Chester's Express Franchise Cost & 2026 FDD Data
56/100
Second tier
56 this brand51 Quick-Service Restaurants medianlikely 36–76: narrower with more SBA loans (very low confidence)
Higher is better · an editorial assessment, not investment advice
#1,232 of 3,069 graded brands
Why a B: Helped by financial health, legal record and transparency. Held back by unit growth and scale. See all six factors
- Total investment
- $28K – $307K
- excl. real estate
- Avg gross sales
- not disclosed
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from the FDD filing. Analysis by FranchiseVerdict · Methodology · Website · Report an error · Franchisor? Claim this listing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026 FDD
Per the 2026 FDD, a Chester's Express franchise requires a total initial investment of $28K – $307K, excluding real estate. This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the verdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Verdict grade: B (Second tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice.
Sources: 2026 FDD · What one unit could make and lose →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: 2026 filing · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low (the current year's filing)
Evidence for the headline figures: partial✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✗ Units and owners (Item 20)✗ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored1 of 1 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
Quick verdict · vs Quick-Service Restaurants median
Top edge: green = better than the Quick-Service Restaurants median by more than 10%, red = worse by more than 10%, gray = within 10% or no benchmark. Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a).
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Methodology
Bottom line
- RETURNSThe FDD makes no financial performance representation in Item 19, so it discloses no revenue or earnings figures; Item 19 is voluntary, and the Financial performance section explains what that does and does not mean.
- GROWTHIn the latest Item 20 year, the number of franchised outlets fell by 31 (120 opened, 151 closed).
- DATAThe FDD makes no financial performance representation in Item 19, so it discloses no revenue or earnings figures; Item 19 is voluntary, and the Financial performance section explains what that does and does not mean. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
AT STAKEOne unit at the Item 7 midpoint: $22K a year in payments on assumed SBA 7(a)-style terms.You put in about $33K of your own cash and personally guarantee a $134K loan. Assumptions are labeled in Sales; not investment advice.See what one unit could make and lose
Things to check before you sign (3)
- The franchisor keeps the right to compete inside your territory (Item 12, territory).
- The franchisor receives rebates or payments from suppliers you buy from (Item 8, required suppliers).
- Limited data: this page holds only part of the filing. Read the FDD itself before relying on any figure here.
Checked and clear: no auditor doubt that the franchisor can keep operating, no lawsuit naming the franchisor in Item 3 and no rule that the owner must run it personally. Not on file here, so ask: unit trend, SBA charge-off rate against the category median and jury-trial waiver.
What to do next
Step 1: Read the FDD itself.
Free: the franchisor must give it to you at least 14 days before you sign or pay. Or look it up in a state registry (Wisconsin, Minnesota, California). What to read first.
Step 2: Talk to current and former owners.
Free: Item 20 of the FDD lists every current owner and those who left last year, most with a phone number. Questions to ask.
Step 3: Talk to an SBA lender.
Free: the SBA's Lender Match. Ask what you would personally guarantee and what the monthly payment would be. If you plan to use retirement savings, ask a CPA about the rules for that first.
Step 4: Have a franchise attorney review the FDD and agreement.
Free: your state bar's lawyer referral service can name franchise lawyers, and many offer a short first consultation. Bring the checks listed above.
Research steps, not investment or legal advice.
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost (the Item 7 midpoint) is 66% below the Quick-Service Restaurants median ($487K).
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7 (fees and startup costs)
The filing does not state an initial franchise fee.
Do you qualify? The filing states no minimum net worth or liquid capital. Ask Chester's International, LLC (Item 1: 1531 3rd Avenue North, Suite 110, Birmingham, Alabama 35203) and your lender what they require, and keep living costs for the first year outside the deal.
Full Item 7 breakdown7 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Training Fee | $3.5K | $3.5K | |
| Insurance | $0 | $10K | |
| Build-out Cost | $0 | $200K | |
| Equipment, Furniture, Signage, and Fixtures | $12K | $55K | |
| Initial Inventory | $2K | $9K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $0 | $4K | |
| Additional Funds9 (3 Months) | $10K | $25K | |
| Total initial investment | $28K | $307K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. The total row is the total as printed in Item 7. Actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 6 · what you pay once you are open
Ongoing fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Technology feesPOS Technology Fee of $250-$325/month for Store-in-Store/Non-Trad Restaurants that purchase the recommended POS hardware (cap $350/month). | See the list |
What do units actually make?
