Signs Crumbl Cookies Won't Be Around Much Longer

If you spent any time on TikTok in early 2021, then you've probably seen enough Crumbl Cookies taste tests to last a lifetime. The Utah-based cookie company was inescapable at one point, with social media users flocking to try out its super-sized, super-sugary baked goods for themselves. As the online hype grew, so did Crumbl's offline presence. In August 2020, the chain boasted a respectable 100 locations across the U.S. By the end of 2022, it was dubbed the fourth-fastest growing food chain in the entire country. Fast forward another two years, and as of July 2024, this number has exploded to 1,038 stores, with Crumbl now a sickly sweet staple in all 50 states, plus Canada.

But it's not all sunshine, rainbows, and funfetti sprinkles. Crumbl has always been divisive. For every ardent lover of its Cake Batter cookie, you'll find someone who thinks their Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip is overpriced, bland, or just outright bad. This is par the course for any popular food brand, but Crumbl does seem to be more polarizing than most, with The New York Times even declaring that the amount of debate is what makes them so legendary.

However, lately it feels like we've spotted more red flags than green for Crumbl Cookies. From soaring prices to closures and layoffs, here are some of the signs that lead us to suspect that Crumbl Cookies is on the decline — and may even disappear for good.

While plenty of factors contribute to a brand's downfall, none matter quite as much as dwindling sales. Crumbl Cookies may boast more units than ever, but it's experienced this drop in sales in the past year. According to Crumbl's 2024 franchise disclosure document (via Franchise Times), the average store revenue dropped in 2023 from $1.8 million to $1.16 million, marking a 37% decrease. Most importantly, this is apparently the first year in which Crumbl's average unit value has declined, ever.

Delving further into the numbers, the average net profit across the 571 stores featured in the report was $122,955. That's $175,364 (or 58.7%) less than 2022. As if those numbers weren't concerning enough, Crumbl's worst performing location lost a whopping $241,554 in 2023. And while overall revenue for Crumbl increased by 11% to $122.3 million in 2023, its net income declined 19% to $42.8 million. Yikes.

You know what they say, "With great internet virality, comes great responsibility." Okay, maybe they don't say that, but the point still stands that social media trends come and go, which is why it isn't always the smartest idea to go all-in at the height of your 15 minutes of fame, which is arguably what Crumbl Cookies has done. The chain expanded massively throughout 2022 in an effort to meet the soaring market demand generated by videos tagged #crumbl on TikTok.

But did it grow too big, too fast? The signs are certainly there. As per its 2024 franchise disclosure document, Crumbl permanently closed seven stores last year: one in its native Utah, one in Georgia, one in Florida, and four in California (via Franchise Times). These were apparently the chain's first closures since 2020, when it closed just the one store in Arizona. Notably, this closure occurred before Crumbl boomed on social media.

These closures aren't done yet. While Crumbl has continued to open new stores, it closed another unit in Bellevue, Tennessee in January. A store also closed in Victorville, California "due to underperformance" in February (via Victor Valley News Group). These closures aren't totally out of the blue. Crumbl's CEO Jason McGowan told QSR in 2023 that the chain's growth will slow down to ensure it's "healthy and manageable." However, mass closures are still pretty alarming.

Layoffs are rarely a good sign. Like a lot of businesses in the past year, Crumbl Cookies decided to cut down its workforce in October 2023, citing "strong economic headwinds," "structural changes," and "streamlined" operations as its reasons for doing so (via The Salt Lake Tribune). This streamlining applied to its flagship store in Orem in particular, which switched from being a retail outlet and a training facility to instead "focus on its primary retail function."

While Crumbl didn't confirm the exact number of people affected by these layoffs, an alleged employee claimed on Reddit at the time that it was over 120. "People were blind sided," they wrote. "They thought with the growth, that the company was really healthy. One person mentioned sales are 50% of what they were last year and they never talked about it!!!!" By the sounds of it, not everyone was shocked by these layoffs. A self-described former employee from Crumbl's training team added on Reddit that "the level of delusion in that company is unlike anything I've ever seen before. 900 new stores in under 2 years is not sustainable for any company, I don't care who you are." To make matters worse, multiple employees were offended when, in the same week, Crumbl Cookies co-founder and chief business officer Sawyer Hemsley allegedly posted pictures of his new mansion on Instagram.

