Island Fin Poke Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $274K – $440K
- Disclosed sales
- $531K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Limited · 21 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Island Fin Poke is a fast-casual franchise serving customizable Hawaiian-style poke bowls with an island vibe. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing fresh-fish prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Island Fin Poke franchise requires a total initial investment of $274K – $440K, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $531K[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: high - issued more than two years ago
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✓ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored5 of 7 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $274K – $440K
- 42nd pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $531K
- Outlet subset5th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 23
- 51st pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-Service Restaurants median · 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 $274K – $440K including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $531K/year (reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system).
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 45/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHNegative: net -2 franchised outlets in the latest year (8 opened, 10 closed); 16 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- FLAG9 units terminated last reporting year (39.1% of the system). Ask existing franchisees why.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Island Fin Poke Franchising LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Mark Setterington
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 7004 Tavistock Lakes Boulevard, Suite 148, Orlando, Florida 32827
Overview
About
- CEO
- Mark Setterington
- Headquarters
- FL
- Founded
- 2018
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 10
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 26% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown15 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $40K | $40K | |
| Your Training Expenses (transportation, lodging, and meals) | $2K | $2K | |
| Premises deposits | $5K | $18K | |
| Design and Architect Fees | $4K | $12K | |
| Leasehold Improvements, Construction and/or Remodeling | $120K | $220K | |
| Furniture & Fixtures | $15K | $20K | |
| Exterior Signage | $4K | $7K | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $2K | $3K | |
| Computer Systems | $2K | $3K | |
| Initial Inventory to Begin Operating | $5K | $7K | |
| Equipment | $25K | $40K | |
| Professional Fees | $750 | $2K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $10K | $10K | |
| Insurance | $1K | $2K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $40K | $55K | |
| Total initial investment | $274K | $440K |
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
- $274K – $440K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $40K – $55K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% |
| Technology fee | $300 |
| Transfer fee | $30K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $5K – $7K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 46% below the quick-service restaurants norm.
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Island Fin Poke until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$405K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
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, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Island Fin Poke unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
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%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
- Avg gross sales
- $531K
- Per unit, per year
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 revenue
- Sample size
- 21 outlets
- vs category median 19
- Range (low → high)
- $365K→$980KCited, not corroborated — printed on page 38 of the 2024 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $365K→$767K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- 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 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 781 Quick-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 $531K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.5x. Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.0% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants median).
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 10.0% CAGR over 3 years across 23 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 Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How Island Fin Poke Compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 23
- Opened
- 8
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 10
- Terminated
- 9
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 43.5%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 96%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -8.3%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +10.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 9
- Not renewed
- 0
- Signed, not yet open
- 16
- 0.70 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 4
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 8.7%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 39.1%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 43.5%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 10 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.
10
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 21
- Loan volume
- $4.1M
- Median loan
- $196K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- Limited · 21 loans
- Limited SBA coverage: 21 loans, rate hidden until 10 have resolved and loans reach 2% of franchised units
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- Limited · 21 loans
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 7
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 8.6%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 10.8%
- n=12,827 loans
- Jobs supported
- 230
- 7.6 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 47%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 80% went to startups / new businesses, 20% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in limited-service restaurants, franchised businesses charge off at 10.8% vs 10.0% for independents — franchising is associated with 8% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Island Fin Poke franchisees
Showing 3 of 7 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Island Fin Poke from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 0.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 71%
- Avg interest rate
- 8.57%
- Lender concentration
- 46.7%
- Job velocity
- 7.6 per $100K
- Startup risk premium
- 0.0pp
- NAICS benchmark
- 8.7%
- NAICS 722513
- Jobs supported
- 230
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 47% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Huntington National Bank | 7 | $1.6M | 0.0% |
| 2 | Stearns Bank National Association | 2 | $298K | 0.0% |
| 3 | Cadence Bank | 2 | $506K | 0.0% |
| 4 | Gulf Coast Bank and Trust Company | 2 | $600K | 0.0% |
| 5 | UniBank for Savings | 2 | $45K | 0.0% |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| FLFlorida | 5 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 2 | 0 | -- |
| RIRhode Island | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| TNTennessee | 2 | 0 | -- |
| DEDelaware | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| ILIllinois | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NVNevada | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| VAVirginia | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
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
Contracting franchise system with unverifiable unit economics, no territorial protection, and aggressive fee structure creates significant risk of negative cash flow and poor ROI.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
No audited financials on file
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Financial statements in Exhibit D are unaudited; cover page states no independent CPA has audited the figures or expressed an opinion. No balance sheet or income statement figures present in document text.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 45 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDUnit count declined 8.3% YoY (25 units) — indicates shrinking system and potential franchisee struggles
- 02MINORNo protected territory — direct competition from other franchisees and non-franchised poke competitors
- 03MINOR5% royalty on gross revenue — aggressive given likely 25-35% food cost and 30%+ labor costs in QSR
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.0% 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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| Territory population | 80,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Florida |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | FL |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 17 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 23 hrs
- Training location
- Lake Nona, Florida
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 56 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 10 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects, franchisor approves
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Toast POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Toast POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
38 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Island Fin Poke franchise?
The total investment to open a Island Fin Poke franchise ranges from $274K – $440K, with an initial franchise fee of $40K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Island Fin Poke franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Island Fin Poke FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $531K. Important context: Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Island Fin Poke?
Island Fin Poke is franchised by Island Fin Poke Franchising LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2024 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Island Fin Poke 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 Island Fin Poke FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Island Fin Poke's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Island Fin Poke (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 Island Fin Poke franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Island Fin Poke has 23 total units in the United States, including 22 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 8 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Island Fin Poke a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Island Fin Poke as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 45 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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 Island Fin Poke, 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.