Retail Franchises in the USA

Under the Plato's Closet Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD), you need a retail location approved by Winmark; a typical store is 3,500 to 4,500 square feet (FDD Items 7 and 11). Before opening, Winmark helps you evaluate a site and handle leasing issues for it, reviews your lease before you sign it, and provides store layout and design specifications (FDD Item 11 and the Franchise Agreement). If a franchisor helps locate the site, Item 11 of its FDD states whether it selects the site or approves an area where you choose one, whether and how it must approve the site you pick, and the factors it weighs, such as traffic patterns, parking, size, and lease terms.

At Plato's Closet, the royalty, which the FDD calls the Continuing Fee, is 5% of Gross Sales, paid weekly. You also pay a $1,500 annual Marketing Fee and a 2% Advertising Fee to the North American Ad Fund, which took effect July 1, 2026; the Advertising Fee, cooperative advertising, and local marketing must together come to at least 6% of Gross Sales a year (FDD Item 6). From the month after the store opens, you pay a Software Fee of $295 per month plus applicable taxes, subject to an annual increase of 10%, compounded and cumulative, so an increase in a given year may be greater than 10% (FDD Items 6 and 11). The Franchise Agreement term is 10 years; renewing for another term requires a $10,000 renewal fee and remodeling the store, and during the term Winmark can also require you to modernize the store, but not more than once every 5 years (FDD Items 6 and 17). Item 6 of the FDD, Other Fees, must list in a table the fees you pay to the franchisor or its affiliates, with the amount, the due date, and any formula used to compute them.

Look in Item 11 of the Plato's Closet FDD. It must state the typical time between signing the franchise agreement or making the first payment, whichever comes first, and opening the business, and the factors that may affect it, such as getting a lease, financing, or building permits; zoning and local ordinances; or late installation of equipment, fixtures, and signs. If the franchisor helps provide equipment, signs, fixtures, and opening inventory, Item 11 also says whether it supplies them itself or only names approved suppliers, and whether it delivers or installs them. Plan for training as well: Winmark's mandatory training program has two parts, held at its training center in Minneapolis and online, and you cannot open until you complete both parts. Winmark also provides 1 to 2 days of pre-opening assistance and opening assistance on the day before and the day of the opening (FDD Items 7 and 11).

Check Item 20 of the FDD. It gives the number of franchised and company-owned outlets for each of the franchisor's last three fiscal years, so you can see both the trend and how much of the network the franchisor runs itself. The Plato's Closet listing quotes the brand's Item 20 store counts from the 2026 FDD: the Systemwide Store Summary shows no company-owned stores and counts stores in the USA and Canada together, and the Status of Franchised Stores table puts 476 franchised stores in the USA at the end of 2025. If the count falls year after year, ask the franchisor why, and put the same question to the owners themselves. Item 20 also lists current franchisees with the address and phone number of each outlet. The list may cover only your state; if your state has fewer than 100 franchised outlets, it adds outlets in neighboring states and then the next closest states until at least 100 are listed.