Big O TiresFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Big O Tires franchise requires a total initial investment of $512K – $1.9M, including a $18K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.8M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 14.5% charge-off rate across 352 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $512K – $1.9M
- 38th pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- $2.8M
- 21st pct Automotive
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 6th pct Automotive
- Units
- 461
- 35th pct Automotive
- SBA default
- 14.5%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Automotive 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
Franchising since 1982. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
22% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Within the 15-30% range most franchise investors consider acceptable.
Bottom line
- Total investment $512K – $1.9M including a $18K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $2.8M/year, with an estimated 22% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 33/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 14.5% across 352 loans (above 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 O TIRES, LLC
- Parent company
- TBC Shared Services, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- TBC Holdings, LLC
- Incorporated in
- NV
- HQ
- 4260 Design Center Drive, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $3.2B
- vs $3.0B prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
Franchisees operate retail tire sales and automotive service locations, managing daily tire sales, installations, wheel alignments, and vehicle maintenance services. Operations require managing inventory, technician staff, customer service, and compliance with local automotive regulations. Franchisees must adhere to Big O's brand standards while competing against both independent shops and national chains like Discount Tire and Firestone.
- CEO
- Don Byrd
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 1982
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 24
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee/Minimum Deposit | $10K | $18K | |
| Initial Training - Fees, Travel & Lodging Expensesnot refundable | $1K | $9K | |
| Real Estate Leases (Three Months' Rent Plus Security Deposit) | $40K | $160K | |
| Equipment, Fixtures and Other Fixed Assetsnot refundable | $250K | $395K | |
| Construction, Remodeling, Leasehold Improvements and Decorating Costsnot refundable | $25K | $750K | |
| Signsnot refundable | $15K | $75K | |
| Grand Opening Advertisingnot refundable | $10K | $50K | |
| Initial Inventorynot refundable | $75K | $188K | |
| Insurance and Other Security (3 months)not refundable | $10K | $20K | |
| Computer Hardware and Softwarenot refundable | $21K | $34K | |
| Non-recurring Pre-opening Costsnot refundable | $5K | $35K | |
| Additional Funds (up to 12 months)not refundable | $50K | $150K | |
| Total initial investment | $512K | $1.9M |
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
$452K
16.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
35%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
34 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $512K – $1.9M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $150K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $5K – $18K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Adjusted Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 4.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 4.4%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 4.6 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $304 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $75K – $188K |
| Total fee load | 4.4% of rev |
A 4.4% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $2.8M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $259K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 21.6%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 457 units
- vs category median 70 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $748K→$10.2M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 9 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 221 Automotive brands
vs Automotive averages
How Big O Tires Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 461
- Opened
- 8
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 9
- Terminated
- 4
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 2
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 2.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -0.2%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +0.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 2
- Closed (3yr)
- 1
- Transfers (3yr)
- 19
- Transfer rate
- 0.2%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Ceased ops
- 0.2%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 3 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 352
- Loan volume
- $222.9M
- Median loan
- $378K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 14.5%
- 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)
- 85.5%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 72
- Defaults
- 42
Vintage analysis
Big O Tires charge-off rate by loan vintage
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Big O Tires's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 34-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Big O Tires presents high risk due to active litigation alleging franchisor misrepresentation, declining unit count, thin profit margins, and high capital requirements that compress ROI.
Litigation (Item 3)
6 case reference(s): 1 pending, 4 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $2
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 33 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHActive multi-front litigation including franchisee misrepresentation claims that directly undermine trust in franchisor disclosures
- 02MINORUnit count declining (-0.2% YoY) despite 461-unit system size, indicating market saturation or franchisee attrition
- 03MINORNet profit margin of only 9.2% ($258,878 on $2.8M avg revenue) leaves minimal buffer for royalty payments (3.5-5%), labor costs, and unexpected expenses
- 04MINORThree separate class action lawsuits (tire protection program, wage/hour violations at company stores, and franchisee false representations) suggest systemic operational or disclosure issues
- 05MINORHigh initial investment range ($511.5K-$1.88M) combined with thin margins creates extended payback period and capital recovery risk
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 | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory population | 50,000 |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Colorado |
| Litigation count | 3 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
6 case reference(s): 1 pending, 4 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 74 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 200 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- BOT POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: BOT POS System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
100 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Big O Tires · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Big O Tires franchise?
The total investment to open a Big O Tires franchise ranges from $512K – $1.9M, with an initial franchise fee of $18K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Big O Tires franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Big O Tires FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.8M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Big O Tires's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Big O Tires has a charge-off rate of 14.5% across 352 loans, meaning 14.5% 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 O Tires franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Big O Tires has 461 total units in the United States, including 434 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 8 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Big O Tires a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Big O Tires as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 33 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.