CHOP5 Salad Kitchen Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $536K – $996K
- Disclosed sales
- $1.8M
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
CHOP5 Salad Kitchen is a fast-casual franchise serving customizable chopped salads and grain bowls. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing fresh prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A CHOP5 Salad Kitchen franchise requires a total initial investment of $536K – $996K, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.8M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: high - issued more than two years ago
Evidence: strong✓ 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 scored7 of 7 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $536K – $996K
- 78th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.8M
- Company-owned only1 outlet
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 48th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 3
- 14th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-Service Restaurants median · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $536K – $996K including a $40K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.8M/year (company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance).
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 34/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHFlat: no net change in franchised outlets in the latest year (0 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
- FLAGRevenue data based on only 1 outlet. Treat as directional, not definitive. Ask franchisees directly for current unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- CHOP5 Franchise LLC
- Parent company
- Chop5, LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Allen Hertzman
- CEO experience
- 2019 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- KY
- HQ
- 6011 Brownsboro Park Blvd., Suite F, Louisville, Kentucky 40207
- Auditor
- Reese CPA LLC
- Audited financials
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Allen Hertzman
- Headquarters
- KY
- Founded
- 2019
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 2
Leadership team7 execs · Item 2
Executive team
Brian Mills
President
7 yrs in role
Co-Founder & Operating Manager of CHOP5, LLC in Louisville, KY since February 2015.
Allen Hertzman
Chief Executive Officer
7 yrs in role
Co-Founder & Member of CHOP5, LLC in Louisville, KY since February 2015. President of Johncol, Inc. (owns 25 Papa John's Pizza franchises) in Columbus, OH from January 1991 to October 2022.
Kim Pettingell
Marketing Director
7 yrs in role
Marketing Director of CHOP5, LLC in Louisville, KY since September 2016.
Philip Horn
Co-Founder and Member
7 yrs in role
President of HB Tenders LLC (owns 1 HueyMagoos) in Charleston, SC since December 2022. Co-Founder & Member of CHOP5, LLC since February 2015; Managing Partner of Chesapeake Bay Subs, LLC (10 Jersey Mikes) since January 2012; Managing Partner of LaHoBa, LLC (2 Papa John's) since November 2009; Managing Partner of Bluegrass Subs, LLC (6 Jersey Mikes) since October 2006; President of S.R. Bailey since February 1999; President of We Three Kings, Inc. (1 Papa John's) since November 1993; and President of RoHoHo, Inc. (36 Papa John's) since September 1991.
Donald Bauer
Co-Founder and Member
7 yrs in role
Vice President of HB Tenders, LLC (owns 1 Huey Magoos) in Charleston, SC since December 2022. Co-Founder & Member of CHOP5, LLC since February 2015; Vice President of LaHoBa, LLC (2 Papa John's Pizza franchises) since November 2009; Vice President of S.R. Bailey since February 1999; and Vice President of RoHoHo, Inc. (52 Papa John's Pizza franchises) since September 1991.
Wade Oney
Co-Founder and Member
7 yrs in role
Authorized Member of IC4Y International SB Management, LLC in Valrico, FL since January 2021. Managing Partner of W&M Partners 100, LLC since July 2016; Co-Founder & Member of CHOP5, LLC since March 2015; President of Longleaf Baldwin 1 Company since April 2006; Managing Partner of Ice Cream 4 You International, LLC since May 2006; Managing Partner of OneyBayside, LLC since September 2005; Managing Partner of JED entities since September 2004; President of Walanilo Development, Ltd. and Walanilo Company since May 2002; and President of Bam-Bam Pizza, Inc. since June 1994.
Patrick Gaunce
Co-Founder and Member
7 yrs in role
Co-Founder & Member of CHOP5, LLC in Louisville, KY since February 2015. President of MRG, Inc. (owns 7 Papa John's Pizza franchises) in Grand Rapids, MI from January 1995 to June 2020; President of SPG, Inc. (owns 2 Papa John's Pizza franchises) in Glasgow, KY since January 1991; and President of Caveland Inc. in Cave City, KY since 1972.
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 58% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $40K | $40K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $30K | $80K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $466K | $876K |
| Total initial investment | $536K | $996K |
Source: CHOP5 Salad Kitchen 2024 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $536K – $996K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $80K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $5K |
| Transfer fee | $4K |
| Renewal fee | $2K |
| Inventory (initial) | $7K – $15K |
| Total fee load | 7.5% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 83% above the quick-service restaurants norm.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single outlet - not a system average
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for CHOP5 Salad Kitchen until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$821K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one CHOP5 Salad Kitchen unit return on the cash you put in?
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.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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: 2024 FDD
Financial Performance
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single outlet - not a system average
- Avg gross sales
- $1.8M
- Per unit, per year
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales
- Sample size
- 1 outlet
- vs category median 19 · small
- Reported figure
- $1.8MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 48 of the 2024 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- A single outlet — not a range
- Reporting year
- 2023
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2024
- Disclosed in the 2024 filing, covering 2023
- Transparency
- 8 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 781 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $1.8M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 2.3x. Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.5% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants median).
Disclosure
Transparency score 8/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 1 outlet — treat as directional only.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +50.0% over 3 years (0 opened, 0 closed).
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How CHOP5 Salad Kitchen 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.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 3
- 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
- N/A
- Company-owned
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +50.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 0
- 0.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 2 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
2
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
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.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
CHOP5 presents material risk due to extremely small franchise network (3 units), unprotected territory, unverified financial claims, and unclear corporate financial health despite attractive per-unit profitability metrics.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Reese CPA LLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Item 21 audited financial statements of CHOP5 Franchise LLC for FYE Dec 31, 2023/2022/2021 are referenced in Exhibit G but were embedded as scanned/image pages ('[See Attached]') and contain no machine-readable figures in the extracted text.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 34 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 3 units system-wide suggests minimal scale, market validation, and support infrastructure
- 02MEDNo disclosed growth trajectory despite averaging $1.78M revenue per unit — indicates stagnation or contraction risk
- 03MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk from other CHOP5 franchisees and company-owned locations
- 04MINORHigh investment range ($535K-$996K) with only 3 reference units limits ability to validate unit economics
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.5% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 10 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Jefferson County, Kentucky |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | KY |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 9 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 18 hrs
- Training location
- Designated Training Facility (Columbus, Ohio) + onsite at franchisee Restaurant
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 6 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Site selection
- Franchisee (with required Real Estate Company assistance)
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Toast
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Toast
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
3 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a CHOP5 Salad Kitchen franchise?
The total investment to open a CHOP5 Salad Kitchen franchise ranges from $536K – $996K, with an initial franchise fee of $40K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do CHOP5 Salad Kitchen franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the CHOP5 Salad Kitchen FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.8M. Important context: Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance; Based on a single outlet - not a system average. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns CHOP5 Salad Kitchen?
CHOP5 Salad Kitchen is franchised by CHOP5 Franchise LLC. Its parent company is Chop5, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2024 filing.
What is Item 19 in the CHOP5 Salad Kitchen 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. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the CHOP5 Salad Kitchen FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is CHOP5 Salad Kitchen's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for CHOP5 Salad Kitchen (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 CHOP5 Salad Kitchen franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, CHOP5 Salad Kitchen has 3 total units in the United States.
Is CHOP5 Salad Kitchen a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates CHOP5 Salad Kitchen as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 34 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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 CHOP5 Salad Kitchen, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.