Daddy’s Chicken Shack Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Daddy's Chicken Shack is a fast-casual franchise serving crispy chicken sandwiches, tenders, and sides. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing food prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Daddy’s Chicken Shack franchise requires a total initial investment of $169K – $826K. The 2024 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $169K – $826K
- 16th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 15
- 45th 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 avg · 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 $169K – $826K.
- RETURNSFY2023 total revenues of $92,589 comprised franchise fees $47,315, royalties $35,124, and technology fees $10,150. This is a Regional Developer FDD for Daddy's Chicken Shack Franchising, LLC; audited statements as of/for years ended Dec 31, 2023 and 2022. Going concern doubt noted; member's deficit of $(771,820).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 60/100 (higher is better).
- DATANo 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
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Daddy's Chicken Shack Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Daddy's Chicken Shack Holdings, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Area 15 Ventures, LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Dave L. Liniger, Jr.
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 480 East Happy Canyon Road, Castle Rock, CO 80108
- Auditor
- Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $93K
- vs $6K prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
- CEO
- Dave L. Liniger, Jr.
- Headquarters
- CO
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 8
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 24% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $25K | $40K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $144K | $786K |
| Total initial investment | $169K | $826K |
Source: Daddy’s Chicken Shack 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
- $169K – $826K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- N/A
- Paid to franchisor at signing
- Royalty
- This is a Regional Developer FDD; the Regional Developer …
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $150 |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Daddy’s Chicken Shack did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Daddy’s Chicken Shack unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
23%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
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
FY2023 total revenues of $92,589 comprised franchise fees $47,315, royalties $35,124, and technology fees $10,150. This is a Regional Developer FDD for Daddy's Chicken Shack Franchising, LLC; audited statements as of/for years ended Dec 31, 2023 and 2022. Going concern doubt noted; member's deficit of $(771,820).
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Disclosure
Franchisor chose not to disclose financial performance representations. You will need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +25.0% over 3 years (3 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 averages
How Daddy’s Chicken Shack Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 15
- Opened
- 3
- 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
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +25.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 3
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 8 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 contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 3 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 3
- Loan volume
- $1.7M
- Median loan
- $569K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
- limited sample (3 loans) — rate not shown below 10
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 2
- Defaults
- N/A
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
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
Early-stage QSR franchise with opaque financial performance, aggressive dual-layer royalties, minimal scale, and insufficient disclosure to assess risk-adjusted returns on a six-figure investment.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- 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 60 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNo average revenue or net income disclosure (Item 19) — inability to assess profitability and ROI on $168k-$826k investment
- 02MINORExtremely high royalty structure (50% of franchise fee + 50% of ongoing royalties) creates dual revenue extraction that may limit franchisee margins
- 03MEDOnly 15 units system-wide with 25% YoY growth — very small, early-stage franchise with limited operational track record and higher failure risk
- 04MINORWide investment range ($168k-$826k) suggests high variability in unit economics and unclear cost structure for franchisees
- 05MINOR$125,000 franchise fee is substantial for a 15-unit system with no proven profitability data to justify it
- 06MED10-year term is lengthy commitment with limited historical performance data to evaluate long-term viability
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
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 | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 2 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 10 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Denver, Colorado metropolitan area |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | CO |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 16 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 8 hrs
- Training location
- Denver, CO or another location designated by franchisor
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 1 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects, subject to franchisor approval within 45 days
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- franchise sales management CRM platform
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: franchise sales management CRM platform
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
16 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Daddy’s Chicken Shack · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Daddy’s Chicken Shack franchise?
The total investment to open a Daddy’s Chicken Shack franchise ranges from $169K – $826K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Daddy’s Chicken Shack franchise owners earn?
Daddy’s Chicken Shack does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the Daddy’s Chicken Shack 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 Daddy’s Chicken Shack FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Daddy’s Chicken Shack's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Daddy’s Chicken Shack (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 Daddy’s Chicken Shack franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Daddy’s Chicken Shack has 15 total units in the United States, including 15 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Daddy’s Chicken Shack a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Daddy’s Chicken Shack as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 60 out of 100 (higher is better), based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. 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?
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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.