Written By: Gouri Ghosh

In 2025, customers are spending more in branded products and services, not only in large cities but also in medium-sized towns. This increasing need is presenting new opportunities for entrepreneurs like you. Franchise models are also becoming more effective and profitable. If you are willing to invest in a franchise above 10 lakhs, you can have a business that already has a good brand name, a loyal customer base, and a well-defined system to implement. 

In this blog, we will take you through the most promising franchise options in India that cost 10 lakhs or more to invest in. We will also see which cities are providing real growth and how you can ensure your investment earns you high returns, not merely footfall.

The ₹10 Lakh+ Investment Bracket: What Are the Options?

If you're considering investing more than 10 lakhs into a franchise, congratulations, you've made a good move forward. This is no longer the entry-level segment. You gain access to more organized, scalable, and established franchise business opportunities in India here.

These are the most prevalent opportunities in this segment:

Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs)

These are among the favorite options. From local fast food to foreign-style menus, QSRs flourish in cities with good traffic.

Ice Cream and Dessert Cafes

Premium or niche dessert franchises are performing well in shopping malls, high streets, and at schools or colleges.

Salon and Grooming Chains

Personal grooming is an emerging industry, primarily in Tier 2 cities. You can invest in popular salon chains that the public already trusts when you have more than ₹10 lakh.

Edtech and Preschool Franchises

Education never loses demand. It's a good choice if you're seeking purpose along with profit.

Health & Fitness Studios

Consider boutique gyms, yoga studios, or physiotherapy clinics. These outlets have long-term, loyal customers and provide stable cash flows.

Laundry Services and Dry-Cleaning Chains

Consumers in urban areas are outsourcing household chores. Designer laundry services with app bookings are picking up pace in both Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities.

Cloud Kitchens with Technology Integration

These low-overhead food companies are dine-less, selling online. They are particularly well-suited to digital-first markets and tend to be scalable across cities.

While there are profitable franchise under 10 lakhs in India, stepping into the ₹10 lakh+ range opens up better brand visibility, higher margins, and long-term sustainability. If you’re serious about making your franchise work and want it to grow beyond a single outlet, this is the bracket to explore.

India’s Most Investor-Friendly Cities in 2025

Let's cut to the chase: location, location, location. The following Indian cities are witnessing genuine growth, not merely population but purchasing power, infrastructure, and franchise flexibility.

• Bengaluru: India's startup hub is more than all about tech. It's a QSR, salon, gym, and service-based model goldmine. It has high urban density, a working young population, and mall culture.
• Pune: Less disorganized than Mumbai but equally aspirational. Pune, with its combination of students, working professionals, and densely populated areas, is hot for food outlets, pre-school chains, and EV services.
• Lucknow: A start-up star in North India. Lucknow's urbanization and mall growth make it one of India's top cities for franchise business, particularly in fashion, food, and wellness.
• Indore: With low competition and high receptiveness, Indore is ideal for lucrative franchise concepts for Tier 2 & 3 cities in India by 2025.
• Ahmedabad: Reputed for the ease of doing business, Ahmedabad is the destination for retail, food, and healthcare franchises. Reasonable rentals make it desirable even at the ₹10L–₹20L price range.
• Kochi: Tourism + technology = double benefit. Kochi is steadily emerging as a hotspot for dessert cafes, salon franchises, and health-food chains.
• Chandigarh: Clean, affluent, and well-planned. Starting with fashion and beauty salons, Chandigarh possesses spending power and brand awareness that investors adore.

Franchise Segments With High Returns in These Cities

Picking the right city for your franchise model is where the magic begins. This is what works well in 2025:

Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs)

These are restaurants that sell fast food such as burgers, wraps, biryani, or momos. They don't require full table service. They work well in congested cities where individuals are always in a hurry, such as Bengaluru, Pune, and Chandigarh. These cities have a young population and plenty of working professionals who enjoy quick, delicious meals.

