Bra Bar Success: $1M-Year Revenue Fuels Franchise Expansion

Three years after debuting as the first women's sports-focused bar-restaurant, Oregon's The Sports Bra is betting people will pay nearly $900,000 up front and 11% of ongoing revenue for a chance to replicate its $1-million-a-year business.

As widely reported Tuesday, The Sports Bra has early plans to open franchises in Boston, Indianapolis, Las Vegas and St. Louis. These new franchises will pay a $55,000 fee, plus up to another $834,000 in startup costs including training expenses, leases and insurance, according to The Sports Bra's franchise disclosure document filed with the state of Indiana.

The Sports Bra-"a sports bar and restaurant that focuses on supporting, empowering and promoting women in sports and in the community," per the franchise disclosure document-was opened in 2022 by Jenny Nguyen. In 2024, venture capital investor Alexis Ohanian invested an undisclosed sum into the bar. The restaurant offers items such as the $17 "Bra-L-T" sandwich and a $15 kale Caesar salad, while the bar offers $8 draft beer and cocktails including "The Title IX," a $14 concoction of bourbon, peach liqueur and mint. Flat-screen TVs offer a slate of women's sports programming.

After franchisees are up and running, they agree to hand over as much as 11% of gross revenue annually, although the base percentage is 8% right now. Those costs include royalties to The Sports Bra parent (5% of gross sales), a brand development fee currently 2% of gross but which may rise to 4%, a 1% group advertising fee that may be imposed in the future and a mandatory 1% for local charity and other efforts to support women's causes in the community.

In return, franchises get detailed operations guidance from the Portland operators of The Sports Bra. According to the financial disclosure, the single location of the Sports Bra grossed an average of $1.086 million revenue the past two years, about 80% from food and alcohol, with the balance coming from events, merchandise and non-alcoholic drinks. The disclosure states the cost of goods sold was $371,000 in 2024, but doesn't state if the Portland location was profitable overall after accounting for undisclosed costs like real estate, labor and insurance.

New locations of The Sports Bra probably will be in the 2,500-to-3,000 square feet range, preferably with some outdoor dining space, the disclosure says. By comparison, the average Buffalo Wild Wings is 1,550 square feet and grosses about $980,000 a year, according to that company's franchise financials. A representative of The Sports Bra didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

While sports bars have a mixed track record of late-Hooters filed for bankruptcy two months ago-investors have started showing heightened interest in refreshing the concept. The privately owned Tom's Watch Bar is aiming to open 100 locations across the country the next five years. Emerging Fund raised a $100 million fund devoted to backing sports-themed restaurants, while F1 Arcade and a concept around pool are seeing strong institutional investor interest. The early success of The Sports Bra has already spurred the entrenchment of competing women's sports bars in other cities, including Watch Me! in Long Beach, Calif., and Rough & Tumble in Seattle.

Like other franchisors, The Sports Bra aims to keep a firm hold on what franchises can and can't do. For instance, franchisees will have to foot a $250 bill for "mystery shopper" visits The Sports Bra conducts and any unauthorized menu offerings found will incur a $250-a-day penalty from the parent company. While The Sports Bra in Portland offers catering and delivery, franchisees need to get special permission to offer the same. After the initial 10-year franchise term is completed, restaurant owners must pay another discounted franchise fee for five-year renewals afterwards.

While the disclosure document doesn't address how many locations The Sports Bra is planning on selling, it limits franchise territory to two miles-about half a mile in densely populated cities-with exceptions for other Sports Bras to be placed inside malls, sports arenas and mass transit facilities regardless of their distance from a franchised location. The company's franchising website says it is particularly interested in partners in cities with WNBA or NWSL franchises. Franchises are available in 41 states, according to the website, while the organization has also filed in Washington, according to that state's regulator.

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