Franchise Failure Rates

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

Once Upon A Child Franchise Failure Rate: 3.4% SBA Loan Defaults (2010–2019 Federal Data)

3.4%
charge-off rate on 87 SBA 7(a) loans to Once Upon A Child franchisees, FY2010–2019
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019 — Once Upon A Child against its industry and all franchises
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019: Once Upon A Child 3.4%; Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores 9.6%; All franchises 10.2%Once Upon A Child 3.4%; Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores 9.6%; All franchises 10.2%0%2%4%6%8%10%Once Upon A Child3.4%Children's and Infants'Clothing Stores9.6%All franchises10.2%
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019: Once Upon A Child 3.4%; Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores 9.6%; All franchises 10.2%Once Upon A Child 3.4%; Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores 9.6%; All franchises 10.2%0%2%4%6%8%10%Once Upon A Child3.4%Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores9.6%All franchises10.2%

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

About 1 in 29 Once Upon A Child SBA borrowers failed to repay — well below the Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores average of 9.6%.

Between 2010 and 2019, 87 Once Upon A Child franchisees financed with SBA 7(a) loans. 3 defaulted — a 3.4% charge-off rate, 0.3x the Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores average of 9.6%. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.

What is the Once Upon A Child franchise failure rate on SBA loans?

Once Upon A Child is a Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to Once Upon A Child franchisees: 87 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 3 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 Once Upon A Child compare with other Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores franchises?

The table sets Once Upon A Child's charge-off rate beside its Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores 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.

Once Upon A Child versus benchmarks, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset.
MeasureOnce Upon A ChildChildren's and Infants' Clothing StoresAll franchisesAll SBA borrowers
Default (charge-off) rate3.4%9.6%10.2%8.0%
Loans in sample87———
Defaults3———
Average loan size$191,197———

What has Once Upon A Child SBA lending looked like since 2020?

Since 2020, Once Upon A Child franchisees have taken 67 new SBA 7(a) loans. None have charged off to date, though most remain outstanding and unresolved.

Charge-off rate by approval year — share of each fiscal year's Once Upon A Child 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 3 loans; FY2011 0% of 4 loans; FY2012 0% of 6 loans; FY2013 17% of 12 loans; FY2014 0% of 10 loans; FY2015 0% of 12 loans; FY2016 9% of 11 loans; FY2017 0% of 8 loans; FY2018 0% of 15 loans; FY2019 0% of 6 loansCharge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 3 loans; FY2011 0% of 4 loans; FY2012 0% of 6 loans; FY2013 17% of 12 loans; FY2014 0% of 10 loans; FY2015 0% of 12 loans; FY2016 9% of 11 loans; FY2017 0% of 8 loans; FY2018 0% of 15 loans; FY2019 0% of 6 loans0%10%20%0%2010n=30%2011n=40%2012n=617%2013n=120%2014n=100%2015n=129%2016n=110%2017n=80%2018n=150%2019n=6
Charge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 3 loans; FY2011 0% of 4 loans; FY2012 0% of 6 loans; FY2013 17% of 12 loans; FY2014 0% of 10 loans; FY2015 0% of 12 loans; FY2016 9% of 11 loans; FY2017 0% of 8 loans; FY2018 0% of 15 loans; FY2019 0% of 6 loansCharge-off rate by approval year: FY2010 0% of 3 loans; FY2011 0% of 4 loans; FY2012 0% of 6 loans; FY2013 17% of 12 loans; FY2014 0% of 10 loans; FY2015 0% of 12 loans; FY2016 9% of 11 loans; FY2017 0% of 8 loans; FY2018 0% of 15 loans; FY2019 0% of 6 loans0%10%20%0%’10n=30%’11n=40%’12n=617%’13n=120%’14n=100%’15n=129%’16n=110%’17n=80%’18n=150%’19n=6

Loans approved since 2020, by fiscal year — counts only: 0 have charged off to date and most are still outstanding, so no rate is drawn.

Loans approved since 2020: FY2020 6; FY2021 7; FY2022 6; FY2023 11; FY2024 11; FY2025 16; FY2026 10Loans approved since 2020: FY2020 6; FY2021 7; FY2022 6; FY2023 11; FY2024 11; FY2025 16; FY2026 10620207202162022112023112024162025102026
Loans approved since 2020: FY2020 6; FY2021 7; FY2022 6; FY2023 11; FY2024 11; FY2025 16; FY2026 10Loans approved since 2020: FY2020 6; FY2021 7; FY2022 6; FY2023 11; FY2024 11; FY2025 16; FY2026 106’207’216’2211’2311’2416’2510’26

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

Show the numbers behind this chart
Fiscal yearLoansCharged offRate
FY2010300.0%
FY2011400.0%
FY2012600.0%
FY201312216.7%
FY20141000.0%
FY20151200.0%
FY20161119.1%
FY2017800.0%
FY20181500.0%
FY2019600.0%
FY20206—outstanding
FY20217—outstanding
FY20226—outstanding
FY202311—outstanding
FY202411—outstanding
FY202516—outstanding
FY202610—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?

Once Upon A Child's figure rests on 87 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 87 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 1.1 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 Once Upon A Child figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.

Based on 87 resolved loans — directional, not precise.

Frequently asked

What is Once Upon A Child's franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
Between 2010 and 2019, 87 Once Upon A Child franchisees financed with SBA 7(a) loans. 3 defaulted — a 3.4% charge-off rate, 0.3x the Children's and Infants' Clothing Stores average of 9.6%. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Is Once Upon A Child a safe franchise investment?
Between 2010–2019, Once Upon A Child franchisees defaulted on SBA loans at 3.4% versus a 9.6% industry average. This data is one input for due diligence; it is not investment advice.

Cite this page

Franchise Default Rates (2026). Once Upon A Child franchise SBA 7(a) default rate, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 3.4% (3 of 87 loans charged off). Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.

https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/once-upon-a-child/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)