Muscle Maker Grill restaurant opened back in 1995 to give healthier alternatives to regular American fast food. In 2007, the fast-casual restaurant chain was turned into a franchise. Muscle Maker Grill is a 55-unit franchised restaurant business started by fitness devotee Rod Silva in Colonia, New Jersey, in 1995. The brand is noted for its healthy spin on popular foods and provides options for a variety of diets, including gluten-free, vegetarian, and carb-free diets.

Muscle Maker Grill offers its patrons healthier versions of popular foods that taste fantastic, making healthy eating simple, economical, and pleasurable. The comprehensive menu at Muscle Maker Grill was intended for everybody – fitness fanatics, those just beginning their journey to a healthy lifestyle, and those attempting to make healthier choices on the go. On the menu at Muscle Maker Grill, you’ll find grass-fed steak and all-natural chicken, as well as vegetarian, low-carb, and gluten-free alternatives.

Muscle Maker Grill has since transitioned into meal plan delivery. The company now helps make eating healthy easier at home.

How much will it cost to open a Muscle Make Grill? You’ll need to invest between $187,500 – $454,000 to open this restaurant chain / meal plan delivery service. You’ll also need a liquid capital of $100,000 and a net worth of $250,000. This is one of the more affordable restaurant chains to invest in. Complete our 8-minute franchise quiz to find out if this healthy food franchise is right for you.

muscle maker grill

Muscle Maker Grill.

Is Muscle Maker Grill still in Business?

Yes, the company is still in business. A subsidiary of American Restaurant Holdings Inc. purchased the Muscle Maker Grill franchise in 2015. There were 55 restaurants in the chain at the time. After the sale, Silva stayed as director of brand development for the restaurant business.

Financial Requirements and Fees

Researching for what fees a certain franchise entails a bit of legwork, but we’re here to lessen your burden. Here’s a current list of the franchise fees you need to know.

Requirement

Fee
Liquid Capital

$100,000
Minimum Net Worth

$250,000
Total Investment

$187,500 – $454,000
Franchise fee

$35,000

Ongoing payments include:

Local Restaurant Advertising Fee

2%
National Brand Fund

1%
Royalty Fee

5%

Muscle Maker Grill franchisees are deeply rooted in the communities where they operate, which is why each Muscle Maker Grill location is required to have an Operating Partner. A franchisee has to have $100,000 in liquid assets and a net worth of $250,000 to launch a Muscle Maker Grill location. This is significantly lower startup costs compared to other restaurant franchises the cost closer to a million dollars to open.

Muscle Maker Grill restaurants are designed to keep your prices minimal. The total expenditure required by a franchisee will be determined by the store’s location, size, and depth of improvements. The $35,000 Franchise Fee, leasehold improvements, and equipment are all included in the initial development costs, and future payments include a 2% Local Restaurant Advertising fee, 1% National Brand Fund fund, and 5% Royalty Fee. In some markets where saturation point has been attained, the 2% Local Advertising cost could be changed with a 2% cooperative advertising fee.

This information is not intended to be used in conjunction with the acquisition of a franchise. Only a Franchise Disclosure Document can be used to offer a franchise. Unless the franchise offering is currently registered and the Franchise Disclosure Document is functional in the state, the franchise is not being offered to citizens of states that require registration.

How Much Profit Does Muscle Maker Grill Franchisees Make Per Year?

Company revenue/sales per year: For the fiscal year ending 2020, Muscle Maker Grill U.S. sales were at $4,500,000 with a -9.79% revenue growth compared to the previous year.

Number of units: Muscle Maker Grill has 48 units across the United States as of 2022.

Average Gross Revenue Per Store: $4,500,000 (System-wide sales) ÷ 48 units = $93,750.

Industry Average Profit Margin: Although there is no single solution, Restaurant Resource Group claims that restaurant profit margins range between 2% percent and 6% percent with full-service restaurants at the low end of the scale while limited-service (or fast service) restaurants at the high end. Based on the meal delivery options from Muscle Maker Grill, the profit margin is likely higher than this average.

But even if Muscle Maker Grill was able to reach a 25% profit margin, based on the meager systemwide sales, you’d profit under $25,000 per year, per unit. This is not a profitability level that gets many investors excited.

The MMG Meal Plan

The MMG Meal Plan.

The average profit margin of restaurants is influenced by a variety of factors, including average cost per customer (particularly if you’ve managed to upsell), the style of foodservice operation, and so on, just as a restaurant’s performance is not just affected by the food or drinks it offers.

Just about every textbook on statistics will cover how outliers, or data points at the extremes of a range, influence averages. A QSR’s total revenue and expenses differ dramatically from those of a Michelin-starred restaurant. When evaluating how much profit you could make in a restaurant, it’s useful looking into profit margin of a specific concept.