Retail
Uptown Cheapskate Franchise
A resale retail franchise buying and selling used and new teen and young-adult clothing and accessories through standalone stores. Competes directly with Winmark's Plato's Closet in the same teen/young-adult resale-clothing niche, as an independently owned franchise system.
On record with state regulators
California DFPI has a Notice of Violation on file for this franchise system, filed 9/20/2022, categorized "False/Misleading" (App ID app-25726). This doesn't necessarily reflect current practice -- check the DFPI public record directly for the full notice and any resolution.
Every franchisor has to file a document called an FDD before they can legally sell you a franchise. Buried in it are the two things a sales rep won't volunteer: what you'll actually spend to open, and whether existing locations are opening or closing. That's what's below, pulled straight from Uptown Cheapskate's own filing.
What it costs to open
From the filing's investment breakdown -- not a "starting at" number a sales rep quoted you.
Franchise fee
$35,000
Total to open
$364,015–$682,215
Ongoing royalty
5% of gross sales
What you'd actually spend, over time
The upfront cost is only part of it. Plug in what you expect a location to bring in, and see the real total once royalties over a few years are added on top.
Defaulted to a rough retail industry average, not a figure from Uptown Cheapskate's own FDD -- change it to your own estimate.
Total cost of ownership over 5 years
$489,015 – $807,215
Startup investment
$364,015–$682,215
Royalty per year (5%)
$25,000
Total royalty, 5yr
$125,000
When would you break even?
Revenue alone doesn't tell you this -- it depends on what's left after rent, labor, and everything else. Uptown Cheapskate's FDD doesn't disclose a reliable profit figure (most franchisors don't), so this starts from a typical retail profit margin (~6%) and applies it to the revenue you entered above -- adjust the percentage to your own realistic estimate.
Defaulted to a general retail industry benchmark, not a figure from Uptown Cheapskate's own filing -- this is a starting point to adjust, not a promise about what franchisees actually make.
At that profit, you'd break even in about
12.1–22.7 years
Weigh that payback period against what you already know: Uptown Cheapskate is opening more locations. A long payback period on a shrinking brand is a very different bet than the same payback period on a growing one.
Is Uptown Cheapskate actually growing?
Franchisors have to report, every year, how many locations opened, closed, or changed hands. Most franchise sites never show you this. Here it is:
Locations opened vs. closed, by year
GrowingFrom Item 20 of Uptown Cheapskate's FDD, the section franchisors use to disclose real openings and closings.
| Year | Franchised units, start | Franchised units, end | Net change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 99 | 116 | +17 |
| 2024 | 116 | 129 | +13 |
| 2025 | 129 | 148 | +19 |
Most recent year (2025): gained 19 franchised units, ending the year at 148 total.
What you're actually signing up for
The cost and growth numbers above are only part of the picture. These three FDD items are the ones a prospective franchisee tends to weigh most heavily once they're past the sticker price.
Training & ongoing support (Item 11)
Initial training is short: three days of classroom/in-store instruction for up to two people, plus a required 6-day, 50-hour internship. Ongoing support runs through a mandatory "Training and Operations Tools" manual, computer/POS tech support via a required affiliate (BaseCamp), and paid annual conferences (travel/lodging on the franchisee). Two consecutive years of below-system-average sales can trigger a mandatory Refresher Training.
Territory protection (Item 12)
Not a true exclusive territory: a "Protected Area" (radius up to 5 miles, sized to reach 100,000 residents) is only defined after a store site is chosen, replacing a temporary "Development Area." Even inside the Protected Area, the franchisor can still sell to customers there via other channels (internet, catalog, telemarketing) and reserves the right to open other brands it owns -- including its affiliate Kid to Kid -- nearby without compensation.
Renewal & termination terms (Item 17)
10-year initial term, renewable once for 5 years under the then-current agreement (which may differ materially), plus a renewal fee, remodel-to-standard, and signed release. Non-curable defaults include felony conviction, bankruptcy, and three understated-sales reports; other defaults get a 30-day cure window. A 2-year post-termination non-compete applies within 15 miles of the store, territory, or any other Uptown Cheapskate location. All disputes must be mediated and arbitrated in Salt Lake City, Utah -- a real burden for an out-of-state franchisee.
How Uptown Cheapskate compares to other Retail franchises
Across the 11 retail franchises we've hand-verified so far, the typical range to open runs $293,525–$655,615, with royalties averaging around 5% of gross sales (based on the 9 of them that charge a flat %-of-revenue royalty).
$346,300–$459,700 · 5% royalty
Wild Birds Unlimited$231,635–$376,392 · 4% royalty
The UPS Store$222,368–$606,081 · 5% royalty
Signarama$245,432–$344,768 · 6% royalty
PostNet$240,200–$306,800 · 5% royalty
7-Eleven$162,900–$1,656,800 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Batteries Plus$262,646–$496,996 · 5% royalty
Wireless Zone$441,875–$1,328,210 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Plato's Closet$355,700–$467,900 · 5% royalty
Once Upon A Child$355,700–$485,900 · 5% royalty
Uptown Cheapskate Franchise FAQ
How much does it cost to franchise a Uptown Cheapskate?
Based on Uptown Cheapskate's own FDD, total initial investment to open one location runs $364,015–$682,215, including the $35,000 franchise fee. California DFPI Registration Renewal, App ID APP00004803, filed 4/10/2026, effective 5/12/2026.
What is the Uptown Cheapskate franchise fee and royalty rate?
The initial franchise fee is $35,000, and the ongoing royalty is 5% of gross sales, per the filing on record.
Is the Uptown Cheapskate franchise growing or shrinking?
Growing. Across 2023–2025, Uptown Cheapskate added a net 49 franchised locations, per its own annual FDD filings.
Keep going
- Uptown Cheapskate and Plato's Closet are both retail franchises; Plato's Closet's total investment starts about $8,315 lower than Uptown Cheapskate's. Plato's Closet Franchise
- Uptown Cheapskate and Once Upon A Child are both retail franchises; Once Upon A Child's total investment starts about $8,315 lower than Uptown Cheapskate's. Once Upon A Child Franchise
Where this came from: California DFPI Registration Renewal, App ID APP00004803, filed 4/10/2026, effective 5/12/2026. You can pull the same filing yourself from the California DFPI's public franchise search. Filed 2026-04-10. None of this is investment advice -- get the franchisor's current FDD and talk to a real attorney or accountant before you sign anything.
If you see a different unit count elsewhere: franchisors only have to refile their FDD annually, so the numbers here can run 6–18 months behind a franchisor's own real-time marketing claims -- which often aren't independently verified, and sometimes count signed-but-not-yet-open locations. A gap isn't necessarily an error on either side; it's two different snapshots in time from two different sources.