Bottom line
- Total investment $1.2M – $3.3M including a $50K franchise fee, 4.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.4M/year (median $1.5M).
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 65/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
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 JL Beers unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
10%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 JL Beers units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
32.3%
4.05× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.50×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$6.6M
on $16.6M purchase
Total debt
$10.0M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
JL Beers franchisees operate casual dining establishments (brewpub/sports bar format) serving food, craft beverages, and alcohol in protected territories. Day-to-day operations include staff management, inventory control, food preparation, beverage service, and marketing to drive traffic and same-store sales growth.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 3 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.
3
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
JL Beers presents elevated risk due to undisclosed profitability data, micro-scale system with unknown growth, franchisor going concern issues, and high capital requirements with limited unit performance visibility.
Score breakdown · what drove the 65 / 100 rating
- 01MINORNo net income disclosure (Item 19) prevents ROI validation and profitability assessment
- 02MEDOnly 10 units system-wide indicates minimal scale, limited support infrastructure, and high failure concentration risk
- 03HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — suggests potential franchisor financial distress or instability
- 04MINORUnknown unit growth trajectory raises questions about system momentum and franchisee retention
- 05MINORHigh investment range ($1.2M–$3.3M) relative to small 10-unit system creates disproportionate risk exposure
- 06MINORDual royalty structure ($500/week minimum) means low-revenue locations face fixed cost burden regardless of sales performance
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
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
5 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
JL Beers · FDD (2025) PDF