The Melting Pot
The total investment to open a The Melting Pot franchise ranges from $89,700 to $804,520. The initial franchise fee is $45,000. Ongoing royalties are 1% plus a 2.2% advertising fee.
What is the The Melting Pot franchise?
The Melting Pot is a full service restaurant where guests share fondue meals. The estimated total initial investment is $89,700 to $804,520, and the initial franchise fee is $45,000.
The royalty is 1 percent of sales, and the advertising or brand fund fee is 2.2 percent. The franchise agreement term is 10 years.
The headquarters are in Bethlehem, PA. The brand began franchising in 1960. Cost and fee figures are from the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document.
Loan Activity Score
49/100
SBA Default Rate
19.4%
Active Lenders
46
According to its Franchise Disclosure Document or public business records, The Melting Pot has 98 locations, all owned by franchisees. Public SBA loan records show 46 lenders made 124 loans to franchisees of The Melting Pot. PeerSense calculates The Melting Pot's score as 49 out of 100, using public SBA loan performance and recent lending activity. Cost figures are based on the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document.
98 locations
$89,700 to $804,520
$45,000
98
98 franchised
Proprietary PeerSense metric
FairDistinct lenders in public SBA records for The Melting Pot
124
Total SBA loans
$726K
Average loan size
Source: public SBA 7(a) and 504 loan records through December 31, 2025
Referral fee at closing
SBA Lending Activity for The Melting Pot
Loan Activity Score Breakdown
Major Brand (100+ loans)
Are lenders increasingly or decreasingly funding this brand? Growing trends score highest.
Blended default rate (recent + all time) compared to NAICS sector peers.
Quality lenders actively backing this brand, with penalty for lender pullback.
FDD availability, Item 19 disclosure, and overall data completeness.
Geographic spread of SBA funded locations across states.
SBA Lending Performance
SBA Default Rate
19.4%
vs 10.3% peer avg
SBA Loans
124
Total Volume
$90.0M
Active Lenders
46
5 selective
States
34
vs. SBA Sector Average
SBA loan default rate vs. all franchises in the same NAICS sector, not limited to direct competitors
Key Highlights
Franchise Financing Resources
Data Insights
Key performance metrics for The Melting Pot based on SBA lending data
SBA Default Rate
19.4%
9.1% above peer avg
SBA Loan Volume
124 loans
Across 46 lenders
Lender Diversity
46 lenders
Avg 2.7 loans per lender
Investment Tier
Significant investment
$89,700 to $804,520 total
The Melting Pot: Deep SBA Data
Brand specific metrics derived directly from SBA 7(a) approval records: peak lending year, leading state, average loan size, and lender concentration. PeerSense computes these per brand so capital advisors and prospective franchisees can benchmark this opportunity against the rest of the franchise universe.
Peak SBA Year
2025
7 approvals. The best year on record for The Melting Pot.
Top SBA State
Pennsylvania
5 SBA financed The Melting Pot locations, the densest operator footprint.
Average Loan Size
$967K
Median $782K. Use as a sizing anchor when modeling your own The Melting Pot unit.
Lender Concentration
34.4%
Moderately Spread
Share of The Melting Pot approvals captured by the top 3 SBA lenders.
The Melting Pot's SBA lending pipeline peaked in 2025 (7 approvals). The last five fiscal years account for 8% of cumulative volume ($17M approved). Operator density is highest in Pennsylvania with 5 SBA financed locations. Average funded ticket sits at $967K, with the median at $782K. Lender mix is moderately spread: the top three SBA lenders account for 34.4% of approvals. Meaningful choice exists, but specific lenders carry the brand.
Payment Estimator
Estimated Monthly Payment
$929
Principal & Interest only
Indicative only, as of October 1, 2026. Not a quote, commitment or offer of credit. Final pricing, leverage and terms are determined by the lender at underwriting, after full transaction materials are reviewed. PeerSense sources the file. The lender sets pricing. What these terms mean.
Locations
The Melting Pot, unit breakdown
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Page Review
Reviewed by Edward L. Freeman, Founder and Managing Director, PeerSense
- PeerSense is a capital advisory firm that places commercial financing with direct capital sources; it does not lend, fund, or approve loans, and the capital source sets final terms.
- Edward L. Freeman founded PeerSense in January 2020.
- He is a Registered Franchise Consultant with Business Alliance, Inc., a credential issued in March 2022, and worked as a franchise consultant there from March 2022 to May 2023.
- His recorded experience includes a $22 million SBA construction loan, with about $16 million funded on the deal.
- In the 12 months through September 30, 2026, PeerSense tracked 912 publicly announced financings with a disclosed size of $361.32 billion. PeerSense Capital Data Report · Methodology page
Last reviewed LinkedIn profileAbout Edward Freeman