Alphagraphics Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Alphagraphics franchise requires a total initial investment of $298K – $384K, including a $50K franchise fee. Per the latest FDD, average unit revenue was $1.5M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 28.9% charge-off rate across 346 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified
Overview
- Investment
- $298K – $384K
- 54th pct Business Serv…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.5M
- 23rd pct Business Serv…
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 229
- 51st pct Business Serv…
- SBA charge-off
- 28.9%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Business Services · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Business Services avg · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- Total investment $298K – $384K including a $50K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $1.5M/year (median $1.1M).
- Verdict C (Average), verdict score 40/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 28.9% across 346 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- AlphaGraphics, Inc.
- Parent company
- U.S. Business Holdings, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- WorldFly S.p.A.
- Predecessor
- AlphaGraphics, Inc. of Tucson (AGIT)
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Paolo Fiorelli
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 143 Union Boulevard, Suite 650, Lakewood, Colorado 80228
- Franchisor revenue
- $23.8M
- vs $24.6M prior year
Overview
About
Providers of customized print and marketing communication products and services to businesses, including multi-channel marketing campaigns, brand identity, graphic design, offset and digital printing, bindery, mailing and fulfillment, direct mail, large format graphics, signage, vehicle wraps, promotional products, packaging, and digital marketing
- CEO
- Paolo Fiorelli
- Headquarters
- Colorado
- Founded
- 1986
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 29% above the typical business services franchise.
Source: FDD · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $50K | $74K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $199K | $260K |
| Total initial investment | $298K | $384K |
Source: Alphagraphics FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $298K – $384K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $74K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- Tiered: 7% of Gross Sales, reducing to 5% after $1,371,93…
- Ad fund
- 2.5%
- typical 3–5%
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $15K |
| Transfer fee | $50K |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 16% above the business services norm.
Source: FDD · Item 19
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$221K
14.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
55%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
22 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.5M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.1M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- historical
- Sample size
- 215 units
- vs category median 38 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $140K→$9.5M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $442K→$2.9M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
Compared against 356 Business Services brands
Revenue is 4.5x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $1.5M/year in gross sales. Median is $1.1M — top performers pull the average up, so a typical unit earns less. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 4.5x.
Operator retention
System contracting at -3.4% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven consolidation or franchisee exits.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Business Services averages
How Alphagraphics Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 229
- Opened
- 6
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 4
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.8%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +0.9%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- -3.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 6
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 4
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 8
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 346
- Loan volume
- $127.4M
- Median loan
- $350K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 28.9%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 71.1%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 38
- Defaults
- 77
- Typical loan rate
- 6.8%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- NAICS 3231
- Jobs supported
- 923
- 1.8 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 40%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 0% went to startups / new businesses, 100% to established operators
Vintage analysis
Alphagraphics charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Alphagraphics franchisees
Showing 3 of 38 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
A 28.9% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 3 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 28.9% — 80% above the 16.0% national norm, i.e. higher lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Litigation (Item 3)
One pending action: AlphaGraphics sued former Georgia franchisees for breach of Franchise Agreement, misappropriation of trade secrets, and violation of post-term non-compete after they began operating a competing business using AlphaGraphics customer data; court entered a stipulated injunction and compelled remaining claims to arbitration (hearing scheduled Aug 2026); defendants asserted counterclaims for breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
What are you signing up for?
Source: FDD · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory sizeℹ | Approximately 6,000 total businesses in Protected Area |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | City where franchisor's headquarters is located (Lakewood, Colorado) |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | Colorado |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
One pending action: AlphaGraphics sued former Georgia franchisees for breach of Franchise Agreement, misappropriation of trade secrets, and violation of post-term non-compete after they began operating a competing business using AlphaGraphics customer data; court entered a stipulated injunction and compelled remaining claims to arbitration (hearing scheduled Aug 2026); defendants asserted counterclaims for breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 66 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 5 hrs
- Training location
- Training facility at franchisor's headquarters; online self-directed e-learning offsite
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisor approves franchisee-proposed site
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- PrintSmith Vision (MIS System)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: PrintSmith Vision (MIS System)
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Alphagraphics franchise?
The total investment to open a Alphagraphics franchise ranges from $298K – $384K, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Alphagraphics franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Alphagraphics FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.5M. The median is $1.1M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Alphagraphics's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Alphagraphics has a charge-off rate of 28.9% across 346 loans, meaning 28.9% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Alphagraphics franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Alphagraphics has 229 total units in the United States, including 229 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 6 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Alphagraphics a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Alphagraphics as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 40 out of 100 (higher is better), based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Alphagraphics, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Other Business Services franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Business Services category
Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.