Griffin Waste ServicesFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Griffin Waste Services franchise requires a total initial investment of $253K – $1.1M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $662K[2]. Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $253K – $1.1M
- 75th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Avg gross sales
- $662K
- 25th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 10th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Units
- 15
- 25th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Cleaning & Maintenance · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Cleaning & Maintenance 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
Franchised units fell from 18 to 15 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $253K – $1.1M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $662K/year.
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 65/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Griffin Waste Service Franchising, LLC
- Incorporated in
- NC
- HQ
- 402 Old Leicester Highway, Asheville, NC 28806
- Auditor
- REESE CPA LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $450K
- vs $460K prior year
Affiliated brands
- Handle Safe Systems
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Griffin Waste Services franchisees operate residential and/or commercial waste collection and disposal operations within protected territories. Day-to-day work involves managing collection routes, maintaining trucks and equipment, hiring/supervising drivers and collection staff, billing clients, and ensuring regulatory compliance with local waste management and environmental standards.
- CEO
- Wendy Griffin Ohlin
- Headquarters
- NC
- Founded
- 2007
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 8
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $11K | $17K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $192K | $993K |
| Total initial investment | $253K | $1.1M |
Source: Griffin Waste Services 2025 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
$73K
11.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
11%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
9.2 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $253K – $1.1M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $11K – $17K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $120K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Revenues · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $600 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $662K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 15 units
- vs category median 31 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $16K→$2.9M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $83K→$1.7M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 3 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · below
Compared against 204 Cleaning & Maintenance brands
vs Cleaning & Maintenance averages
How Griffin Waste Services Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 15
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +0.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -16.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 10
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 50.0%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 100.0%
- Units that stayed open
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 14 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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 4 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 4
- Loan volume
- $1.3M
- Median loan
- $329K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 3
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Griffin Waste Services's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 3 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 3 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 4-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Small, opaque waste services franchise with undisclosed profitability metrics, stagnant unit count, and potential franchisor financial instability—suitable only for highly risk-tolerant investors capable of independent operational verification.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $120,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · REESE CPA LLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 65 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Unit Volume) disclosed — impossible to validate $661,803 average revenue claim or assess profitability expectations
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed — cannot determine actual franchisee profitability or ROI; 6% royalty on $661k revenue = ~$39.7k annual royalty burden
- 03MEDOnly 15 units system-wide with unknown growth trajectory — suggests stagnant or struggling franchise system with limited scale
- 04HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — potential financial instability at franchisor level raises sustainability questions
- 05MINORWide investment range ($253k–$1.06M) with no breakdown — unclear what drives 4x cost variance and capital allocation
- 06MINOR10-year term with $50k franchise fee is standard, but long commitment in unproven small system increases exit risk
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 | 10 years |
| Territory type | Zip codes |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Territory sizeℹ | 500,000 people |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | No |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | North Carolina |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 40 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 48 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- POS system
- QuickBooks Online, ClientTether, ProfitKeepers
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: QuickBooks Online, ClientTether, ProfitKeepers
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
15 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Griffin Waste Services · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Griffin Waste Services franchise?
The total investment to open a Griffin Waste Services franchise ranges from $253K – $1.1M, 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 Griffin Waste Services franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Griffin Waste Services FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $662K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Griffin Waste Services's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Griffin Waste Services (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 Griffin Waste Services franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Griffin Waste Services has 15 total units in the United States, including 18 franchised units and 0 company-owned units.
Is Griffin Waste Services a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Griffin Waste Services as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 65 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.
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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.