Charleys Philly Steaks
Formerly known as Global Education
Bottom line
- Total investment $202K – $936K including a $25K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $942K/year (median $860K).
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 42/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 135 loans (below the industry average).
- System growing at 41.1% CAGR over 3 years with 761 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 Charleys Philly Steaks unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
25%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Charleys Philly Steaks units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$1.7M
on $8.5M purchase
Total debt
$6.8M
SBA $4.2M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Charleys Philly Steaks franchisees operate quick-service restaurants (QSR) specializing in Philly cheesesteaks, chicken sandwiches, and sides. Day-to-day operations include food prep, order fulfillment, staff scheduling, inventory management, and customer service in high-traffic locations (malls, street retail, airports). Most units are small-format with limited seating, emphasizing speed of service and consistent recipes.
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 · 19 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
Charleys presents moderate-to-cautious risk: strong top-line revenue but opaque profitability, unprotected territory amid rapid expansion, and missing financial disclosure make ROI validation impossible before investment.
Score breakdown · what drove the 42 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Unit Volume) disclosed — cannot verify $942k average revenue claim or actual profitability
- 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk; 761 units growing 30.1% YoY may saturate markets rapidly
- 03MEDWide investment range ($202k–$936k) suggests inconsistent unit economics or hidden costs not disclosed upfront
- 04MEDNet income not disclosed — royalty floor of $300/mo ($3,600/yr) on $942k revenue is only 0.38%, masking true take-home profit
- 05MINORRapid unit growth (30.1% YoY) without protected territory indicates aggressive expansion that may cannibalize existing franchisees' sales
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
84 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Charleys Philly Steaks · FDD (2024) PDF