Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and CrematoryFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory franchise requires a total initial investment of $272K – $428K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.5% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $338K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $272K – $428K
- 53rd pct Pet Services
- Avg gross sales
- $338K
- 15th pct Pet Services
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- 34th pct Pet Services
- Units
- 1
- 4th pct Pet Services
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Pet Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Pet Services avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Started franchising in 2023. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
81% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line). Above the 20% threshold most investors target.
Bottom line
- Total investment $272K – $428K including a $50K franchise fee, 6.5% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $338K/year, with an estimated 81% cash-on-cash return (based on P&L Bottom Line).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 46/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Forever Franchising, LLC
- CEO title
- Owner
- Robert J. Walczyk, Jr.
- CEO experience
- 23 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- WI
- HQ
- 645 Heyrman Street, Green Bay, Wisconsin 54302
- Auditor
- Hawkins Ash CPAs
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $24K
- vs $25K prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2026
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Overview
About
Franchisees operate pet cremation and funeral home facilities, managing end-of-life services including cremation, memorial ceremonies, urn sales, and grief counseling for pet owners. Day-to-day operations involve customer consultation, cremation equipment management, facility maintenance, memorial event coordination, and local marketing to veterinary clinics and pet owners.
- CEO
- Robert J. Walczyk, Jr.
- Headquarters
- WI
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $30K | $60K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $192K | $318K |
| Total initial investment | $272K | $428K |
Source: Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$52K
15.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
13%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.5 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $272K – $428K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $60K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
- Payback period
- 1.2 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $100 |
| Transfer fee | $38K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Total fee load | 7.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $338K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Avg p&l bottom line
- $282K
- Reported as P&L Bottom Line in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 80.7%
- Based on P&L Bottom Line / investment midpoint
- Item 19 type
- Historical (affiliate-owned business)
- Sample size
- 1 units
- vs category median 12 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $321K→$354K
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency
- 8 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 75 Pet Services brands
Revenue is only 1.0x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Pet Services averages
How Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1
- Opened
- 0
- 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
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 2
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
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).
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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Unproven single-unit system with exceptional profitability claims lacking third-party validation, creating high due diligence and replicability risk.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Hawkins Ash CPAs⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 46 / 100 rating
- 01MEDSingle unit franchise system with no disclosed growth trajectory or multi-unit validation
- 02MINORExceptionally high net income margin (79.9%) compared to industry norms raises sustainability and disclosure accuracy concerns
- 03MINORNo Item 19 financial performance representation published despite strong reported earnings—limits ability to validate claims independently
- 04MINORHigh initial investment ($271k–$428k) for a single-location, low-unit-count system with unproven replicability
- 05MEDNiche market with emotional decision-making (pet funeral services) may have limited addressable market and scalability constraints
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 5 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 50 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Brown County, Wisconsin |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Wisconsin |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 44 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 62 hrs
- Training location
- Green Bay, Wisconsin headquarters or affiliate-owned outlet
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 32 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Square POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Square POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
17 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory franchise?
The total investment to open a Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory franchise ranges from $272K – $428K, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $338K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory (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 Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory has 1 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 1 company-owned units.
Is Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 46 out of 100, 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?
If you represent Forever Friends Pet Funeral Home and Crematory, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Pet Services franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Pet Services category
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.