Let's make one thing clear: Crumbl Cookies are still pretty popular on social media. Does this hype compare to the height of the 2021 Crumbl craze? Not exactly. At its peak, Crumbl was unavoidable on TikTok. Not only were foodies and celebrities alike reviewing their favorite flavors, but accounts entirely dedicated to new releases and hosting cookie parties racked up thousands of followers of their own.

As of 2024, these reviews can and do still rack up millions of views. One review from TikToker babydumplingg even hit an impressive 9.7 million views in May 2024, with her audience plugged in to find out whether the Cookies 'n' Cream Rice Krispies Treat stacks up against Crumbl's standard sugar cookies (spoiler: it does). However, the numbers do show an overall drop in interest. For example, in June 2021, one of Crumbl's weekly TikToks announcing the new flavor lineup received over 153,000 likes. As of June 2024, new flavor announcements have pulled in significantly less with 37,200 likes, 45,300 likes, and 22,700 likes. The sentiment has also increasingly slanted negative, with some of the most viral videos about Crumbl focusing on "Crumbl Cookies is a SCAM," "Crumbl is BAD," and "I will never buy Crumbl Cookie again."

To some of those who started out on the Crumbl Cookies train, the business has taken a few wrong turns in recent years. Multiple customers have complained that the chain has tampered with its cookie recipes, leaving them lower quality and less delicious than before. "It seems like they are changing/altering the ingredients and recipes used, most likely to cut costs, while 'rebranding' as a 'new & improved' version," noted one customer on Reddit.

Some of the flavors that are most commonly accused of switching recipes are the Confetti Cake, Peanut Butter, and Golden Oreo. The biggest difference for many is the switch from shortbread bases to sugar cookies, which apparently happened when the Classic Pink Sugar was axed from the menu then brought back with a "new and improved" taste. "Although they don't owe us an explanation for the change, it shows the brand's inconsistencies and corner cutting ways," wrote one Reddit user. "It's a huge difference. The same corporation that fines stores for not being [compliant] on topping procedures also changes cookies people have been waiting for with no notice. It's a waste of money and I've lost all trust in the corporation."

It's a tale as old as time. You find your new go-to treat. Thousands of other people also find their new go-to treat. As demand soars, the company quietly starts increasing the prices of said treat, until eventually it becomes so expensive that it's more of a special occasion kind of indulgence than something you can justify purchasing on a regular basis — and said company then needs to maintain these extortionate prices because less people are buying these treats, and they desperately need to maintain profits.

Sound familiar? In the eyes of some Crumbl customers, that's exactly what's happening to the beloved cookie chain. While prices vary from location to location, they've increased in gradual increments over the past few years, with a single cookie costing as much as $4.99 and a pack of 12 priced at $48.99 as of July 2024. Rewind back to May 2021, and a single cookie would set you back $3, meaning prices have increased by a shocking 66%. The price of catering orders has also increased at an absolutely mind-blowing rate. One Reddit user shared screenshots of two orders they placed for 100 cookies in 2021 versus 2024. While the first order set them back $115, their most recent bulk order for the same amount of cookies cost almost double at $239. That's one heck of a markup.

As if Crumbl's soaring prices didn't take a large enough toll on the wallet, some customers have complained about the service charges quietly added onto their orders. In August 2023, a class action lawsuit was filed against the company over the 2.95% fee added onto every order placed via the Crumbl app — despite not being mentioned anywhere ahead of time. In fact, the only way to see this fee is to click on a small question mark next to "taxes and fees" upon checkout.

"Crumbl's promotion of a smooth, 'tech-driven' customer experience hides a more sinister truth: every time a customer utilizes the Crumbl App, Crumbl charges a carefully concealed 2.95% 'Service Fee,'" the plaintiffs complained when filing the case (via Courthouse News). "As a result of this automatic fee, customers pay a uniformly higher price for Crumbl's products than advertised on the menu." They also added that "given that the vast majority of American consumers already expect to pay sales tax on their purchase, Crumbl purposefully hides this charge among state taxes where it is unlikely to be discovered by reasonable consumers."

The duo, named as California residents Lisa Watson and Angela Keers, have requested damages not only for themselves but what they estimate is thousands of people across the state and the rest of the U.S. They've also demanded that Crumbl corrects this "wrongful and unlawful conduct" ASAP.