This FDD makes no Item 19 financial performance representation - a voluntary item - so unit sales aren't disclosed.
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19 (sales and earnings)
Items 6 (other fees), 7 (startup costs) and 19 (sales and earnings) · assumptions labeled
What you could make and lose: one unit
What one Chester's Express unit would ask of you, from the filing's Item 7 total and labeled assumptions.
How these figures are worked out
- Loan (assumption): 80% of the $167K Item 7 midpoint is a $134K loan, paid over 10 years at 10.5%: $22K a year. SBA 7(a)-style terms on a long-term rate; your lender sets yours.
What you put at risk
Your own cash in: about $33K Assumption (the part the loan does not cover of the $167K Item 7 midpoint), plus whatever anything Item 7 leaves out (its notes say what). The loan is $134K.
Personal guarantee. SBA 7(a) loans require a personal guarantee from anyone who owns 20% or more of the business. If the unit cannot pay, the lender can collect from you personally, which can include your savings and your home. The worst case is losing the cash you put in and still owing the rest of the loan.
Gross sales are not profit, and none of these figures is take-home pay until tax and every operating cost are paid. The assumptions are ours, not the filing's. Not investment advice.
Returns modelOne unit · several units · editable
Chester's Express makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD - a voluntary item under the FTC Franchise Rule - so no gross sales figures are disclosed. The return models need one gross sales figure to start from, plus the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions; nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · one unit
What would one Chester's Express unit leave you each year after the loan payment?
Not disclosed in Item 19. Enter your own gross sales assumption
Gross sales, not profit: the costs below decide what is left.
No Item 19 figures are on file for this brand. Enter your own costs from a lease quote, a payroll plan and calls with current owners.
Illustrative category typicals, not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Item 7 midpoint of $28K to $307K
Item 7's $10K to $25K additional funds are already in the total
Left after the loan payment · per year
The unit's EBITDA minus the assumed loan payment. Before tax, depreciation and any cost your inputs leave out (insurance, accounting and legal, licenses, technology fees): not take-home pay.
Gross sales are not profit. Neither the filing nor a stated assumption on this page supplies annual revenue, royalty rate, ad fund rate, COGS, labor, rent / occupancy and other operating costs. Enter your own (a lease quote, owner calls) and the model runs on it.
Loan of $134K at 10.5% over 10 years, an assumption, not a quote. Return and payback are before tax, depreciation and the costs above. The loan usually needs your personal guarantee.
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2026 FDD · filed by Chester's International, LLC
Financial performance
No financial performance representation
This franchisor makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD. Item 19 is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and this filing states that it makes none, so no revenue or earnings figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the verdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that.
Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How Chester's Express compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Who are you contracting with?
Chester's International, LLC.
Item 21 (audited financials) · audited statements · 2026 FDD
The franchisor's own finances
The franchisor related companies owe it $1.4M, 12% of its assets. A franchisor that keeps little of its own profit has less of a cushion if the system has a bad year; ask how support and the ad fund are funded.
The figures, with their pages
- Net income
- $4.0Mlatest year · FDD Item 21
- Owed by related companies
- $1.4M12% of total assets (our arithmetic) · FDD p.76
- Total assets
- $10.9MFDD Item 21
- Equity
- $4.8MFDD Item 21
Item 1 (the franchisor) · who you're contracting with
The franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Chester's International, LLC
- Predecessor
- Chester's International, LLC (the "First Chester's")
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
- Wynn Giles
- Incorporated in
- Alabama
- HQ
- 1531 3rd Avenue North, Suite 110, Birmingham, Alabama 35203
- Auditor
- Warren Averett, LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $30.6M
- latest fiscal year in the 2026 FDD; $40.4M the year before
Overview
About
- CEO
- Wynn Giles
- States and territories listed
- 47
- registered or offered in, as the filing lists them (DC and territories included); not where units may open
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20 (outlets opened, closed and transferred)
Item 20 (outlet counts) · unit dynamics
The growth chart
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
Last fiscal year · Item 20 rates and pipeline
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Item 20 · latest year
In 2025: 120 opened, 151 closed
Source: FDD Item 20. Multi-year history is not disclosed in this brand's FDD.
