Big Frog Custom T-ShirtsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Big Frog Custom T-Shirts franchise requires a total initial investment of $164K – $323K, including a $60K franchise fee. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $514K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 10.0% charge-off rate across 16 loans[1]. Verdict grade: D. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $164K – $323K
- 42nd pct Business Serv…
- Avg gross sales
- $514K
- 11th pct Business Serv…
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 74
- 37th pct Business Serv…
- SBA default
- 10.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Business Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Business Services avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Franchised units fell from 76 to 74 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $164K – $323K including a $60K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $514K/year (median $425K).
- Verdict D (Below Average) with a risk score of 74/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 10.0% across 16 loans (near or below the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- BIG FROG CUSTOM T-SHIRTS, INC.
- Predecessor
- and Affiliates
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Dr. Christina P. Bacon-DeFrece
- CEO experience
- 17 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 533 Main Street, Dunedin, FL 34698
- Auditor
- PDR CPAs + Advisors
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $3.8M
- vs $3.8M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
Big Frog Custom T-Shirts franchisees operate retail and/or online storefronts selling custom-printed apparel, merchandise, and promotional products to consumers, businesses, and organizations. Day-to-day operations include customer service, design consultation, order processing, screen printing/embroidery production, quality control, and local marketing/sales development within their protected territory.
- CEO
- Dr. Christina P. Bacon-DeFrece
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 2008
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 25
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee, Standardnot refundable | $60K | $60K | |
| Training Travel Expenses | $2K | $5K | |
| Lease Deposits and Store Build Out, Standard location | $15K | $50K | |
| Equipment, Furniture & Fixtures for Standard Franchise | $15K | $112K | |
| Computer System and Software | $7K | $13K | |
| Signs, Standard location | $5K | $13K | |
| Office Supplies | $2K | $4K | |
| Insurance | $2K | $3K | |
| Professional Fees | $2K | $3K | |
| Franchise Opening Costs, including Utility Deposits, Licenses | $1K | $2K | |
| Opening Inventory, Standard location | $5K | $6K | |
| Promotional and Advertising - 3 Months for Standard Franchise | $10K | $10K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Months for Standard Franchise | $40K | $42K | |
| Total initial investment | $164K | $323K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
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
$80K
15.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
28%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
3.6 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $164K – $323K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $40K – $42K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $60K – $60K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- Initial 6 months: 6% of gross sales; After 6 months: the …
- Ad fund
- 1.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty (flat) | greater of 6% of gross sales or $1,200 per month |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $350 |
| Training fee | $2K |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $5K – $6K |
| Total fee load | 7.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $514K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $425K
- Item 19 type
- Actual
- Sample size
- 70 units
- vs category median 32 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $146K→$1.7M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $243K→$933K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 6 / 5
- vs category median 3 / 5 · above
Compared against 360 Business Services brands
vs Business Services averages
How Big Frog Custom T-Shirts Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 74
- Opened
- 4
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 5
- Terminated
- 2
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 6.8%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +0.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -2.6%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 3
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 1
- Transfers (3yr)
- 8
- Transfer rate
- 10.8%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 4.1%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 5.4%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 15 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Hawaii
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 16
- Loan volume
- $2.2M
- Median loan
- $150K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 10.0%
- 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)
- 90.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 9
- Defaults
- 1
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Big Frog Custom T-Shirts's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 9 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 9 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 6-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Active franchisee litigation, non-disclosed profitability data, small/stagnant unit base, and financial stability concerns make this a speculative investment requiring extensive validation before proceeding.
Litigation (Item 3)
Adroit 365, LLC v. Big Frog Custom T Shirts, Inc., Case No. 240211775-CB, Circuit Court for Oakland County, MI. Filed December 23, 2024. Franchisee claims breach of contract and conversion related to termination for failure to use required point of sale system. Franchisor filed answer, affirmative defenses, and counterclaim for breach of Franchise Agreement, breach of Advertising Assets Agreement, trademark infringement, and unfair competition against franchisee and owners Shawn McFaul and Nicole McFaul. Case in initial stages; no trial date scheduled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PDR CPAs + Advisors
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 74 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHActive litigation with franchisee (Adroit 365) involving breach of contract and conversion claims, with franchisor counterclaim for trademark infringement suggests systemic operational/relationship issues
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 despite $513k average revenue — impossible to assess actual profitability or ROI on $164k-$323k investment
- 03MINORRoyalty structure creates cash flow pressure: $1,200/month minimum ($14,400/year) represents 2.8% of average revenue even before growth, limiting franchisee margins
- 04MINOROnly 74 units system-wide with unknown growth trajectory — insufficient scale and transparency on unit growth/attrition rates
- 05HIGHGoing Concern flag is FALSE (meaning concern exists) — franchisor financial stability questions despite modest unit base
- 06MEDHigh initial investment ($163k-$323k) combined with undisclosed profitability metrics creates unfavorable risk/reward profile
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Geographic area |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory population | 150,000 |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Florida |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Adroit 365, LLC v. Big Frog Custom T Shirts, Inc., Case No. 240211775-CB, Circuit Court for Oakland County, MI. Filed December 23, 2024. Franchisee claims breach of contract and conversion related to termination for failure to use required point of sale system. Franchisor filed answer, affirmative defenses, and counterclaim for breach of Franchise Agreement, breach of Advertising Assets Agreement, trademark infringement, and unfair competition against franchisee and owners Shawn McFaul and Nicole McFaul. Case in initial stages; no trial date scheduled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 35 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 105 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Time to open
- 4 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee
- POS system
- CoreBridge POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: CoreBridge POS System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
15 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Big Frog Custom T-Shirts · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Big Frog Custom T-Shirts franchise?
The total investment to open a Big Frog Custom T-Shirts franchise ranges from $164K – $323K, with an initial franchise fee of $60K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Big Frog Custom T-Shirts franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Big Frog Custom T-Shirts FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $514K. The median is $425K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Big Frog Custom T-Shirts's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Big Frog Custom T-Shirts has a charge-off rate of 10.0% across 16 loans, meaning 10.0% 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 Big Frog Custom T-Shirts franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Big Frog Custom T-Shirts has 74 total units in the United States, including 76 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 4 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Big Frog Custom T-Shirts a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Big Frog Custom T-Shirts as a D-grade franchise with a risk score of 74 out of 100, 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.
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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.