Cleavers Philadelphia Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $428K – $770K
- Disclosed sales
- partial, no system average
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Cleavers Philadelphia is a specialty retail franchise operating butcher shops with premium cut-to-order meats and prepared foods. Franchisees run the shops, managing butchering, retail, and customer service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Cleavers Philadelphia franchise requires a total initial investment of $428K – $770K, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Limited operating history: franchising since 2024. A system this young has fewer than three years of Item 20 outlet history and rarely enough SBA loans for a charge-off rate, so its grade rests on less evidence than an established system's. Read its Item 20 tables and talk to its first franchisees before relying on the grade. Other new franchisors
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: medium - issued 12 to 24 months ago; a newer filing is likely on file
Evidence: 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 scored5 of 5 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $428K – $770K
- 9th pct Food Retail
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Company-owned onlyNet sales1 outlet
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 2nd pct Food Retail
- Units
- 1
- 0th pct Food Retail
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Food Retail · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Food Retail 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 $428K – $770K including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 43/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHFlat: no net change in franchised outlets in the latest year (0 opened, 0 closed) (Item 20).
- DATAItem 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Cleavers Franchise LLC
- Predecessor
- company
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- PA
- HQ
- 105 Springhouse Lane, Newtown Square, Pennsylvania 19073
- Auditor
- Muhammad Zubairy, CPA PC
- Audited financials
Affiliated brands
- owns a business of the type being franchised
- Cleavers Holding
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Electra Poulimenos
- Headquarters
- PA
- Founded
- 2023
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 106% above the typical food retail franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown17 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $40K | $40K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $150K | $384K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, Equipment, & Supplies | $150K | $200K | |
| Exterior Signage | $8K | $10K | |
| Computer System | $5K | $7K | |
| Security System | $2K | $5K | |
| Initial Inventory to Begin Opening | $8K | $12K | |
| Office Equipment & Supplies | $2K | $3K | |
| Lease Deposits | $10K | $20K | |
| Utilities Deposits | $2K | $3K | |
| Insurance (3 months) | $2K | $3K | |
| Training Expenses | $6K | $10K | |
| Grand Opening Marketing | $10K | $10K | |
| Professional Fees | $3K | $5K | |
| Business Permits and Licenses | $2K | $4K | |
| Design & Architect Fees | $10K | $15K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Months | $20K | $40K | |
| Total initial investment | $428K | $770K |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $428K – $770K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $40K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $650 |
| Training fee | $6K |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Inventory (initial) | $8K – $12K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
No Item 19 revenue figure for Cleavers Philadelphia is on file. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Cleavers Philadelphia 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 annual revenue, 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.
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: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
Based on a single outlet - not a system average
- Item 19 type
- net sales
- Sample size
- 1 outlet
- vs category median 23 · small
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 6 / 10
- vs category median 0 / 10 · above
Compared against 142 Food Retail brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 6.0% (near the Food Retail median).
Disclosure
Item 19 reports outlet revenue, but not in a form that yields a per-outlet average we can compare across brands.
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 Food Retail medians
How Cleavers Philadelphia Compares
Category median of published Food Retail 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 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- N/A
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Signed, not yet open
- 0
- 0.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 2
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 1 state 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.
1
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Muhammad Zubairy, CPA PC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Cleavers Franchise, LLC was formed September 19, 2023; only one period of audited financials (period ending December 31, 2024). Revenues were $0; net loss of $824. Franchisor not in business 3 years so 3 years of audited statements not available.
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
Score breakdown · what drove the 43 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 1 unit operating makes system validation impossible; no comparable performance data or franchisee network
- 02MEDNet Income not disclosed prevents ROI calculation; with $427K–$769K investment and 5% royalties, profitability timeline is unclear
- 03MINORAverage Revenue of $4.8M appears inflated or unverified (likely franchisor data, not franchisee average); single unit cannot substantiate this claim
- 04MINORFranchise Fee ($40K) is reasonable, but total investment range suggests high overhead with unproven unit economics
- 05MINOR10-year term locks franchisee into relationship with a franchisor showing financial instability signals
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · 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 | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | PA |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 23 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 67 hrs
- Training location
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- MicroWorks
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: MicroWorks
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Cleavers Philadelphia franchise?
The total investment to open a Cleavers Philadelphia franchise ranges from $428K – $770K, 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 Cleavers Philadelphia franchise owners earn?
Item 19 of the Cleavers Philadelphia FDD discloses figures for part of the system but no single average across all outlets. These are gross sales figures, not profit; the Revenue section shows what the filing reports and on what basis. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Cleavers Philadelphia?
Cleavers Philadelphia is franchised by Cleavers Franchise LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Cleavers Philadelphia 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 Cleavers Philadelphia FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Cleavers Philadelphia's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Cleavers Philadelphia (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 Cleavers Philadelphia franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Cleavers Philadelphia has 1 total units in the United States.
Is Cleavers Philadelphia a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Cleavers Philadelphia as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 43 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
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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.