Meadows Original Frozen Custard Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Meadows Original Frozen Custard is a dessert franchise serving premium frozen custard and frozen treats. Franchisees run the shops, managing product prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Meadows Original Frozen Custard franchise requires a total initial investment of $134K – $512K, including a $15K – $25K franchise fee. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $134K – $512K
- 14th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 48th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 29
- 50th 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 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
- Total investment $134K – $512K including a $15K franchise fee.
- FY ending Nov 30, 2024. Total Revenue $293,553 = Royalties $215,887 + Franchise Fees $35,000 + Rebate Income $35,624 + Investment Income $7,042. Royalties equal revenue from required formula-mix purchases ($1.00-$1.50/gallon).
- Verdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 75/100 (higher is better).
- System growing at 20.8% CAGR over 3 years with 29 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- The Meadows Franchise Systems, Incorporated
- Parent company
- Gardner Meadows, Inc.
- Predecessor
- J. V. Meadows and Sons
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President
- Steven D. Gardner
- CEO experience
- 20 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- PA
- HQ
- 310 Penn Street, Suite 300, Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania 16648
- Auditor
- Link & Associates, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $294K
- vs $270K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Steven D. Gardner
- Headquarters
- PA
- Founded
- 1986
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 7
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 49% below the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $15K | $15K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $4K | $10K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $115K | $487K |
| Total initial investment | $134K | $512K |
Source: Meadows Original Frozen Custard 2025 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
- $134K – $512K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $4K – $10K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $25K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- No royalty fee on Gross Sales is required at this time; r…
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 1.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $10K – $15K |
| Total fee load | 1.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
FY ending Nov 30, 2024. Total Revenue $293,553 = Royalties $215,887 + Franchise Fees $35,000 + Rebate Income $35,624 + Investment Income $7,042. Royalties equal revenue from required formula-mix purchases ($1.00-$1.50/gallon).
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 1.0% — below the Quick-Service Restaurants average of 8.1%.
Disclosure
Franchisor chose not to disclose financial performance representations. You will need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Operator retention
System expanding at 20.8% CAGR over 3 years across 29 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
Multi-unit rate
Only 9% of franchisees own multiple units. Could indicate challenging economics or a young system where operators haven't had time to expand.
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 averages
How Meadows Original Frozen Custard Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 29
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 8.8%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +20.8%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +20.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 3
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 3
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 10 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.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
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
Meadows presents a CAUTION-to-HIGH RISK profile due to missing financial disclosure (Item 19), uncertain franchisor financial health (Going Concern = False), minimal system size (29 units), and opaque unit economics despite significant capital requirement.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Link & Associates, P.C.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
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
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 75 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Unit Volume) disclosed — impossible to assess ROI or payback period on $134k-$512k investment
- 02HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE, indicating potential financial distress at franchisor level
- 03MINORUnit growth of only 11.5% YoY is modest for a growing brand and suggests market saturation or recruitment challenges
- 04MINORWide investment range ($134k-$512k) with no net income data makes cost predictability impossible for franchisees
- 05MINORNo royalty fees creates revenue uncertainty for franchisor sustainability and ongoing support quality
- 06MEDOnly 29 total units is a micro-franchise system with limited brand recognition and economies of scale
- 07MINORFrozen custard category is highly seasonal and location-dependent, increasing individual unit volatility
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 1.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | exclusive |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Blair County, Pennsylvania (courts) |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | PA |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 4 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 204 hrs
- Training location
- Affiliate-operated custard stand in Ebensburg, PA or predecessor location in Duncansville, PA
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 3 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects, subject to Meadows approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
32 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Meadows Original Frozen Custard · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Meadows Original Frozen Custard franchise?
The total investment to open a Meadows Original Frozen Custard franchise ranges from $134K – $512K, with an initial franchise fee of $15K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Meadows Original Frozen Custard franchise owners earn?
Meadows Original Frozen Custard 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 Meadows Original Frozen Custard's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Meadows Original Frozen Custard (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 Meadows Original Frozen Custard franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Meadows Original Frozen Custard has 29 total units in the United States, including 29 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Meadows Original Frozen Custard a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Meadows Original Frozen Custard as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 75 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
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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.