Bottom line
- Total investment $296K – $1.0M including a $20K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $720K/year (median $703K). Estimated payback in 7.1 years.
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 49/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 471 loans (below the industry average).
- System growing at 25.7% CAGR over 3 years with 420 total units — strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Yale framework · single-unit ROIC
Returns Analysis
Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.
The model · Yale framework
What would one BIGGBY COFFEE unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
10%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 BIGGBY COFFEE units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$288K
on $1.4M purchase
Total debt
$1.2M
SBA $0.7M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
BIGGBY COFFEE franchisees operate specialty coffee retail locations, managing daily espresso bar operations, customer service, inventory management, and staff scheduling. Franchisees are responsible for location lease negotiations, local marketing, hiring/training employees, and maintaining brand standards while paying 6% of gross sales in ongoing royalties.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 10 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 phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
BIGGBY presents moderate-to-high risk: going concern status, unprotected territory, litigation history, and thin profit margins warrant deep franchisee validation before $296K-$1M commitment.
Score breakdown · what drove the 49 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing Concern issue flagged — indicates potential financial distress at corporate level despite positive unit growth
- 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk; 420 units in system means potential market saturation without exclusivity
- 03HIGHLitigation case shows franchisor aggressively enforced termination but franchisee bankruptcy suggests inadequate unit profitability to cover legal costs and damages
- 04MEDNet income of $91,984 on $720,465 revenue (12.8% margin) is thin; 6% royalty plus operating costs leave limited cushion for unforeseen expenses
- 05MINORNo Item 19 financial performance representation limits transparency; average figures may mask poor performer data and survivor bias
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
Item 20
Franchisee Contacts
Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.
Franchisee contacts
92 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
BIGGBY COFFEE · FDD (2025) PDF