HOW TO FRANCHISE
Become a part of our game and comic book store franchise community.
Franchisee Requirements
ARE WE A GOOD FIT?
Have you always wanted to run a GREAT comic book and game store?
With a diverse merchandise mix of comics, cards, games and more, your shop can attract and satisfy a greater number of customers. The key to acquiring and keeping good customers is having excellent customer service, great infrastructure, professional systems and interesting products. Work with us to acquire the necessary skills and products. Dragon’s Lair Comics & Fantasy ® has been creating loyal, happy customers since 1986!
OUR FRANCHISE PROVIDES:
- Experience
- Training and ongoing support
- Ongoing reviews of stores to encourage consistent standards
- Brand recognition
- Help with store location, design and lease negotiations
- Initial and ongoing help with product ordering and inventory management
- Access to established industry experts
WE WANT PEOPLE WHO:
(You don’t have to check all these boxes 😉 )
- Love Comics, Cards and Games*
- Have a desire to provide your customers an inclusive, fun and professional experience**
- Are mature emotionally and intellectually
- Are willing to follow a franchise system while continuously striving to help improve it
- Have good credit and the necessary financing (alas, it costs money to open a store)
- Have the support of their families
- Have prior professional, retail or military experience (appreciated, but not required)
A couple of important notes:
* Owning a Dragon’s Lair Comics & Fantasy® store is a vocation as well as a job. If your primary concern is Return on Investment, you should look at another franchise. Very few franchises will require the immersion and dedication to staying part of the geek community that owning a comic book, card and game store franchise location will. If you love comics and games, and being around people who enjoy them as much (or more) than you do, you are likely going to love owning a store, at least much of the time. Our customers are the most fun people that I know.
** Dragon’s Lair Comics & Fantasy® supports LGBTQ+ communities and is dedicated to providing employees and customers an inclusive and respectful experience regardless of race, color, creed, sexual orientation, gender identity or country of origin. Truly, if this doesn’t suit you, we are NOT a good match. Look no further. We wish you good fortune SOMEWHERE ELSE.
Got a Question?
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How much will I make?
While I cannot make predictions about what you will gross or net. I can share with you the following:
(An Excerpt Only!)
From the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document
ITEM 19
FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE REPRESENTATIONS
The FTC’s Franchise Rule permits a franchisor to provide information about the actual or potential financial performance of its franchised and/or franchisor-owned outlets, if there is a reasonable basis for the information, and if the information is included in the disclosure document. Financial performance information that differs from that included in Item 19 may be given only if: (1) a franchisor provides the actual records of an existing outlet you are considering buying; or (2) a franchisor supplements the information provided in this Item 19, for example, by providing information about possible performance at a particular location or under particular circumstances.
Five Dragon’s Lair franchisees have been open for at least one year: Austin, Columbus, Houston and two San Antonio stores. The average annual gross sales for these stores was $1,511,120.44 in 2024, $1,779,067.83 in 2023 and $2,001,984.93 in 2022. Three stores exceeded the average: Austin, Houston, and Medical Center. The median annual gross sales for these stores was $2,105,386.01 in 2024, $2,038,065.40 in 2023 and $1,802,266.86 in 2022. The annual gross sales for these stores ranged from $973,498.86 to $2,436,617.05 in 2024, $840,582.82 to $2,807,778.44 in 2023, and $1,412,231.58 to $2,991,174.43 in 2022.
Some outlets have sold this amount. There is no assurance you’ll do as well. If you rely upon our figures, you must accept the risk of not doing as well.
Bases
These sales figures are derived from the actual historical performance of the Dragon’s Lair franchisees derived from the franchisee’s point of sale system, which are located in four large metropolitan areas: Austin, San Antonio, and Houston, Texas as well as Columbus, Ohio. These sales figures were achieved over the twelve-month period from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024, January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023, January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022, and January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021. Historical results do not necessarily correspond to future results.
These figures are based on the average gross sales for franchisees as further noted below. Gross sales do not account for the franchisee’s costs and expenses. Expenses vary from location to location and from one franchisee to another. This gross sales information is not a forecast, projection, or prediction of how your franchise will perform. These gross sales figures should not be relied upon as the actual or potential gross sales that you will realize. It is likely that your gross sales will differ from the information contained in this Item 19.
