Franch Monsters

EWC Franchisor LLC franchises European Wax Center (EWC), which the cover page of its 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) describes as a retail business offering "high-end facial and body hair removal and related skin care services." The FDD counts 1,047 European Wax Center locations in operation as of January 3, 2026 (Item 20).

Key figures

Investment

from $331,600

Payback

not disclosed

Royalty

6% of Gross Sales

Initial fee

$45,000

Listing updated October 19, 2026. Investment, royalty, and initial fee are from the franchisor's Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) and may be out of date; check them with the franchisor and in its current FDD. Franch Monsters is not affiliated with European Wax Center; this page is not an offer to sell a franchise.

About the franchise

"As of January 3, 2026, there were 1,047 European Wax Center locations in operation," according to Item 20 of the 2026 FDD: 1,042 franchised and 5 company-owned, all in the United States. At the end of fiscal 2024 there were 1,067 locations, and at the end of fiscal 2023, 1,044.

On its Franchise Ownership page at waxcenter.com, European Wax Center calls itself the "#1 out-of-home waxing franchise" and says "80% of guests are repeat customers." Its Available Markets page adds: "More than 65% of EWC franchisees are multi-unit operators, and 20% of those own five or more centers."

All current EWC franchisees lease their centers; a center needs 1,000 to 1,600 square feet, and most franchisees build five or six waxing suites (building fewer or more requires EWC's approval) (FDD Items 5 and 7). Before the center opens, EWC approves the site you propose, designates its Protected Territory, and reviews your lease, but only to check that the lease contains the terms the Franchise Agreement requires. EWC does not assist with construction or remodeling, permits, or meeting local ordinances and building codes: you work with a contractor, an architect, and other professionals, using EWC's specifications and its list of approved contractors (FDD Item 11).

Item 19 of the 2026 FDD reports average, median, highest, and lowest Gross Sales for fiscal year 2025, by quartile, for the 1,028 franchised centers that were open and operating for the entire year. A separate column covers mature centers, those with 60 or more months in operation. Item 19 adds: "Some European Wax Center franchise locations have achieved these results. Your individual results will differ. There is no assurance that you will achieve sales equal to or greater than those identified above."

Included in the franchise

Site selection criteria, approval of the site you propose, and a designated Protected Territory (FDD Item 11)
Standard specifications for remodeling and equipping the center, a list of approved contractors, and a list of approved vendors for signage, equipment, and fixtures (FDD Item 11)
A Start-up Package of European Wax Center products and supplies, which you must buy before opening, from $18,000 plus taxes and delivery charges, and start-up marketing materials, which Item 7 estimates from $3,500 (FDD Items 5, 7, and 11)
Initial training for your first center, included in the Franchise Fee; you pay your own transportation, meals, and lodging to attend, which Item 7 estimates from $5,000. EWC also provides on-site support for the grand opening (FDD Items 6, 7, and 11)
Access to the Confidential Operations Guide (about 128 pages) on EWC's intranet (FDD Item 11)

Franchisee requirements

Capital: on its Investment Requirements page, EWC states, "The minimum liquid capital required is $250,000. The minimum net worth is $700,000." The FDD states no net worth or liquid capital amount; the same page cites the 2025 FDD for its investment figure
Enough capital for the total initial investment, from $331,600 (FDD Item 7; this total uses the $36,000 fee for existing franchisees); EWC does not offer direct or indirect financing (FDD Item 10)
Identify and employ a dedicated center manager who completes EWC's initial training program before the center opens; if you are an individual, EWC may require you to be the manager (FDD Item 15)
Find and negotiate your own lease for an approved location; EWC does not typically secure, lease, or sublease sites for franchisees (FDD Item 11)
If the franchisee is a corporation or other business entity, any individual who owns 5% or more of its total interests or of the center must personally guarantee its obligations under the Franchise Agreement. Each such individual's spouse signs a Spousal Joinder (FDD Item 15)

Franchise agreement

The initial term of the Franchise Agreement is 10 years, counted from the day the center opens or from the first anniversary of signing, whichever comes first. You can extend it once, for another 10 years, if you meet the conditions. These include paying a $5,000 successor term fee and signing the then-current form of Franchise Agreement, whose terms, including fees, may be materially different (FDD Item 17). When you sign the successor agreement, you may also buy an option for a third 10-year term for 50% of the then-current Franchise Fee (FDD Item 6).

