Elevation Burger
Bottom line
- Total investment $517K – $2.0M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.1M/year (median $739K).
- Rated CAUTION with a risk score of 72/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 3 loans (below the industry average).
- System contracting at -11.1% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
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 Elevation Burger unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
13%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Elevation Burger units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$1.7M
on $8.7M purchase
Total debt
$6.9M
SBA $4.3M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Franchisees operate fast-casual burger restaurants featuring grass-fed beef, premium ingredients, and a sustainability-focused brand positioning. Day-to-day operations include food preparation, counter service, inventory management, and maintaining brand standards across limited-menu burger-centric menus. The model targets health-conscious consumers willing to pay premium prices in a competitive quick-service restaurant landscape.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
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 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
Elevation Burger operates within a contracting franchise system under litigation-prone parent company with regulatory compliance failures, undisclosed profitability metrics, and deteriorating unit economics.
Score breakdown · what drove the 72 / 100 rating
- 01MEDUnit count declined 8.6% YoY (36 units) indicating system contraction and potential viability concerns
- 02MINORParent company FAT Brands facing active securities class action lawsuits with officer involvement suggesting corporate governance/transparency issues
- 03MEDNet Income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 makes ROI analysis impossible and prevents informed investment decisions
- 04MINORRegulatory settlement with Virginia over franchise registration and financial reporting inaccuracies indicates compliance failures and potential misrepresentation to franchisees
- 05MINORHigh investment range ($517K-$1.99M) combined with declining unit count suggests franchisees are struggling to achieve adequate returns
- 06MINOR6% royalty on average $1.08M revenue ($64,800 annually) represents meaningful ongoing cost in contracting system
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
17 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Elevation Burger · FDD (2025) PDF