Once Upon A Child

North America's #1 Children's Resale Franchise

Our Once Upon A Child brand is designed specifically to meet the needs of parents and families who are looking for gently used, high-quality infant and children's clothing, shoes, toys, books, equipment and accessories at a sensible price.

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Once Upon A Child

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Once Upon A Child Franchise Cost and Requirements for 2024

Background

Steps to Ownership
Operate Your Own Once Upon a Child? Franchise Business

Over the last 20+ years, Winmark? has helped build Once Upon A Child into North America's #1 children's resale franchise. We've been able to do that because of the work, dedication, and passion of our franchise partners all over the U.S. and Canada. That's why Winmark understands how important it is to find the right people to bring our brands to a new community. We've established a vetting and orientation process that allows us not only to find the best individuals for the job, but our candidates to learn about us and our dynamic approach to franchising.

Get Qualified for Consideration
The first step on this journey is getting qualified. You can first fill out and submit our qualification form, which gives us your basic information and where you are interested in opening a location. Winmark will then get in touch with you to go over your financial information and answer any initial inquiries you may have about us.

The required finances for Once Upon A Child franchisee include:

  • An initial investment of $250,000
  • Liquid assets (cash or stocks) of $75,000


If you don't quite meet these financial requirements, that's okay. Many of our franchisees take out loans to cover these initial costs or partner with family and friends to help them qualify with the banks. Our franchising track record here at Winmark not only means that most of our franchisees' loans are approved, but that they're capitalized properly from day one.

Get to Know Winmark Franchising
Once your financing is confirmed, Winmark will help you coordinate visits with existing Once Upon A Child store owners either on the phone or in person. During these visits, you'll get to learn more about the brand, how they operate, and talk with the franchisees about what it's like to run the business.

Following your visits, you'll receive an invitation to Discovery Day here at our headquarters in Minneapolis. Discovery Day is your opportunity to meet our Once Upon A Child franchise team and learn about the training and support our franchise partners receive from Winmark. We'll have questions for all our candidates-but we expect our candidates to ask us questions, as well, to see if Winmark is the right fit for them.

Joining the Once Upon A Child Team
Once we and the candidate have decided to move forward with their franchise store, they officially become part of our Winmarkfamily! We'll get all of the franchise agreement paperwork in order and enroll you in our training program. It will still take several months before your grand opening happens, but in the meantime, you will be given the knowledge, insight, and tools you need to make your Once Upon A Child store as successful as possible!

Company Details

Established: 1993
First Unit Franchised: 1993
Franchised Units: 388
Company Owned Units: 0
States Registered In: All
Canada Franchises: Yes
International Franchises: No

Support and Training Offered By Once Upon A Child

Financial Assistance Provided: Yes
Site Selection Assistance: No
Lease Negotiation Assistance: No
Recruiting Assistance: NA
Co-Operative Advertising: Yes

Training: Winmark conducts its 2-part training program at Winmark's training center in Minneapolis. The training program is typically offered 11 times per year. The first session of the training program, New Franchisee Orientation Training (NFOT), covers several aspects of management and operation of a franchised retail business, including real estate matters, business plan development, buying used and new products, Winmark's service vendor program and other topics Winmark may select.

The first session will take place over a period of 5 days. At NFOT, you will be required to participate in an online financial management course conducted by Winmark's third party vendor. This course will educate you on how to understand your financial statements and utilize the information to build your business.

The second session of the Once Upon A Child? training program, Concept Training, is attended when financing, lease and the online financial training program are complete. It is conducted over a period of at least 5 days and will include instruction on sales, customer service, marketing, advertising, computer operation and store inventory, staff and financial management, as well as topics Winmark may select.

Other Info:  

High profit, High Margin business.
Top Quartile Average Gross Sales: $1,569,182 (2019)
Top Quartile Average Gross Profit: $1,011,877 (2019)

Average Gross Sales Chart: 

  • 2002 -  $409,406
  • 2006 - $571,375
  • 2010 - $723,687
  • 2014 - $948,723
  • 2019 - $993,037

96% gently used and 6% New 

Real Estate: 3,000-4,000 square feet

An extensive training program to prepare you for the business ownership
Our willingness to work with first-time franchisees and family teams
Ongoing operations and marketing support from our dedicated franchise team
A critical and enticing niche inside the retail marketplace
A robust corporate infrastructure that is ready to support the needs of our franchisees


*The Average Store numbers are the 2019 Average Gross Sales and Average Gross Profit amounts stated in Item 19 of the 2020 Music Go Round? Franchise Disclosure Document (as reported by the 33 stores that had been in operation at least one year as of December 28, 2019). Of the 33 reporting stores, 15 or 45% of the stores attained or exceeded the Average Gross Sales and 14 or 42% of the stores attained or exceeded the Average Gross Profit. The Top Quartile Average Gross Sales and Average Gross Profit only relates to 8 of the reporting Music Go Round? Stores who ranked in the top 25% of the gross sales range. Of the 8 reporting stores in the top quartile, 3 or 38% of the stores attained or exceeded the top quartile Average Gross Sales and 4 or 50% of the stores attained or exceeded the top quartile Average Gross Profit. A new franchisee's results will likely differ from these results.