These figures relate to the performance of all of the franchise system’s existing outlets. There are five Dragon’s Lair franchisees in the entire Dragon’s Lair System, which are located in Austin, San Antonio, and Houston, Texas as well as Columbus, Ohio. All five franchisees attained at least $970,000 in annual gross sales in 2024, which is 100% of the franchisees in these cities and in the Dragon’s Lair System.
Two of the five stores had sales that exceeded the median in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Three of the five stores exceeded the average in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2025. The highest performing store was a former company outlet that was sold to a franchisee and has been operated as a franchise outlet for more than one year.
Assumptions
Our analysis measured Dragon’s Lair franchisees’ performance in large metropolitan areas. The market where your Dragon’s Lair store is located, however, may be in a smaller urban or suburban area. Actual results vary from market to market and location to location depending on a number of factors, including but not limited to location, management capabilities, and local market conditions, that will impact a franchise store’s financial performance. We cannot estimate or project the results for any particular franchised operation. Accordingly, the results achieved by these franchisees may not be typical for those in your area.
The accuracy of this information is dependent upon the accuracy of information input into the point of sale system by each franchisee. We have not audited or reviewed the franchisee’s financial records in compiling this information, and there are no assurances that generally accepted accounting principles were used by the franchisees.
Further, each of the franchises studied has been in business at least one year. A newly opened business cannot be expected to achieve sales or incur expenses similar to those of an established business.
You are responsible for developing your own business plan and should consult with your own professional advisors. The financial information that forms the bases for our financial performance representation is available to you upon reasonable request.
Other than the information contained in this Item 19, we do not furnish, or authorize any salesperson to furnish, and you should not rely on, any oral or written information concerning the actual or potential sales, income, or profit of an outlet. We also do not authorize our employees or representatives to make any such representations either orally or in writing. If you are purchasing an existing outlet, however, we may provide you with the actual records of that outlet. If you receive any other financial performance information or projections of your future income, you should report it to the franchisor’s management by contacting David M. Wheeler at 12318 Split Rail Pkwy, Austin, Texas 78750, (512) 924-0312, the Federal Trade Commission, and the appropriate state regulatory agencies.
How much does it cost to open a Dragon’s Lair comic book franchise store?
Your cost to open your store will depend on many factors, including size of the store, location, cost of fixtures, etc.
In the 2025 Franchise disclosure document I estimate that it will cost between $309,000 to $429,700 to open your store. Approximately 2/3rds of this amount will be spent to open your store. The other approximately 1/3rd will be kept on hand as operating capital.
How much inventory will I start with?
From Item 7 of the Franchise Disclosure Document:
Starting inventory: ~$60k–$80k wholesale
What will I owe the franchise on an ongoing basis?
Besides the $28k of the initial franchise fee (which is used to help defray franchisor costs in getting your store open) there is an ongoing Royalty of 3% of gross. There is also a Marketing Fee that can be up to 2% of gross sales, but is currently 1%.
How do you define gross sales?
An excerpt from Item 6 of the Franchise Disclosure Document:
“Gross Sales” means all revenue from the sale of all services and products and all other income of every kind and nature related to the Franchised Business or premises, including proceeds of any business interruption insurance policies, and the sale of any promotional or premises items, whether for cash or credit, and regardless of collection in the case of credit, but shall not include (i) any sales taxes or other taxes collected from customers by you for transmittal to the appropriate taxing authority, (ii) the amount of refunds made to customers, and (iii) any amounts from coupon, gift or discount programs approved by us for which you are not reimbursed.
How large of a store will you want me to start with?
Ideally, in a healthy market, your initial store will be approximately between 3,500–4,500 square feet. In a few special cases it might be smaller or larger than that amount.
LAIR LOCATIONS
AUSTIN
COLUMBUS, OHIO
HOUSTON NORTH
SAN ANTONIO ALAMO RANCH
SAN ANTONIO MEDICAL CENTER
SAN MARCOS - NOW OPEN
Get In Touch
CONTACT FRANCHISOR
Reach us at (512) 924-0312 or fill out the form below.
DISCLAIMER:
This is not an offer to sell a franchise as an offer may only be made by a franchise disclosure document prepared in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s franchise laws and applicable state laws. Filing of a franchise disclosure document does not constitute the state’s approval of the franchise disclosure document.