Lapels franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a Lapels franchise takes $391,281 – $730,122 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is not disclosed in the filings we cover. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 5% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 2%. To qualify, Lapels asks for $80,000 in liquid cash and a $100,000 net worth. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
Lapels franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $391,281 | $730,122 | $391,281 to $730,122 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $100,000 | $100,000 | $100,000 | |
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $80,000 | $80,000 | $80,000 | |
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $391,281 | $730,122 | $391,281 to $730,122 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means Lapels's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 5% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 2% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full Lapels cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How Lapels's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where Lapels's disclosed cost sits against the Professional Services category:
- Minimum startup cost of $391,281 — about 4.6× the Professional Services median of $84,700.
Category medians are computed from the Professional Services brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Professional Services franchises
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How Lapels's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2022: began the window at 40 units; 86 units opened, 57 closed, ending at 83 units. (partial records: 2018 is not in the source data — totals span the reported years only.)
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for Lapels or anyone else. The only primary source is Item 19 of the brand's own franchise disclosure document (FDD), and no law requires a franchisor to publish one, so the "average owner income" numbers circulating elsewhere are usually unsourced or survivorship-biased. Ask Lapels for its current FDD and read Item 19 yourself — and if there is no Item 19, that silence is information too.
What this data can't tell you
Everything on this page comes from disclosure filings — fees, ranges, and unit counts. Four questions that matter just as much are not in any filing we can source, so we say so instead of guessing:
- The hours and the labor
- No dataset field says whether Lapels is a manage-from-a-laptop business or a 60-hour week in disguise. Item 15 of the FDD states whether you're obligated to run the business personally, and Item 11 lists what the franchisor actually does for you — then ask current owners what their week looks like (validation calls), not the sales team.
- How hands-on the ownership really is
- "Semi-absentee" is a pitch, not a filing field. Treat any hands-off claim as unverified until it's consistent with Item 15 and with what multiple current franchisees tell you — what absentee ownership actually means.
- Your territory — whether it's protected, and whether it's open
- Two territory questions sit outside our data. Whether Lapels grants a protected or exclusive area is set in Item 12 of the FDD and varies brand to brand — some grant none, and the carve-outs (online sales, national accounts) matter as much as the map. And filing data can't say what's open in your market this month; only Lapels can confirm current availability. Ask both before you inquire, and get the answer in writing.
- What owners earn
- Covered honestly above: our dataset has no earnings fields, the only primary source is the brand's own Item 19, and here is how to read that evidence.
About the Lapels franchise
Lapels is a professional services franchisor with 83 units at the end of 2022 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2022, it began the window at 40 units; its filings record 86 unit openings and 57 closures, ending at 83 units (partial records: 2018 is not in the source data — totals span the reported years only). Its parent company is Next Step Franchising Inc..
No franchise-related lawsuits reported in the disclosure data we hold (FDD Item 3, as of 2026-05) — an absence in our sources, not a guarantee; confirm against the brand's current FDD.
From the franchisor's materials
Lapels® businesses are full-service environmentally friendly Dry Cleaning Plants and Satellite Dry Cleaning Stores. Each type of Lapels® business offers a full range of services including dry cleaning and shirt service and which also may include tailoring, shoe repair, wedding gown and fur storage, suede and leather processing and other ancillary services. Depending on the, some or all of the services connected with the store are sub-contracted to qualified professionals.
Lapels franchise: quick answers
- How much does a Lapels franchise cost?
- $391,281 – $730,122 all-in to open, per Lapels's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many Lapels units are there?
- 83 units at the end of 2022 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have Lapels's units held up?
- 80% of units at risk between 2020 and 2022 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).