Bottom line
- Total investment $501K – $1.8M including a $50K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated CAUTION with a risk score of 72/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 2 loans (below the industry average).
- Emerging franchise — only 2 years of franchising with 3 units. Early-stage systems carry higher risk but may offer better territory availability.
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 Ferncrest unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
8%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Ferncrest franchisees operate [BUSINESS MODEL UNCLEAR FROM PROVIDED DATA]. Without disclosed revenue figures or operational details, the day-to-day responsibilities, profit drivers, and business model cannot be determined. This represents a fundamental gap in franchise transparency.
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 · 18 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
Ferncrest exhibits critical warning signs including going concern issues, extreme information opacity, a 3-unit system with unknown growth, and no financial performance data—making this a high-risk investment unsuitable for due diligence without substantial additional disclosure.
Score breakdown · what drove the 72 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing Concern Warning: Franchisor marked 'False' indicating potential financial distress or viability questions
- 02MEDExtreme Information Opacity: No average revenue, net income, or growth metrics disclosed—impossible to validate ROI on $501K-$1.79M investment
- 03MINORMicroscopic System Size: Only 3 units operating with unknown growth trajectory suggests either pre-revenue concept or contraction
- 04MEDHigh Capital Requirement with Hidden Economics: $501K minimum investment + 7% royalty on undisclosed revenues creates unquantifiable risk
- 05MINORNo Performance Benchmarks: Absence of Item 19 financial performance representations prevents any legitimate financial modeling
- 06MINORRapid Scaling Red Flag: $1.79M maximum investment suggests franchisor expects significant growth, but 3-unit base cannot support claims
- 07MINORFranchise Fee Structure: $50K fee is moderate, but trivial compared to total investment—suggests low franchisor capital commitment
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
21 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Ferncrest · FDD (2026) PDF