FranchiseVerdict
Closet Factory logo
FV-00565·STRONGExcellent91

Closet Factory

Formerly known as Cousins Subs

Home Services - OtherFranchising since 1985Website
Investment
$393K – $664K
99th pct Other
Avg revenue
$6.1M
61st pct Other
Royalty
Units
92
68th pct Other
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $393K – $664K including a $59K franchise fee.
  • Average unit revenue of $6.1M/year (median $4.6M).
  • Rated STRONG with a risk score of 41/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 36 loans (below the industry average).
  • System growing at 1620% CAGR over 3 years with 92 total units — strong expansion trajectory.

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
The Closet Factory Franchise Corporation
Incorporated in
California
HQ
12800 South Broadway, Los Angeles, California 90061
Auditor
Jonathon P. Reuben, CPA
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$18.2M
vs $18.7M prior year

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 Closet Factory unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
FDD Item 19 reports $6,097,058
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: restoration
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $393K–$664K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $60K–$100K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

-20%

Negative

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$-122K
EBITDA margin
-2.0%
Total invested
$608K
Payback
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Overview

About

Franchisees operate custom closet design and installation businesses, managing client consultations, space measurements, product selection, and installation of organizational systems. Day-to-day activities include showroom operations, design appointments, project management, and coordinating installation crews while maintaining inventory and managing customer relationships.

CEO
John F. La Barbera
Founded
1985
FDD year
2025
States available
32

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$393K – $664K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$60K – $100K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$59K
Royalty
Equal to the greater 6.75% of Gross Receipts or $975 per …
Ad fund
15.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
21.8%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

Avg gross sales
$6.1M
Per unit, per year
Median gross sales
$4.6M
Item 19 type
Gross Sales
Sample size
47 units
vs category median 21 · large
Range (low → high)
$351K$39.1M
Cohort dispersion
Transparency
4 / 5
vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Revenue rank61th
vs Home Services - Other peers
Investment cost rank99th
Lower investment ranks lower (better)
Royalty rate rank54th
Lower royalty = lower percentile (better)
Unit count rank68th
vs Home Services - Other peers
Risk score rank10th
Lower risk = lower percentile (better)

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
92
Opened
9
Last reporting year
Closed
1
Turnover rate
1.1%
Company-owned
6
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
94%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
+10.3%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+16.2%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
86+8
Franchised units
2024
78
Franchised units
2025
74
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 20 · 16 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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Available · 16 states
Not registered

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.

Total loans
36
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

41
Risk · 0-100
STRONG41 / 100

Closet Factory presents moderate-to-cautionary risk due to undisclosed profitability metrics, high capital requirements, modest unit growth, and franchisor financial concerns despite strong gross revenue figures.

Score breakdown · what drove the 41 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 — unable to verify actual profitability despite $609k avg revenue
  2. 02MINORHigh minimum investment ($392.5k) with dual royalty structure (6.75% or $975/week minimum) creates fixed cost burden
  3. 03MINORModest unit growth (10.3% YoY) with only 92 locations suggests slower expansion and market saturation concerns
  4. 04MINOR5-year term is shorter than industry standard (10 years), requiring earlier renewal negotiation and uncertainty
  5. 05HIGHGoing Concern status is 'False' — potential financial instability or accounting irregularities at franchisor level

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Geographic
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
5 years
Renewal term
5 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
0
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Optional
Governing law
Varies

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
49 hrs
On-the-job training
41 hrs
POS system
ClosetWare
Operating tech stack

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

21 numbers

Locked
(517) 335-••••
MI
(402) 471-••••
NE
(212) 416-••••
NY

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Closet Factory · FDD (2025) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above