Griffin Waste Services Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Griffin Waste Services is a waste franchise providing trash collection, dumpster rental, and junk removal for homes and businesses. Franchisees run local operations, managing collection routes, trucks, drivers, and customer accounts.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Griffin Waste Services franchise requires a total initial investment of $253K – $483K, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $253K – $483K
- 76th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Outlet subset
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 9th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Units
- 15
- 24th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Cleaning & Maintenance · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Cleaning & Maintenance avg · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $253K – $483K including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 reports Gross Revenues by quintile rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 53/100 (higher is better).
- DATAItem 19 reports Gross Revenues by quintile rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Griffin Waste Service Franchising, LLC
- CEO title
- General Manager
- Wendy Griffin Ohlin
- Incorporated in
- NC
- HQ
- 402 Old Leicester Highway, Asheville, NC 28806
- Auditor
- REESE CPA LLC
- Unaudited
- Franchisor revenue
- $450K
- vs $460K prior year
Affiliated brands
- Handle Safe Systems
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Wendy Griffin Ohlin
- Headquarters
- NC
- Founded
- 2007
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 8
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 18% above the typical cleaning & maintenance franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
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 | $417K |
| Total initial investment | $253K | $483K |
Source: Griffin Waste Services 2025 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $253K – $483K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $11K – $17K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage · 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 | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $110 – $1K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Griffin Waste Services did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Griffin Waste Services unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
22%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
- Median gross sales
- $351K
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
No system-wide average is published for this brand. The median and range below are what Item 19 supports; we show an average only where it reconciles against them.
- Item 19 type
- Gross Revenues by quintile
- Sample size
- 15
- vs category median 32 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $16K→$2.9M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 3 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · below
Compared against 192 Cleaning & Maintenance brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% — below the Cleaning & Maintenance average of 9.7%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports Gross Revenues by quintile rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Operator retention
System contracting at -16.7% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven consolidation or franchisee exits.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Cleaning & Maintenance averages
How Griffin Waste Services Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
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 (3-yr)
- -16.7%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 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 12 · 8 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
8
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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
- N/A
- limited sample (4 loans) — rate not shown below 10
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 3
- Defaults
- N/A
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
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)
No audited financials on file
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 53 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed — cannot determine actual franchisee profitability or ROI; 6% royalty on $661k revenue = ~$39.7k annual royalty burden
- 02MEDOnly 15 units system-wide with unknown growth trajectory — suggests stagnant or struggling franchise system with limited scale
- 03HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — potential financial instability at franchisor level raises sustainability questions
- 04MINOR10-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
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Territory population | 500,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | No |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 20 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | North Carolina |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | NC |
| 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
- Asheville, NC or Knoxville, TN
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 2 mo
- From signing to launch
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- QuickBooks Online, ClientTether, ProfitKeepers
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: QuickBooks Online, ClientTether, ProfitKeepers
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 – $483K, 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?
Griffin Waste Services does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Item 19 in the Griffin Waste Services FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Griffin Waste Services FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
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 15 franchised units and 0 company-owned units.
Is Griffin Waste Services a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Griffin Waste Services as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 53 out of 100 (higher is better), 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 Griffin Waste Services, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
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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.