City Publications
Bottom line
- Total investment $35K – $270K including a $89K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 56/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 12 loans (below the industry average).
- No Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
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 City Publications unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
28%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
City Publications franchisees typically operate local digital or print publication businesses, distributing community news, lifestyle content, or advertising platforms within protected territories. Day-to-day operations likely involve content management, advertising sales, circulation/distribution logistics, and local marketing efforts to build subscriber or advertiser bases.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
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
City Publications presents caution-level risk due to shrinking unit base, material litigation alleging fraud, opaque financials, and high entry costs relative to system health.
Score breakdown · what drove the 56 / 100 rating
- 01MEDUnit count declined 12.5% YoY (35 units), indicating system contraction and potential franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02HIGHActive litigation (2025) alleging fraud, misrepresentation, and breach of contract suggests franchisor credibility and legal exposure issues
- 03MEDNo Item 19 financial disclosure (Avg Revenue and Net Income not disclosed) prevents validation of 6% royalty sustainability and ROI claims
- 04MINORHigh franchise fee ($89,000) combined with declining unit economics creates elevated break-even risk
- 05HIGHNo 'Going Concern' statement indicates potential financial instability or undisclosed operational challenges at corporate level
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
29 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
City Publications · FDD (2026) PDF