Bottom line
- Total investment $16.7M including a $75K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated CAUTION with a risk score of 75/100.
- 62 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3 — higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
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 Crowne Plaza unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
1%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Franchisees operate upscale hotel properties under the Crowne Plaza brand, managing daily guest services, housekeeping, food & beverage, and front-office operations. Revenue derives primarily from room bookings; franchisees pay 5% of gross room revenue as royalty plus marketing and other fees. Franchisees assume full operational, staffing, and capital maintenance responsibility while the franchisor provides brand licensing, reservation systems, and marketing support.
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 · 30 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.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Crowne Plaza exhibits HIGH RISK profile: massive capital requirement with undisclosed returns, shrinking franchise base, pervasive litigation including fraud and statutory violations, absent going concern status, and zero territory protection—presenting compounded legal, financial, and operational risks unsuitable for most investors.
Score breakdown · what drove the 75 / 100 rating
- 01MEDMassive capital requirement ($16.7M+) with zero disclosed average net income creates severe ROI opacity and repayment risk
- 02MEDNegative unit growth (-2.3% YoY decline with 85 units) signals system contraction and reduced peer support network
- 03HIGHExtensive litigation across multiple jurisdictions including fraud allegations, statutory violations, data breaches, and kickback schemes demonstrates governance failures and legal exposure
- 04HIGHNo going concern status (False) suggests financial instability at corporate level, threatening franchisee support and brand viability
- 05MINORUnprotected territory invites cannibalization and direct franchisor competition in revenue streams
- 06MINORItem 19 financial performance absent—no disclosure of actual unit economics, profitability, or break-even timelines
- 07MINOR5% royalty on gross rooms revenue (not net) creates fixed cost burden regardless of profitability, amplifying downside risk
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
83 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Crowne Plaza · FDD (2024) PDF