BirdcallFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Birdcall franchise requires a total initial investment of $702K – $2.4M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.4M[2]. Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $702K – $2.4M
- 39th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $2.4M
- 23rd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 26th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 12
- 23rd pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants 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
Started franchising in 2025. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
23% cash-on-cash return (based on EBITDAR). Within the 15-30% range most franchise investors consider acceptable.
Bottom line
- Total investment $702K – $2.4M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $2.4M/year, with an estimated 23% cash-on-cash return (based on EBITDAR).
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 64/100.
- Emerging franchise: only 1 year of franchising with 12 units. Early-stage systems carry higher risk but may offer better territory availability.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Birdcall Franchising LLC
- Parent company
- Birdcall Holdings LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Mark Lohmann
- CEO experience
- 7 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- CO
- HQ
- 855 Wyandot Street, Suite 102, Denver, CO 80204
- Auditor
- Eide Bailly LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- Most recent fiscal year
Overview
About
Franchisees operate quick-service restaurant locations focused on poultry-based offerings (likely chicken-centric menu). Day-to-day operations include inventory management, food preparation, customer service, staffing, local marketing, and compliance with brand standards across a protected territory.
- CEO
- Mark Lohmann
- Headquarters
- CO
- Founded
- 2024
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 3
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| Initial Training Feenot refundable | $10K | $10K | |
| Initial Technology Feenot refundable | $10K | $10K | |
| Real Estate | — | — | |
| Architectural, Design and Engineering Fees | $7K | $9K | |
| Legal Fees | $10K | $30K | |
| Permits | $500 | $15K | |
| Liquor Licenses | $0 | $15K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $400K | $1.7M | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $100K | $350K | |
| Signage | $3K | $35K | |
| Smallwares | $2K | $5K | |
| Initial Inventory and Supplies | $8K | $20K | |
| Opening Advertising Program | $50K | $50K | |
| Insurance | $4K | $9K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses While Training | $3K | $15K | |
| Miscellaneous Opening Costs | $20K | $50K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $25K | $35K | |
| Area Development Feenot refundable | $25K | $25K | |
| Total initial investment | $727K | $2.4M |
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
$213K
9.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
13%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.4 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $702K – $2.4M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- A minimum of 2% of Fiscal Week Gross Sales
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 4.4 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $10K |
| Transfer fee | $50 |
| Renewal fee | $15K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $2.4M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Avg ebitdar
- $351K
- Reported as EBITDAR in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 22.6%
- Based on EBITDAR / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- Actual results of affiliate-owned outlets
- Sample size
- 5 units
- vs category median 13 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $2.0M→$2.7M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 10 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Birdcall Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 12
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 12
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 5
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Ceased ops
- 16.7%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 30 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.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Birdcall presents caution-level risk due to tiny unit count with unknown growth, absence of Item 19 disclosure, franchisor financial instability, and thin unit-level profitability relative to high capital requirements.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Eide Bailly LLP
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
Score breakdown · what drove the 64 / 100 rating
- 01MINOROnly 12 units system-wide with unknown/stagnant growth trajectory raises expansion viability concerns
- 02MEDNo Item 19 financial performance representation disclosed despite $2.4M max investment requirement
- 03MINORWide investment range ($702K-$2.4M) with $350K avg net income suggests inconsistent unit economics or high variability in performance
- 04HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — potential financial instability at franchisor level affects support infrastructure
- 05MINOR14.3% net margin (350K/2.44M) is modest for QSR with 6% royalty, leaving thin cushion for overhead and debt service on $702K-$2.4M SBA loans
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 |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Colorado |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 50 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 140 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- POS system
- Poncho
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Poncho
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
30 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Birdcall · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Birdcall franchise?
The total investment to open a Birdcall franchise ranges from $702K – $2.4M, 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 Birdcall franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Birdcall FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.4M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Birdcall's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Birdcall (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Birdcall franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Birdcall has 12 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 12 company-owned units.
Is Birdcall a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Birdcall as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 64 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.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Birdcall, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Full-Service Restaurants franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Full-Service Restaurants 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.