Salon & Grooming Brands

These are establishments that provide haircuts, facials, and personal grooming services. In Tier 2 cities such as Indore or Lucknow, more consumers are now splurging on grooming, particularly if the brand is familiar and well-established. These franchises thrive since people value professional and hygienic service.

Preschools & Edtech Kiosks

In metropolises with high numbers of young families, such as Ahmedabad and Pune, parents seek qquality educational opportunities for their kids. Opening a preschool or an education franchise (such as a learning center or electronic learning booth) fits well here. These establishments typically do not require a high investment in land or machinery but can provide decent profits.

Health & Fitness Studios

Individuals today are healthier and tend to seek regular, guided exercise. These types of franchises are repeat business and have guaranteed income due to customers visiting every week or even daily.

EV and Green Tech Services

These franchises might be new, but they're expanding rapidly due to increased demand and government initiatives.

If you want the most profitable franchise businesses to target Tier 2 cities, these industries offer you good returns and simple scalability.

Important Metrics: ROI, Footfall, and Brand Penetration

When choosing a city for your franchise business, consider three key factors that significantly influence your success: ROI (Return on Investment), footfall (the number of customer visits), and brand penetration (the popularity of your brand).

ROI Timeline

In large metro cities such as Mumbai or Delhi, it takes longer to enjoy the return on investment—18 to 30 months. Smaller Tier 2 or Tier 3 cities, such as Indore or Surat, however, tend to offer you an immediate ROI, even within 12 to 18 months. This is because operating costs for your franchise, including rent and salaries for employees, are lower. 

Footfall Quality

It's not about how many individuals pass by your shop but how many end up purchasing something. For instance, shopping malls and locations in Tier 2 cities may not be as crowded as metros, but the customers who visit are likely to make a purchase. 

Brand Penetration

If your franchise brand already exists and you have locations in the city, it indicates you have a strong brand recall. Customers will have faith in your brand and are more likely to come back. If your brand doesn't exist in the city, you'll require a very good marketing strategy to launch and establish it.

How to Select the Ideal City According to Your Risk Appetite

Here's how to determine the city that suits your risk appetite:

Low Risk: Tier 2 Cities with Government Support

Places like Indore, Lucknow, and Ahmedabad are excellent in case you wish to have low risk. They are of a lower cost, well-supported by the government, and willing to experiment with new franchises. These cities typically ensure consistent returns with less tension

Medium Risk: Metros with Competitive Markets

Cities such as Pune and Bengaluru are more competitive but have larger markets. You may have to wait longer to receive your returns, but the opportunities to expand your business are larger.

High Risk, High Reward: Emerging Tier 3 Cities

Cities such as Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, and Surat are newer markets with less competition. It's riskier since the market is underdeveloped, but if you're successful here, you can be a market leader very early. This is ideal for seasoned investors.

Conclusion: 

If you're going to invest more than 10 lakhs on a franchise, you're already thinking big and that's a good idea. But don't forget that success doesn't only rely on the brand. It also relies on where you're going to put your franchise.

Faster growth, reduced costs, and improved customer response are available in some cities. Indore, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Pune, and Bengaluru are turning out to be solid options in 2025. The cities are developing rapidly and opening their doors to new enterprises.

Fast-growing franchise spaces such as food, education, grooming, fitness, and EV services are performing well in these cities. They provide good returns and space to grow.

There are still money-making franchises below 10 lakhs in India, but if you can afford to invest more, you'll have better brand assistance, greater visibility, and higher long-term profits.

So don't rush. Select the right city. Select the right brand. And invest where your money can grow.

Disclaimer: The brands mentioned in this blog are the recommendations provided by the author. FranchiseBAZAR does not claim to work with these brands / represent them / or are associated with them in any manner. Investors and prospective franchisees are to do their own due diligence before investing in any franchise business at their own risk and discretion. FranchiseBAZAR or its Directors disclaim any liability or risks arising out of any transactions that may take place due to the information provided in this blog.