FranchiseVerdict
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FV-01198·MODERATEExcellent86FDD 2022

Hite Digital

Business Services - OtherFranchising since 2020Website
Investment
$57K – $120K
32nd pct Other
Avg revenue
$304K
27th pct Other
Royalty
Units
16
32nd pct Other
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $57K – $120K including a $50K franchise fee.
  • Average unit revenue of $304K/year (median $248K).
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 56/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 2 loans (below the industry average).
  • Auditor disclosed a going-concern note — 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
Hite Digital International, LLC
Incorporated in
Delaware
HQ
1000 N. West St. Ste. 1501, Wilmington, DE 19801
Auditor
KraftCPAs PLLC
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$0
vs $401K prior year
⚠ Going-concern note
Disclosed in FDD 2022
Status as of 2022; may have been resolved in a later filing we don't yet have.

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 Hite Digital unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
FDD Item 19 reports $304,005
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: generic
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $57K–$120K
Working capital
$
FDD reports $3K–$5K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

49%

In Yale's "attractive" band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$46K
EBITDA margin
15.0%
Total invested
$93K
Payback
24 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 Hite Digital units return on equity?

Edit assumptions

Equity IRR · 5-yr

49.9%

7.57× MOIC

Year-1 DSCR

1.88×

EBITDA ÷ debt service

Equity required

$486K

on $2.4M purchase

Total debt

$1.9M

SBA $1.2M + senior + seller note

Overview

About

Hite Digital franchisees typically provide digital marketing and web services (SEO, social media, web design) to small-to-medium businesses. Day-to-day operations likely involve client acquisition, campaign management, reporting, and service delivery—either solo or with a small team depending on scale. Revenue model appears service-based with recurring client contracts.

CEO
J.C. Hite
Founded
2020
FDD year
2022
States available
13

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$57K – $120K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$3K – $5K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$50K
Royalty
the greater of $250 per month or 8% of Gross Sales
Ad fund
2.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
10.0%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

Avg gross sales
$304K
Per unit, per year
Median gross sales
$248K
Item 19 type
Historical
Sample size
15 units
vs category median 39 · small
Range (low → high)
$113K$248K
Cohort dispersion
Transparency
4 / 5
vs category median 3 / 5 · above
Revenue rank27th
vs Business Services - Other peers
Investment cost rank32th
Lower investment ranks lower (better)
Royalty rate rank64th
Lower royalty = lower percentile (better)
Unit count rank32th
vs Business Services - Other peers
Risk score rank27th
Lower risk = lower percentile (better)

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
16
Opened
11
Last reporting year
Closed
0
Turnover rate
0.0%
Company-owned
1
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
94%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
Outlier (see FDD)
Likely small-sample artifact
2020
15+11
Franchised units
2021
4
Franchised units
2022
0
Franchised units

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

Item 20 · 21 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 · 21 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
2
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

56
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE56 / 100

Hite Digital presents moderate-to-high risk due to missing profitability disclosure, unprotected territory, explosive growth trajectory without transparent unit economics, and high royalty structures that could significantly impair actual franchisee earnings.

Score breakdown · what drove the 56 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — impossible to assess actual profitability despite $304k average revenue
  2. 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk; multiple franchisees in same market could cannibalize revenue
  3. 03MINORExtremely rapid unit growth (275% YoY) suggests either aggressive recruitment or high churn — sustainability unclear with only 16 units
  4. 04MINORHigh royalty burden (greater of $250/month floor OR 8% of sales) could consume 40-50% of net profits at lower revenue levels
  5. 05MINORFranchise fee of $49,950 represents 16% of total investment but profitability timeline unknown without Item 19 data
  6. 06MINORYoung system with minimal operational history; no long-term franchisee retention data available

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
5 years
Renewal term
5 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
0
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
No
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Required
Governing law
Delaware

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
24 hrs
On-the-job training
34 hrs

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

27 numbers

Locked
(512) 720-••••
TX
(360) 902-••••
WA
(208) 992-••••
ID

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Hite Digital · FDD (2022) PDF

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