Government records
SBA loan data
Matched to this brand from SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan records.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What are the risks?
Main risk in the grade: unit growth, then scale. The reasons are below.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Verdict grade + FDD Items 3 (litigation), 4 (bankruptcy), 8 (required suppliers), 16 (what you may sell), 21 (audited financials)
Risk and legal
Grade B: Second tier, 56/100 (category median 51); the full grade is at the top of the page.
How the grade is built
Why a B, factor by factor
- Financial health HelpsAudited financials; no going-concern doubt; franchisor net income positive
- Unit economics NeutralNo Item 19 sales figure to set against the investment, so neutral
- Unit growth Weighs on it, weakest dimensionTurnover 21.2%
- Scale Weighs on itFranchising since 2008
- Legal HelpsNo litigation naming the franchisor in Item 3
- Transparency HelpsItem 19 declines to disclose financial performance; audited financials
- Adjustments after the six dimensions (-12 points)Score limits: a ceiling the method sets for specific risks (such as a very high SBA charge-off rate, high turnover or an auditor's going-concern doubt) took 12 points off.
From the six scored dimensions, an editorial assessment, not investment advice. How the score is built
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Warren Averett, LLC
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
Ask what the franchisor earns on the supplies it sells you or the rebates it takes (Item 8).
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Franchisor takes supplier rebates: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
What are you signing up for?
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12 (territory), 15 (owner participation) and 17 (renewal, termination and disputes)
Contract and territory detail
| Allowed renewals | 2 |
|---|---|
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territory | No |
| Online sales rights | Reserved by franchisor |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Who runs it (Item 15) | Owner-operator not required |
| Non-compete (miles) | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusal | No |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Governing law | Alabama |
Items 10 (financing), 11 (training and support)
Training and operations
- On-the-job training
- 36 hrs
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 1–3 mo
- From signing to launch, for a Chester's Supermarket or Express Restaurant (Store-in-Store/Non-Trad: 2 to 4 months) (FDD p.32)
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Chester's POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 (initial fees) & 11 (training and support)
Franchisor support
Franchisee contacts
We hold no owner list for this brand. Item 20 of the FDD lists the current and former owners; the free FDD is the source.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to open a Chester's Express franchise?
Per the 2026 FDD, the total investment to open a Chester's Express franchise ranges from $28K to $307K. This is the Item 7 total in the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD): the startup costs the franchisor lists, such as build-out, equipment, inventory and working capital. The filing says these totals do not include real estate.
What do Chester's Express franchise owners earn?
Chester's Express makes no financial performance representation in Item 19 of its FDD - a voluntary item under the FTC Franchise Rule - so no gross sales figures are disclosed. Declining to publish one is lawful and is not evidence of how the outlets perform. It does mean that less about this brand can be verified from its filing, and the verdict grade - an editorial assessment, not investment advice - reflects that. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Chester's Express?
Chester's Express is franchised by Chester's International, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Chester's Express FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. The Chester's Express FDD does not make an Item 19 financial performance representation, so this page shows no earnings figure.
What is Chester's Express' franchise failure rate?
There is no published franchise failure rate, and Chester's Express has too few resolved SBA 7(a) loans on file (fewer than 10) to show an SBA charge-off rate that would mean anything. The SBA charge-off rate is the share of a brand's resolved SBA 7(a) loans to its franchisees that the SBA wrote off, including purchased guarantees. Resolved means paid in full or charged off; active loans are excluded because their outcome is not yet known. It is a lending outcome, not a count of closed businesses. Review the turnover and closure figures in Item 20 of the FDD and speak with current and former franchisees.
Is Chester's Express a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict gives Chester's Express a B Verdict grade (Second tier) with a verdict score of 56 out of 100 (higher is better), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Helped by financial health (audited financials), legal record and transparency. Held back by unit growth (turnover 21.2%) and scale (franchising since 2008). The “Why a B” section on this page lists all six dimensions and any adjustment. Speak with current franchisees before making any investment decision.
Other Quick-Service Restaurants franchises
Similar investment first, then by grade
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.