakeries average of 8.1%. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
What is the Great Harvest Bread Co. franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
Great Harvest Bread Co. is a Retail Bakeries franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to Great Harvest Bread Co. franchisees: 65 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 11 were charged off. Loan statuses are as of June 30, 2026, and the cohort has matured, so these are settled outcomes rather than projections.
- SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY201965
- Charged off11
- Charge-off rate16.9%
- Retail Bakeries franchise benchmark8.1%
- Brand vs industry2.1x
- All-franchise SBA benchmark10.2%
- Average loan size, 2010s cohort$309,131
- New SBA loans since 202024
- Early charge-offs since 20201
How does Great Harvest Bread Co. compare with other Retail Bakeries franchises?
The table sets Great Harvest Bread Co.'s charge-off rate beside its Retail Bakeries 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. A cell in red is more than twice the industry benchmark.
| Measure | Great Harvest Bread Co. | Retail Bakeries | All franchises | All SBA borrowers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default (charge-off) rate | 16.9% | 8.1% | 10.2% | 8.0% |
| Loans in sample | 65 | — | — | — |
| Defaults | 11 | — | — | — |
| Average loan size | $309,131 | — | — | — |
What has Great Harvest Bread Co. SBA lending looked like since 2020?
Since 2020, Great Harvest Bread Co. franchisees have taken 24 new SBA 7(a) loans. 1 has already charged off. Early defaults on loans under six years old are notable — most SBA failures take longer to develop.
Loans approved since 2020, by fiscal year — counts only: 1 has charged off to date and most are still outstanding, so no rate is drawn.
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Show the numbers behind this chart
| Fiscal year | Loans | Charged off | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2010 | 7 | 2 | 28.6% |
| FY2011 | 6 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2012 | 5 | 3 | 60.0% |
| FY2013 | 7 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2014 | 7 | 1 | 14.3% |
| FY2015 | 8 | 2 | 25.0% |
| FY2016 | 4 | 1 | 25.0% |
| FY2017 | 5 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2018 | 11 | 1 | 9.1% |
| FY2019 | 5 | 1 | 20.0% |
| FY2020 | 2 | — | outstanding |
| FY2021 | 3 | — | outstanding |
| FY2022 | 5 | — | outstanding |
| FY2023 | 7 | — | outstanding |
| FY2024 | 2 | — | outstanding |
| FY2025 | 4 | — | outstanding |
| FY2026 | 1 | — | outstanding |
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?
Great Harvest Bread Co.'s figure rests on 65 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019 — a matured cohort, so the rate is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 65 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 1.5 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 Great Harvest Bread Co. figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.
Based on 65 resolved loans — directional, not precise.
Frequently asked
- What is Great Harvest Bread Co.'s franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
- Between 2010 and 2019, 65 Great Harvest Bread Co. franchisees financed with SBA 7(a) loans. 11 defaulted — a 16.9% charge-off rate, 2.1x the Retail Bakeries average of 8.1%. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
- Is Great Harvest Bread Co. a safe franchise investment?
- Between 2010–2019, Great Harvest Bread Co. franchisees defaulted on SBA loans at 16.9% versus a 8.1% industry average. This data is one input for due diligence; it is not investment advice.
Cite this page
Franchise Default Rates (2026). Great Harvest Bread Co. franchise SBA 7(a) default rate, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 16.9% (11 of 65 loans charged off). Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/great-harvest-bread-co/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)