FranchiseVerdict
Golden Krust Caribbean Restaurant logo
FV-01074·STRONGExcellent86

Golden Krust Caribbean Restaurant

Food & Beverage - Quick ServiceFranchising since 1996Website
Investment
$213K – $776K
36th pct Quick Service
Avg revenue
$1.3M
34th pct Quick Service
Royalty
5.0%
14th pct Quick Service
Units
108
72nd pct Quick Service
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $213K – $776K including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
  • Average unit revenue of $1.3M/year.
  • Rated STRONG with a risk score of 54/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 25 loans (below the industry average).
  • No protected territory and the franchisor reserves the right to compete in your area. Clarify territorial boundaries before signing.

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
Golden Krust Franchising, Inc.
Incorporated in
New York
HQ
399 Knollwood Rd, Suite 117, White Plains, NY 10603
Auditor
CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$5.2M
vs $5.9M prior year

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 Golden Krust Caribbean Restaurant unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
FDD Item 19 reports $1,334,878
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: qsr
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $213K–$776K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $10K–$100K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

38%

In Yale's "attractive" band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$207K
EBITDA margin
15.5%
Total invested
$549K
Payback
32 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing

What would 25 Golden Krust Caribbean Restaurant units return on equity?

Edit assumptions

Equity IRR · 5-yr

42.9%

5.95× MOIC

Year-1 DSCR

2.03×

EBITDA ÷ debt service

Equity required

$2.9M

on $11.3M purchase

Total debt

$8.4M

SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note

SBA 7(a) request ($5.7M) exceeds the $5M program cap. Excess capped automatically; backfill via conventional or equity.

Overview

About

Golden Krust franchisees operate Caribbean quick-service restaurants featuring jerk chicken, beef patties, rice-and-peas, and tropical beverages, primarily serving walk-in and carryout customers in urban markets. Day-to-day operations involve food preparation, inventory management, staffing, and marketing within limited geographic footprints without territorial protection.

CEO
Zehra Sheriff
Founded
1995
FDD year
2024
States available
8

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$213K – $776K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$10K – $100K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$40K
Royalty
5.0%
Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
1.5%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
6.5%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

Avg gross sales
$1.3M
Per unit, per year
Median gross sales
Item 19 type
Historic Performance
Sample size
106 units
vs category median 37 · large
Range (low → high)
$131K$4.1M
Cohort dispersion
Transparency
3 / 5
vs category median 4 / 5 · below
Revenue rank34th
vs Food & Beverage - Quick Service peers
Investment cost rank36th
Lower investment ranks lower (better)
Royalty rate rank14th
Lower royalty = lower percentile (better)
Unit count rank72th
vs Food & Beverage - Quick Service peers
Risk score rank30th
Lower risk = lower percentile (better)

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
108
Opened
4
Last reporting year
Closed
5
Turnover rate
4.6%
Company-owned
2
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
98%
vs corporate-owned
Multi-unit owners
1.0%
Net growth (yr3)
-0.9%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
-0.9%
Compounded over last 3 years
2022
106-2
Franchised units
2023
107
Franchised units
2024
107
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 20 · 5 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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 5 states
Not registered

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.

Total loans
25
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

54
Risk · 0-100
STRONG54 / 100

Golden Krust presents a CAUTION-to-HIGH RISK profile due to shrinking unit base, unresolved litigation over fee practices and competition, undisclosed profitability metrics, and franchisor financial concerns—requiring extensive validation before commitment.

Score breakdown · what drove the 54 / 100 rating

  1. 01MINORDeclining unit count (-0.9% YoY) signals system contraction and potential franchisee dissatisfaction
  2. 02HIGHActive litigation involving non-competition, breach of contract, and discriminatory fee practices suggests franchisor-franchisee conflict and operational inconsistency
  3. 03MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 prevents accurate ROI calculation; with $212,600-$775,900 investment required, profitability opacity is critical gap
  4. 04MINORRoyalty floor of $250/week ($13,000 annually) creates fixed burden even during low-revenue periods, compressing margins for struggling locations
  5. 05MINORUnprotected territory exposes franchisees to direct competition from other Golden Krust units and cannibalization risk
  6. 06MINORModest average unit volume ($1.33M) against high investment ceiling suggests inconsistent unit performance and potential for below-average returns
  7. 07HIGHGoing Concern status (False) indicates franchisor financial instability or operational red flags flagged by accountants

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Protected territory
No
Initial term
10 years
Renewal term
10 years
Online sales rights
Granted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
3
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Required
Governing law
New York

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
40 hrs
On-the-job training
120 hrs
POS system
TOAST
Operating tech stack

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

72 numbers

Locked
(914) 228-••••
The franchisor is Golden Krust Franchising, Inc. located at
NY
(678) 961-••••
GA
(973) 672-••••
NJ

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Golden Krust Caribbean Restaurant · FDD (2024) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above