Selling cookies isn't exactly a unique business plan, but other companies specializing in baked goods have claimed that Crumbl Cookies has borrowed (or, to be more extreme, stolen) specific ideas for their own benefit. In April 2024, Cookie Co. accused Crumbl of ripping off its weekly Mini Mondays promotion that sees it sell batches of tiny versions of its regular sized cookies.

Crumbl's version of the promotion is creatively also named "Mini Mondays." Upon announcing the new venture, customers rushed to Cookie Co.'s defense, with one writing on Crumbl's Facebook, "Why is Crumbl stealing ideas of small businesses? #CookieCo initially came up with the idea of Mini Monday." Elise Thomas, CEO of Cookie Co., addressed the news in a now-deleted Instagram Reel, complaining that "I don't care that they used the name. The thing I care about is how they repeatedly go after small businesses" (via The U.S. Sun).

Ironically, she also claimed that Crumbl (which she described as a company that starts with a "C") has previously tried to send Cookie Co. "potential lawsuits" demanding that they stop using a rotating menu and change their uniform colors. "There was only 1 of me and hundreds of their shops," said Thomas, who declined to take legal action.

Crumbl Cookies faced some pretty serious accusations in December 2022 when a federal investigation found it had violated child labor regulations. A concerning 11 stores in California, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Utah and Washington were found to have allowed employees as young as 14 years old to work in "hazardous or prohibited occupations," as per a press statement from the U.S. Department of Labor. These same workers were also found to work later or for longer than was allowed by law. The location with the most violations were Crumbl Cookies units in Bountiful, Utah, and San Ramon, California, where nine minors were impacted in each store. All 11 stores in question were fined a combined total of $57,854.

While each location was a franchise, Crumbl's reputation still took a hit and it was forced to publicly address the situation. A spokesperson told TODAY that Crumbl was "committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming work environment for all of our franchisees and their employees" and that it "take[s] any violation of federal labor laws very seriously. We were deeply disappointed to learn that a small number of our franchised locations were found to be in violation of these laws." Crumbl added that it was "actively working to understand what has occurred at these specific store locations and will take appropriate action to ensure that all of our franchisees are fully compliant with the law" and apologized to all employees affected.

When it comes to Crumbl Cookies, reviews tend to fall in one of two camps: those who think they're the most decadent, delicious desserts on the market, and those who think they're raw, saccharine, and deeply overrated. As is often the case when a product receives so much initial praise, it feels like a lot of people have turned on Crumbl as the years have passed and that second group is growing more and more vocal about the gall of paying $5 for an overhyped cookie.

As one critic put it on Reddit, "It's a novelty item that will likely run its course and be gone in a few years." More specific complaints focus on the fact that the cookies are (purposefully) underbaked, giving them a polarizing cake-like texture. People also aren't impressed with the OTT frosting, which one unfavorable customer described on Reddit as being "like 9 parts butter, 1 part sugar. I gagged the first time I tried one, and it was the last time I tried one."

Crumbl's menu does change every week, so it's inevitable that some flavors are more popular than others. Personal preference is also a huge factor. Some people (this writer included) are all for a doughy, soft cookie, while others prefer more textured bakes. Regardless, it does feel like more people are calling out Crumbl as being more of a fad than a cult staple that will stand the test of time.

Crumbl Cookies received some disappointing news in August 2023 when a judge confirmed that it wouldn't allow an injunction against one of the company's biggest rivals. As per a lawsuit filed by Crumbl in 2022, Dirty Dough stole 66 Crumbl recipes. The company's founder, Bennett Maxwell, allegedly received said recipes from his brother, Bradley, who downloaded them alongside other company information during his final week at Crumbl.

Had the injunction gone ahead, Dirty Dough would've been prevented from opening any new franchise stores — something that would've inflicted a deadly blow upon the company, as per Maxwell. However, things didn't work out in Crumbl's favor, as the judge ruled that it had "not come close to showing that it still faces irreparable injury that could justify an economic death sentence for its nascent rival" (via The Salt Lake Tribune).

It was ultimately decided that Dirty Dough and Maxwell would return all information taken from Crumbl (and that Maxwell would swear under oath that he had, in fact, returned everything). Dirty Dough still had plenty to say after its legal victory, taking a swipe at Crumbl for being "a greedy billion-dollar company suing multiple start-ups for making cookies in attempt to stifle competition." It's also used the legal conflict to bolster its own business, using the tagline, "Cookies so good we're being sued!" (via The Salt Lake Tribune). Now, those are fighting words.