2024 Franchise Requirements Needed to Own a Once Upon A Child Franchise.

What does a Once Upon A Child Franchise Cost?

Once Upon A Child franchise fees for 2024:

Cash Investment: $90,000-$105,000
Total Investment: $254,700-$396,600
Minimum Net Worth: $400,000
Franchise Fee: $ 25,000
Royalty: 5%
Ad: 0
Average Number of Employees:
Item 19: Yes
visa-candidates: No
Passive Ownership: No
Home Based: No
B2B: No
Master Franchise Opportunities: No
Veteran Discount: No

Is Once Upon A Child a Semi Absentee Franchise with a Passive Ownership Opportunity?

No. Once Upon A Child is not a semi absentee franchise. The owner of the franchise (the franchisee) is expected to be involved in all aspects of day-to-day operations.

Is Once Upon A Child a Home Based franchise?

No. Once Upon A Child is not a home based franchise opportunity.

What Do Once Upon A Child Franchise Owners Make?

Click here to find out how much Once Upon A Child franchisees make. Once Upon A Child offers an Item 19 in their Franchise Disclosure Document which provides financial information about select franchisees in their franchise system.

Is Once Upon A Child a Master Franchise Opportunity?

No. Once Upon A Child is not a master franchise opportunity.

Does Once Upon A Child Offer a Veteran Discount?

No. Once Upon A Child franchise does not offer a veteran discount.

Does Once Upon A Child Work with E2 Visa and EB-5 Visa Candidates?

No. Once Upon A Child franchise does not work with E2 Visa and EB-5 Visa candidates.

Is Once Upon A Child Looking for Franchisees in Canada?

Yes. Once Upon A Child franchise is looking for Canada franchisees.

Is Once Upon A Child Looking for International franchisees?

No. Once Upon A Child franchise is not looking for International franchisees.

Where can I see Once Upon A Child's FDD (Franchise Disclosure Document)?

Buying a Franchise Guide: What is a Franchise Disclosure Document?

When evaluating a franchise opportunity, reading and understanding the current version of their FDD is a necessity. Considering the benefits of franchising, such as established brand recognition and support from the franchisor, it's important to also take into account franchise fees and franchising royalty fees. Since most franchisors are privately owned companies, the current versions of their FDDs are typically not available unless requested directly from them.

Click here to connect with a Franchise Consultant who can help you obtain a copy quickly and for free. They can also guide you through the essential franchise questions to ask, ensuring you make a well-informed decision about your investment.

Additional Information

Additional Categories

Child Related, Green & Eco Friendly, Miscellaneous & Unique, Retail, Non Food Franchises

Number of Units Open

100+ UNITS

Cash Required

More than $250,000

Master Franchise

No

Passive Franchise

No

Home Based Franchise

No

Item 19 Franchise

Yes

Veteran Discount

No

B2B

No

Franchise Opportunities in Canada

Yes

International Franchise Opportunities

No

E2 Visa Franchise

No

Once Upon A Child Franchises for Sale

Click Here to inquire about existing Once Upon A Child franchises for sale. We may have Once Upon A Child franchise resales. A franchise resale is an already established franchise owned by a franchisee and the franchisee is looking to sell their franchise.

The International Franchise Professionals Group (IFPG) is an internationally recognized membership-based franchise organization. IFPG Franchise Consultants guide aspiring business owners through the process of identifying and investing in franchise businesses. The IFPG represents more than 550 franchises. We do not represent all franchises listed here. By clicking on "Request a Consultation," you are agreeing to be contacted by one of our Certified Franchise Consultants to discuss franchise ownership.

About our rankings: The IFPG uses its internal data collected from our membership portal to identify which franchises had the most activity in the past week. This ranking system is not based on franchise sales, franchisee success rates or number of units open. Our ranking system should not be used to make a decision on which franchise to buy it was solely created for internal purposes and for our IFPG Members.