Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream

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Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream Franchise FDD, Costs & Fees (2025)

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream serves pizza and a variety of ice cream desserts, offering a family-friendly dining experience with tasty and satisfying menu choices.

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream is a family-friendly franchise that has been creating joyful dining experiences since its founding in 1972 by Lawrence Joseph "Happy Joe" Whitty in Davenport, Iowa.

The concept was built around offering a fun environment that combines two of America's favorite treats: pizza and ice cream, making it a popular spot for family gatherings and celebrations.

Headquartered in Davenport, Iowa, Happy Joe's began franchising in the same year it was founded, allowing it to expand its unique blend of entertainment and dining across various locations. 

The franchise has become well-known not just for its delicious signature pizzas, such as the famous Taco Joe Pizza, but also for its commitment to community involvement and customer satisfaction. This commitment is reflected in the brand's various charitable initiatives, including the Happy Joe's Kids Foundation.

Initial investment

Here's what you would need to invest if you were to start this franchise. These costs are provided by the franchisor in the Franchise Disclosure Document.

Happy Joe's Pizza offers 2 types of franchises:

Type of Facility Initial Investment
Happy Joe’s Full-Size Restaurant $546,693 - $1,358,853
Happy Joe’s DELCO Facility $322,862 - $780,137

We are summarizing below the main costs associated with opening a Happy Joe’s Full-Size Restaurant franchise.

For more information on the various types of franchises and its costs, refer to the Franchise Disclosure Document (Item 7).

Happy Joe’s Full-Size Restaurant

Type of Expenditure Amount
Initial Franchisee Fee $30,000 - $40,000
Rent $15,750 - $45,360
Lease and Utility/Security Deposits $7,875 - $23,625
Leasehold Improvements $136,500 - $367,500
Initial Inventory $12,390 - $29,400
Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment $210,000 - $472,500
Insurance $2,888 - $6,563
Training $27,000 - $43,500
Grand Opening Advertising $10,000 - $100,000
Signage $10,500 - $42,000
Additional Funds – 3 months $83,790 - $153,405
Liquor License $0 - $35,000
Total $546,643 - $1,358,853

Happy Joe's Pizza offers 2 types of franchises:

Type of Facility Initial Investment
Happy Joe’s Full-Size Restaurant $546,693 - $1,358,853
Happy Joe’s DELCO Facility $322,862 - $780,137

We are summarizing below the main costs associated with opening a Happy Joe’s Full-Size Restaurant franchise.

For more information on the various types of franchises and its costs, refer to the Franchise Disclosure Document (Item 7).

Happy Joe’s Full-Size Restaurant

Type of Expenditure Amount
Initial Franchisee Fee $30,000 - $40,000
Rent $15,750 - $45,360
Lease and Utility/Security Deposits $7,875 - $23,625
Leasehold Improvements $136,500 - $367,500
Initial Inventory $12,390 - $29,400
Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment $210,000 - $472,500
Insurance $2,888 - $6,563
Training $27,000 - $43,500
Grand Opening Advertising $10,000 - $100,000
Signage $10,500 - $42,000
Additional Funds – 3 months $83,790 - $153,405
Liquor License $0 - $35,000
Total $546,643 - $1,358,853

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream

2025

Franchise Disclosure Document

Number of units

Training 

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream Franchise offers comprehensive training to ensure that franchisees are well-prepared to operate their locations successfully. The training program covers several key areas:

  1. Operational Training: Franchisees receive in-depth instruction on day-to-day operations, including managing kitchen activities, maintaining food quality, and ensuring consistent customer service. This training helps new franchisees become proficient in the core functions of running a Happy Joe's restaurant.
  2. Staff Management: The training program includes guidance on recruiting, hiring, and managing a team. This part of the training is crucial for creating a positive work environment and delivering the friendly, efficient service that Happy Joe's is known for.
  3. Community Engagement: Given Happy Joe's strong community-oriented focus, franchisees are also trained on how to effectively engage with their local communities. This includes organizing events, running fundraising initiatives, and creating a welcoming atmosphere for families.
  4. Marketing Support: Franchisees learn how to market their location effectively, including leveraging national and local advertising strategies. The training provides tools and techniques for promoting the restaurant and driving customer traffic.

Territory Protection

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream franchise does offer territory protection to its franchisees. This means that franchisees are granted exclusive rights to operate within a specific geographic area, ensuring that no other Happy Joe's franchise can open within that territory. 

This protection is designed to help franchisees maximize their market potential without the concern of internal competition, allowing them to build a loyal customer base in their area.

The franchise carefully considers demographics, ease of access, and market potential when determining and granting territories. 

Competitors

Below are some of

Happy Joe's Pizza & Ice Cream

key competitors in the

Pizza

sector.

Franchise
Franchisees
Initial fee
Total investment
Revenue
Sign up
Gross Profit
Sign up
EBITDA
Sign up

29

New
+
-12%
-12%

$40,000

$323,000

$1,359,000

n.a.

$842,000

$xxx,xxx

70.1%

xx%

n.a.

11.2%

xx%

n.a.

Competitors

Happy's Pizza

Happy's Pizza is a multi-location restaurant franchise offering pizza, barbecued ribs, chicken, seafood, and more, serving value-focused families and neighborhood crowds, and known for its extensive comfort-food menu, generous portions, delivery-friendly model, and upbeat, community-rooted Detroit brand origin story.

Franchisees

?

54
+
-4%
-4%
Investment

?

$264,000 - $619,000

Street Pizza

Street Pizza is a lively pizza restaurant franchise offering bottomless sourdough pizzas, wings, and cocktails, serving social diners, groups, and party-goers, and known for its “pizza without rules” attitude, vibrant music, arcade-style fun, and a casual, high-energy dining experience.

Franchisees

?

0
+
n.a.
n.a.
Investment

?

$1,804,000 - $3,303,000

Cascadia Pizza Co.

Cascadia Pizza Co. is a pizza catering brand offering wood-fired Neapolitan-style pizzas from food trucks, trailers, and taprooms, serving private events and neighborhood guests, and known for mobile ovens, handcrafted dough, and Pacific Northwest-inspired toppings.

Franchisees

?

3
+
n.a.
n.a.
Investment

?

$347,000 - $677,000

Chanticlear Pizza

Chanticlear Pizza is a pizza restaurant franchise offering multiple crust styles, specialty pizzas, and related items, serving neighborhood diners in the Twin Cities region, and known for decades of local heritage, thin-crust favorites, delivery convenience, and community-focused operations.

Franchisees

?

10
+
-9%
-9%
Investment

?

$247,000 - $326,000

Bellacino's

Bellacino's is a fast-casual restaurant franchise offering pizza, grinders, and related menu items, serving families, workers, and students, and known for dough and bread made from scratch daily, oven-baked sandwiches, and a comfortable neighborhood dining experience.

Franchisees

?

46
+
-2%
-2%
Investment

?

$311,000 - $477,000

Krave It

Krave It is a fast-casual franchise offering gourmet wraps, bowls and specialty sandwiches in NYC style, serving value- and quality-seeking diners, and known for growth-oriented franchise support and evolving restaurant model.

Franchisees

?

0
+
n.a.
n.a.
Investment

?

$201,000 - $408,000

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