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  1. Home
  2. Retail
  3. Metal Supermarkets
Metal Supermarkets logo
Retail · Business-to-Business(B-2-B)

Metal Supermarkets- The barriers to entry in Metal Supermarkets are not primarily financial. You need money to support startup costs, inventory investment, fixed assets, leaseholds and trade accounts receivable. Most important is the knowledge and transfer of the business methods and systems to our franchisees. - With a track record of over 20 years we know how to assist and guide franchisees in setting-up and manage the business, creating critical preferred vendor relationships, manage inventories, develop pricing strategies, and teach, coach and guide them on how to sell and market our products and services. - Our franchisees can make solid profits while building a long term, tangible and sustainable business with limited competition.

VetFranSBA Approved
Total Investment

$275K - $612K

Franchise Fee

$45K

Royalty

6%-3% of gross sales based on sales volume

Ad Fund

—

Term

—

Open Units

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Overview

About Metal Supermarkets

- The barriers to entry in Metal Supermarkets are not primarily financial. You need money to support startup costs, inventory investment, fixed assets, leaseholds and trade accounts receivable. Most important is the knowledge and transfer of the business methods and systems to our franchisees. - With a track record of over 20 years we know how to assist and guide franchisees in setting-up and manage the business, creating critical preferred vendor relationships, manage inventories, develop pricing strategies, and teach, coach and guide them on how to sell and market our products and services. - Our franchisees can make solid profits while building a long term, tangible and sustainable business with limited competition.

Metal Supermarkets is the world's largest small quantity metal distributor. Our stores are small metal warehouse and distribution centers, typically 4,000 - 6,000 square feet located in a medium to light industrial setting. Our stores stock, and sell various grades, sizes and shapes of metals such as aluminum, hot and cold rolled steel, stainless steel, brass and copper in bar, tubes, channel and sheet. Our business is selling stable industrial commodities. Metal is not a fad! It has been around for 100's of years, and hasn't materially changed over time. From a product standpoint, we don't sell anything different from other suppliers - we simply sell it differently by holding and selling a broader range and selling in smaller quantities, faster, with greater flexibility and higher gross margins. This appeals to the company's core customer base- the smaller volume, non-manufacturing user. These users are typically frustrated by the fact that the metals market is volume driven, product specific and not time and service sensitive. We are the exact opposite; we are service driven, non-product specific, and not volume sensitive. The core focus of our business is not selling high volumes of metal used in manufacturing itself - that is for the major metal service center - but the maintenance and repair departments of manufacturers, distribution companies, food processors, machine shops, tool and die makers, government agencies and a wide and diverse variety of other companies and institutions as well as home owners and hobbyists. 90% of our sales are to other business, and the remaining 10% is to homeowners, hobbyists, artists, etc. This is a real B2B relationship business! One of the best things about this business is that it enjoys minimal customer and industry dependency. A typical branch has a widespread and diverse customer base which enables franchises to develop a fairly predictable revenue and profit stream due to the customer diversity. The thing that surprises most people about our business, particularly those from other industrial distribution businesses, is that our unique business model achieves retail margins. Our franchisees consistently average gross margins between 45 and 55%. Based on our most recent data, the average franchisee generates 30 invoices/day, with an average invoice size of $165, and enjoys over $550,000 per year in Gross Margin based on sales of approximately $1,200,000. A number actually exceed these averages by meaningful amounts. Customers who deal with Metal Supermarkets value and benefit from our key differentials and unique selling propositions including "cut to size" metal, fast delivery, and sourcing of non-stock and "hard to find" items, with no required minimum order size.

Who it fits

Ideal candidate

Current franchisees come from all walks of life but successful ones do have some commonalities such as a desire and willingness to build and invest in a long term business with tangible products in the B2B arena, have a sales aptitude, extroverted personality, and a willingness to provide outstanding customer service. In addition, they should have a semi-mechanical aptitude.
The fine print

FDD facts

Initial franchise fee$45K
Royalty6%-3% of gross sales based on sales volume
Total investment$275K - $612K
Liquid capital required$150K
Net worth requirement$500K
Year founded1985
Year began franchising1987
Business modelB2B
Owner-operator required (Year 1)Yes
Reported figures from public FDD disclosures and franchisor websites. Verify with the official FDD before signing.
Footprint

Territory overview

AvailableAlaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
UnavailableAlabama, Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Missouri, Texas
LegendAvailableLimitedUnavailable
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Quick facts
Founded
1985
Franchising since
1987
Model
B2B
Liquid capital
$150K min
Net worth
$500K min
Owner-op required?
Yes
Side-by-side

See how Metal Supermarkets stacks against another brand on every Item 19 number.

Data verified 2026
Sourced from public FDD filings & franchisor disclosures.
Visit official website →