Hotel Indigo Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Hotel Indigo is IHG's upscale boutique hotel franchise, with each property themed to its local neighborhood. Franchisees own and operate the hotels, managing front desk, housekeeping, food and beverage, and brand-standard compliance.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Hotel Indigo franchise requires a total initial investment of $9.8M – $44.9M, including a $75K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. The 2024 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 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $9.8M – $44.9M
- 42nd pct Lodging
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Incl. company outlets
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 3rd pct Lodging
- Units
- 68
- 40th pct Lodging
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Lodging · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Lodging 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 $9.8M – $44.9M including a $75K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 21 audited statements are for the franchisor, Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC (Exhibit G-1), audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (opinion dated 3/28/2024), in whole US dollars. Balance sheet as of 12/31/2023: total assets 918,851,818 = total liabilities 167,220,127 + member's equity 751,631,691 (reconciles). Total revenues 27,249,652 (yr1 2023) comprise franchise royalty fees 25,626,433, franchise royalty fees from affiliate 50,496, and OLCC fees 1,572,723; other_revenue (1,623,219) = the two non-core-royalty lines. Net income 54,303,422 exceeds total revenue because of large interest income from affiliate (27,815,534) plus foreign-transaction items; this is as reported in the audited statement of operations. A separate, larger consolidated balance sheet for the parent/guarantor Six Continents Hotels, Inc. ("SCH", Exhibit G-2) also appears in the FDD but was NOT used; all figures here are the franchisor (Holiday) entity only.
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 58/100 (higher is better).
- LEGAL19 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3, higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Six Continents Hotels, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- InterContinental Hotels Group PLC
- Predecessor
- Holiday Inns Franchising, Inc.
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer, InterContinental Hotels Group, PLC
- Elie W. Maalouf
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- Three Ravinia Drive, Suite 100, Atlanta, Georgia 30346
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $27.2M
- vs $26.1M prior year
Affiliated brands
- Six Continents Limited
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Elie W. Maalouf
- Headquarters
- GA
- Founded
- 1989
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 25
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 178% above the typical lodging franchise.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $75K | $75K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $200K | $1.0M |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $9.5M | $43.8M |
| Total initial investment | $9.8M | $44.9M |
Source: Hotel Indigo 2024 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
- $9.8M – $44.9M
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $200K – $1.0M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $75K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 25.6%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $17 |
| Training fee | $4K |
| Transfer fee | $75K |
| Inventory (initial) | $480K – $819K |
| Total fee load | 25.6% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Hotel Indigo 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 Hotel Indigo unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
0%
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: 2024 FDD
Financial Performance
Item 21 audited statements are for the franchisor, Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC (Exhibit G-1), audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (opinion dated 3/28/2024), in whole US dollars. Balance sheet as of 12/31/2023: total assets 918,851,818 = total liabilities 167,220,127 + member's equity 751,631,691 (reconciles). Total revenues 27,249,652 (yr1 2023) comprise franchise royalty fees 25,626,433, franchise royalty fees from affiliate 50,496, and OLCC fees 1,572,723; other_revenue (1,623,219) = the two non-core-royalty lines. Net income 54,303,422 exceeds total revenue because of large interest income from affiliate (27,815,534) plus foreign-transaction items; this is as reported in the audited statement of operations. A separate, larger consolidated balance sheet for the parent/guarantor Six Continents Hotels, Inc. ("SCH", Exhibit G-2) also appears in the FDD but was NOT used; all figures here are the franchisor (Holiday) entity only.
Includes company-owned outlets
- Item 19 type
- RevPAR/ADR/Occupancy (not gross sales)
- Sample size
- 56
- vs category median 99
- Transparency tier
- revenue_only
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2023
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2024
- Disclosed in the 2024 filing, covering 2023
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 0 / 10 · above
Compared against 174 Lodging 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 25.6% — above the Lodging average of 10.4%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports RevPAR/ADR/Occupancy (not gross sales) rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Operator retention
System expanding at 6.2% CAGR over 3 years across 68 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 Lodging averages
How Hotel Indigo Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 68
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 4
- Terminated
- 4
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 5.9%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -4.2%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +6.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 1
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 4
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 24 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- California
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- New York
- North Dakota
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 2 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 2
- Loan volume
- $6.9M
- Median loan
- $3.5M
- average
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
- limited sample (2 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
- 0
- 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
Hotel Indigo presents moderate-to-caution risk: a contracting system with active litigation, no earnings transparency, unprotected territories, and substantial capital requirements that lack corresponding profitability disclosure.
Litigation (Item 3)
Extensive litigation involving Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC and affiliates across multiple categories: licensee class actions alleging improper kickbacks and unreasonable requirements (5 consolidated actions), individual licensee breach of contract and franchise practices claims (Scion, Atlanta Hospitality, Astoria, Ahijit Vasani), Holiday-initiated collection suits against licensees for unpaid fees (9 suits filed in 2023), and international disputes (Italy, Brazil, Canada).
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
ⓘ These are the parent company's consolidated financials (the parent guarantees the franchisor), not this brand's standalone results — the figure reflects the whole corporate group, not this brand alone.
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
Score breakdown · what drove the 58 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-4.2% YoY) indicates system contraction and potential franchisee struggles
- 02MINORNo average net income disclosure prevents assessment of actual profitability despite $124.05k avg revenue
- 03HIGHMultiple active litigation cases including class action cyber security breach raise operational and legal risks
- 04MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk from other Hotel Indigo franchisees in same market
- 05MEDHigh capital investment range ($9.8M-$44.9M) combined with undisclosed net income creates opacity on ROI
- 06MINOR5% royalty on gross rooms revenue (not net) means fees charged regardless of profitability
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 25.6% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 0 |
| Territory type | none |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | GA |
| Litigation count | 19 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Extensive litigation involving Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC and affiliates across multiple categories: licensee class actions alleging improper kickbacks and unreasonable requirements (5 consolidated actions), individual licensee breach of contract and franchise practices claims (Scion, Atlanta Hospitality, Astoria, Ahijit Vasani), Holiday-initiated collection suits against licensees for unpaid fees (9 suits filed in 2023), and international disputes (Italy, Brazil, Canada).
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 11 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 492 hrs
- Training location
- Atlanta, Georgia or other designated locations; virtual options for some programs
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- Licensee
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Opera or Opera Xpress (Oracle America, Inc.)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Opera or Opera Xpress (Oracle America, Inc.)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
85 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Hotel Indigo · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Hotel Indigo franchise?
The total investment to open a Hotel Indigo franchise ranges from $9.8M – $44.9M, with an initial franchise fee of $75K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Hotel Indigo franchise owners earn?
Hotel Indigo 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 Hotel Indigo 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 Hotel Indigo FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Hotel Indigo's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Hotel Indigo (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 Hotel Indigo franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Hotel Indigo has 68 total units in the United States, including 68 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Hotel Indigo a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Hotel Indigo as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 58 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 Hotel Indigo, 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.