grown Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Grown is a casual-dining franchise serving organic, farm-to-fork fast food across breakfast, lunch, and dinner with beer and wine. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing fresh prep, staffing, and service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A grown franchise requires a total initial investment of $462K – $1.7M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.8M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $462K – $1.7M
- 21st pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.8M
- Company-owned onlyn=19th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 24th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 1
- 1st pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Full-Service Restaurants 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 $462K – $1.7M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.8M/year (company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance), with an estimated 9% cash-on-cash return (based on Gross Sales Less Disclosed Expenses12). Note: this is gross profit, not take-home income.
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 40/100 (higher is better).
- FLAGRevenue data based on only 1 reporting unit. Treat as directional, not definitive. Ask franchisees directly for current unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- The Franchise Player, LLC
- Parent company
- The PreGame Meal, LLC
- CEO title
- Founder and Chief Executive Officer
- Shannon Allen
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 8211 South Dixie Highway, Miami, Florida 33143
- Auditor
- DA Advisory Group
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- vs $0 prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Shannon Allen
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 2018
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 0
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 9% below the typical full-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown42 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee (Flagship Model)not refundable | $50K | $50K | |
| POS System, Computer Hardware, and Required POS Software - 3 Months (Flagship) | $9K | $12K | |
| Architecture (Flagship) | $20K | $50K | |
| Insurance - 3 Months (Flagship) | $2K | $3K | |
| Build-Out Construction Cost (Flagship) | $200K | $800K | |
| Furniture and Fixtures (Flagship) | $50K | $120K | |
| Smallwares (Flagship) | $7K | $20K | |
| Equipment Package (Flagship) | $85K | $260K | |
| Exterior Signage (Flagship) | $10K | $40K | |
| Graphics and Interior Signage (Flagship) | $3K | $10K | |
| Video Surveillance System; Music and Entertainment System (Flagship) | $10K | $20K | |
| Business Licenses (Flagship)not refundable | $2K | $8K | |
| Organic Certification (Flagship) | $1K | $10K | |
| Initial Operating Inventory (Alcohol) - 1 Month (Flagship) | $0 | $5K | |
| Initial Operating Inventory (Consumables/Paper) - 1 Month (Flagship) | $3K | $10K | |
| Initial Operating Inventory (Food) - 1 Month (Flagship) | $10K | $20K | |
| Expenses Associated with Initial Training (Flagship) | $3K | $5K | |
| Professional Services (Flagship) | $5K | $20K | |
| Rent (3 Months) and Security Deposits (Flagship) | $21K | $60K | |
| Initial Marketing Spend (Flagship) | $10K | $10K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.0M | $2.8M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $462K – $1.7M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $35K – $125K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Top 40% 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
- Payback period
- 11.7 yrs
- From FDD / Item 19
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $75 |
| Training fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Inventory (initial) | $13K – $35K |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales land near the full-service restaurants norm.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
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
$178K
10.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
16%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
6.4 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
FDD-reported earnings vs. model
The FDD reports $165K as Gross Sales Less Disclosed Expenses12. Our model estimates $178K SLEBITDA from the same revenue using category-average cost assumptions. These numbers differ because Gross Sales Less Disclosed Expenses12 deducts different expense categories than our model.
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one grown unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
16%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 grown units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$1.1M
on $5.3M purchase
Total debt
$4.3M
SBA $2.7M + senior + seller note
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
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average
- Avg gross sales
- $1.8M
- Per unit, per year
- Avg gross sales less disclosed expenses12
- $165K
- Reported as Gross Sales Less Disclosed Expenses12 in FDD Item 19
- Cash-on-cash
- 8.6%
- Based on Gross Sales Less Disclosed Expenses12 / investment midpoint
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales and partial expenses
- Sample size
- 1
- vs category median 18 · small
- Reported figure
- $1.8M
- A single outlet — not a range
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 8 / 10
- vs category median 3 / 10 · above
Compared against 805 Full-Service Restaurants brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $1.8M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.7x. Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.0% (near the Full-Service Restaurants average).
Disclosure
Transparency score 8/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 1 unit — treat as directional only.
Multi-unit rate
Only 13% of franchisees own multiple units. Could indicate challenging economics or a young system where operators haven't had time to expand.
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 Full-Service Restaurants averages
How grown Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
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
- Multi-unit owners
- 12.5%
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 2
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
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.
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
Grown is a nascent or troubled franchise system with only one operating unit, going concern status, and unproven business model replicability—extremely high execution risk despite no litigation history.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · DA Advisory Group
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 40 / 100 verdict
- 01MINOROnly 1 operating unit creates impossible validation baseline and suggests either brand failure or extremely early stage with no proven system replicability
- 02HIGHGoing Concern status (False) indicates franchisor financial distress or operational uncertainty despite disclosing average revenue of $1.78M
- 03MINORWide investment range ($461.5K–$1.66M) suggests unclear unit economics and inconsistent build-out costs across locations
- 04MINOR9.3% net margin (165K net on 1.78M revenue) is thin for a franchise system, leaving minimal buffer for 6% royalties and franchisee profitability
- 05MINORSingle unit makes the 'average' revenue and net income figures statistically meaningless and potentially misleading for projections
- 06MINORFranchise fee of $49.5K is low relative to total investment, suggesting franchisor may rely heavily on royalties from struggling franchisees
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 | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 3 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 2 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 15 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Miami, Florida |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | FL |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 28 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 34 hrs
- Training location
- Miami, FL
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 34 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a grown franchise?
The total investment to open a grown franchise ranges from $462K – $1.7M, 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 grown franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the grown FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.8M. Important context: Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance; Based on a single reporting unit - not a system average. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the grown 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 grown FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is grown's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for grown (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 grown franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, grown has 1 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 1 company-owned units.
Is grown a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates grown as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 40 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 grown, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Other Full-Service Restaurants franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Full-Service Restaurants 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.