FranchiseVerdict
Maui Wowi logo
FV-01590·MODERATEStandard76

Maui Wowi

Food & Beverage - Quick ServiceFranchising since 2002Website
Investment
$29K – $597K
1st pct Quick Service
Avg revenue
60th pct Quick Service
Royalty
Units
80
69th pct Quick Service
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $29K – $597K including a $30K franchise fee.
  • No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 64/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 47 loans (below the industry average).
  • 20 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

Legal entity
Kahala Franchising, L.L.C.
Parent company
Kahala Brands, Inc.
Incorporated in
Arizona
HQ
9311 E. Via De Ventura, Scottsdale, Arizona 85258
Auditor
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$606.6M
vs $597.5M prior year

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 Maui Wowi unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
Item 19 not disclosed — typing your own estimate
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: qsr
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $29K–$597K
Working capital
$
Item 7 didn't break this out — defaulted to ~10% of annual revenue

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

2%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$8K
EBITDA margin
1.0%
Total invested
$338K
Payback
541 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.

Overview

About

Maui Wowi franchisees typically operate smoothie and juice bar kiosks or standalone shops, blending frozen fruit beverages and health-focused drinks for retail or mobile locations. Day-to-day operations involve inventory management, customer service, equipment maintenance, and local marketing. Revenue streams depend heavily on foot traffic volume and pricing strategy, with significant seasonal variation in tourist-dependent or climate-dependent markets.

CEO
Eric Lefebvre
Founded
2008
FDD year
2025
States available
29

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$29K – $597K
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$0 – $50K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$30K
Royalty
None
Ad fund
15.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
15.0%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
80
Opened
1
Last reporting year
Closed
10
Turnover rate
12.5%
Company-owned
0
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
100%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
-10.1%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
-18.4%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
80-9
Franchised units
2024
89
Franchised units
2025
98
Franchised units

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

Item 20 · 6 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 · 6 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
47
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

64
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE64 / 100

Maui Wowi presents HIGH RISK due to contracting franchise system, undisclosed unit economics, material litigation history, and unclear parent company financial viability—franchisees should demand verified financial statements and current unit performance data before committing.

Score breakdown · what drove the 64 / 100 rating

  1. 01MINORUnit count declining 10.1% year-over-year (80 units) indicates system contraction and weak franchisee retention
  2. 02MEDNo Item 19 financial disclosures (avg revenue/net income not disclosed) prevents assessment of actual unit profitability
  3. 03HIGHSignificant litigation history involving predecessors, affiliates, and multiple restaurant brands under common ownership with breach of contract and misrepresentation claims raises operator integrity concerns
  4. 04MINORWide investment range ($28,900–$597,000) suggests inconsistent unit economics or undefined support requirements
  5. 05HIGHGoing concern status is False, creating ambiguity about parent company financial stability
  6. 06MINORHigh franchise fee ($30,000) combined with declining unit count suggests franchisor may be dependent on new recruitment over system growth

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
site_only
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
10 years
Renewal term
10 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
20
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Optional
Governing law
Arizona

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
0 hrs
On-the-job training
40 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

6 numbers

Locked
(217) 782-••••
IL
(608) 266-••••
WI
(401) 462-••••
RI

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Maui Wowi · FDD (2025) PDF

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