Meadows Original Frozen Custard
Bottom line
- Total investment $134K – $512K including a $25K franchise fee.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 62/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 9 loans (below the industry average).
- 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
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 Meadows Original Frozen Custard unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
25%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Meadows Original Frozen Custard franchisees operate standalone or co-located frozen dessert retail locations, serving premium frozen custard, ice cream, and related products. Day-to-day operations include inventory management, food preparation, customer service, staffing, and seasonal labor challenges typical of QSR dessert concepts. Most revenue is likely concentrated in warm-weather months, requiring careful cash flow management.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
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
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 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.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
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.
Score breakdown · what drove the 62 / 100 rating
- 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
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
32 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Meadows Original Frozen Custard · FDD (2025) PDF