Frequently asked questions

The 2026 FDD puts the total investment needed to begin operating a European Wax Center from $331,600 (Item 7). Item 7 uses the lowest amount in each category, so this total is calculated with the $36,000 Franchise Fee for existing franchisees. A new franchisee's Franchise Fee is $45,000, and the FDD prints no low-end total with that fee. The $331,600 total includes $54,000 paid to EWC or its affiliates, the low end for an existing franchisee; for a new franchisee, the cover page puts these payments from $63,000. Both amounts include the Franchise Fee. The low estimate assumes you pay only the first month's rent, without a security deposit, and that your landlord provides a partial build-out allowance. The table leaves out sales and use taxes and delivery charges (FDD Item 7).

European Wax Center calls its initial franchise fee the Franchise Fee: $45,000 for a new franchisee and $36,000 for an existing franchisee opening an additional center. It is paid in a lump sum when you sign the Franchise Agreement (FDD Item 5). If you sign a Development Agreement for three or more centers, you pay a nonrefundable Development Fee, from $72,000, in a lump sum when you sign it. It covers the full Franchise Fee for the first center and $18,000 of the fee for each of the second through tenth centers; the low end assumes an existing franchisee committing to three centers (FDD Items 5 and 7).

Before opening, you must buy EWC's Start-up Package of European Wax Center products and supplies, from $18,000 plus taxes and delivery charges (FDD Item 5). Item 7 estimates the Start-up Marketing Package, currently called the "New Center Launch Kit," from $3,500. You must spend at least $12,000 on grand opening advertising over the three months before and the first three months after the center opens (FDD Items 7 and 11). Initial training for your first center is included in the Franchise Fee, but you pay your own transportation, meals, and lodging to attend; Item 7 estimates these training expenses from $5,000. Item 5 adds that you may be required to pay an IT Platform set-up fee at or about the time the center opens. Neither EWC nor its affiliates finance any part of the initial investment (FDD Item 7).

On its Investment Requirements page, EWC states: "The minimum liquid capital required is $250,000. The minimum net worth is $700,000." The same page still gives the total investment "based on the 2025 FDD" (from $327,600); the 2026 FDD puts it from $331,600 (Item 7). The FDD states no net worth or liquid capital amount, so confirm these amounts with EWC before you apply.

The Royalty Fee is 6% of Gross Sales, paid weekly. Separately, franchisees pay a monthly Marketing Fund Contribution of 3% of Gross Sales directly to EWC MFund, LLC, an affiliate of the franchisor (FDD Item 6).

Item 6 lists a Technology & Security Fee of $310 a month, which is subject to change on an annual basis, and an IT Network/Cyber Security Insurance Fee of $100 a year, both paid to EWC. EWC's Local SEO/SEM Program costs $275 a month and is currently mandatory for franchisees (FDD Item 6). Under Item 11, you also pay Zenoti $360 a month for the POS System and pay a Network Firewall License Fee of $1,000 for two years of coverage. Vendors or EWC may raise these fees over time (FDD Item 11). You buy wax and EWC-branded products on an ongoing basis; EWC's affiliate EWC Distributor LLC is currently the only approved supplier for them. You and your center manager must attend national conferences, which EWC currently intends to hold about every 18 months, and you pay the conference admission fees for both of you (which Item 6 caps at $950.00 per person), plus your own and your employees' expenses to attend. EWC also runs auto-shipment programs for lobby and wax suite posters, other imagery items, and other products, charged at actual cost plus shipping and taxes (FDD Item 6).

As of January 3, 2026, there were 1,047 European Wax Center locations in operation, 1,042 of them franchised, according to Item 20 of the 2026 FDD. At the end of fiscal 2024 there were 1,067.
Updated: October 19, 2026135 views

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