85°C Bakery Cafe Franchise Cost

The highest investment of any bakery franchise we track, a franchise program that has produced three stores in four years, and no Item 19. What you need to know before you apply.

By Bryan Motta, co-owner of BreadHaus · Updated September 2026

85°C Bakery Cafe is a Taiwanese chain owned by Gourmet Master Co. with more than 1,000 locations worldwide. US stores sell 50-plus Asian-style breads and pastries baked fresh hourly in an in-store bakery, alongside cakes, coffee and tea. In the US it is almost entirely company-run: 78 corporate stores and 3 franchised, the first of which opened in 2022. The official site says it is offering "a limited number of franchise opportunities" to operators with multi-unit restaurant management experience, and that it cannot sell franchises in 14 registration states until registered there.

What 85°C Bakery Cafe costs

85°C Bakery CafeBreadHaus
Total initial investment$1,095,305 to $2,500,130 (2025 FDD)$227,500 to $580,000
Initial franchise fee$50,000$45,000
Royalty6.5% of gross sales6% of gross sales
Marketing1% brand fund, plus $1,000 to $1,200/month software fee1% brand fund + 2% local; $50/week technology fee
Liquid capital required$150,000 (third-party); not published officiallyNo minimum
Net worth requiredNot publishedNo minimum
Typical storeLarge-format cafe; size not published2,500 to 3,000 sq ft
US locations81 (78 company-owned, 3 franchised)2, both in Texas
Item 19 (avg unit sales)None. The FDD does not include one.$739,533 (Grapevine, 2025)
Who they wantExperienced multi-unit restaurant operatorsFirst-time owners welcome

The 2025 FDD, as summarized by FranDB and VettedBiz, lists a total investment of $1,095,305 to $2,500,130. That is the highest floor and the highest ceiling of any bakery franchise we compare. The franchise fee is $50,000. An older 2020 FDD showed a $100,125 area development fee, which suggests the program was originally designed for multi-store deals.

Ongoing fees are a 6.5% royalty and a 1% brand fund, plus a software and IT fee of $1,000 to $1,200 per month, which works out to roughly 1% to 1.5% of sales on a $1 million store. Financial requirements are not published; VettedBiz reports $150,000 minimum liquidity, which seems low for a $1.1 million to $2.5 million build, so ask.

There is no Item 19. FranDB states plainly that the franchise did not provide financial performance data. VettedBiz publishes an "owner earnings" estimate, but that is VettedBiz's model, not a disclosure by the franchisor. With 78 company stores, 85°C has plenty of data it could share. It has chosen not to.

The unit count tells the rest of the story. Three franchised stores in four years, flat total growth from 2023 to 2024, and a franchisor entity that appears to have changed between the 2020 and 2025 FDDs. None of that is disqualifying, but it means you would be one of the first, with the least information.

How 85°C Bakery Cafe compares to BreadHaus

85°C and BreadHaus overlap in one way: both bake real product on site from scratch, hourly in their case and daily in ours. Everything else is different.

85°C is a large, high-traffic cafe that needs a dense Asian-American or urban market and an operator who already runs several restaurants. BreadHaus is one bakery in a suburb or small town run by its owner. Their floor is nearly double our ceiling. Their royalty is half a point higher. Their IT fee alone is roughly five times our $50-a-week technology fee.

The bigger difference is information. We publish an Item 19, imperfect as a single-location number is, because I do not think anyone should commit $300,000 without one. They do not publish one at all. If you are an experienced multi-unit operator in a market that fits their profile, 85°C may be worth a conversation, and you should ask for store-level numbers directly. If you are a first-time owner, look at the BreadHaus cost guide and compare Items 7, 6 and 19 side by side.

Sources

See the full bakery franchise cost comparison for all six brands, or the BreadHaus cost guide for every line of our Item 7.

BM

Bryan Motta is co-owner of BreadHaus with his wife, Fara. They bought the original Grapevine, Texas bakery in 2024, opened a second location in Frisco in 2026, and founded BreadHaus Franchising, LLC. Bryan writes every page in this guide himself and does every initial franchise call personally.

Questions people ask about this comparison

How much does an 85°C Bakery Cafe franchise cost?

$1,095,305 to $2,500,130 in total initial investment per the 2025 FDD as summarized by FranDB, including a $50,000 franchise fee. It is the most expensive bakery franchise we compare.

Is 85°C actually franchising in the US?

Yes, on a limited basis. The official site offers a limited number of franchises to experienced multi-unit operators. Only 3 of its 81 US stores are franchised as of the 2025 FDD, and it cannot sell in 14 registration states until registered.

Does 85°C publish an Item 19?

No. Per FranDB, the franchisor did not provide financial performance data in its 2025 FDD.

What is the 85°C royalty?

6.5% of gross sales, plus a 1% brand fund and a software and IT fee of $1,000 to $1,200 per month, per FranDB.

Two ways to take the next step

Request the full BreadHaus Franchise Disclosure Document, or grab 15 minutes with Bryan. He does every first call himself, including with people who are still comparing brands.

Request the FDD Book 15 minutes with Bryan