Narwhal’s CraftedFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Narwhal’s Crafted franchise requires a total initial investment of $884K – $1.9M, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.0M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $884K – $1.9M
- 41st pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $2.0M
- 21st pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 44th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 3
- 8th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- Total investment $884K – $1.9M including a $35K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $2.0M/year.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 39/100.
- Revenue data based on only 2 reporting units. Treat as directional, not definitive. Ask franchisees directly for current unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- NARWHAL’S FRANCHISING, LLC
- Parent company
- 26H Holdings, LLC
- Incorporated in
- MO
- HQ
- 101 W. Argonne Dr., Suite #65, St. Louis, Missouri 63122
- Auditor
- Maher & Company PC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1K
- vs $2K prior year
Overview
About
Narwhal's Crafted franchisees operate craft beverage retail locations (likely coffee, smoothies, or specialty drinks based on brand positioning) focusing on artisanal preparation and customer experience. Day-to-day operations include inventory management, staff scheduling, point-of-sale transactions, and maintaining brand-standard product quality across a protected territory.
- CEO
- Brad Merten
- Headquarters
- MO
- Founded
- 2020
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $35K | $35K | |
| Real Estate Lease | $18K | $45K | |
| Remodel/Buildout Expensenot refundable | $485K | $1.3M | |
| Licenses and Permitsnot refundable | $2K | $7K | |
| Furniture & Equipmentnot refundable | $250K | $370K | |
| Signage and Trade Dress / Graphicsnot refundable | $5K | $25K | |
| Systemsnot refundable | $10K | $13K | |
| Inventorynot refundable | $15K | $20K | |
| Training (Your costs)not refundable | $2K | $3K | |
| Additional Funds (3 months)not refundable | $50K | $70K | |
| Marketingnot refundable | $8K | $9K | |
| Wages and withholding (pre-opening)not refundable | $4K | $5K | |
| Total initial investment | $884K | $1.9M |
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.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$157K
8.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
11%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
9.1 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $884K – $1.9M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $70K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $8K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $2.0M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- N/A
- Item 19 type
- Actual sales of affiliate-owned outlets
- Sample size
- 2 units
- vs category median 13 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $1.7M→$2.2M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Narwhal’s Crafted Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 3
- Opened
- 1
- 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
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 4 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- $950K
- Median loan
- $950K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 1
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Narwhal’s Crafted's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Early-stage franchise with critical transparency gaps (no profitability data, going concern issues) and unproven unit economics across minimal 3-unit system creates elevated financial risk.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Maher & Company PC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- 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 39 / 100 rating
- 01MINOROnly 3 units in system with unknown growth trajectory suggests minimal scale and unproven replicability
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 prevents accurate ROI assessment and profitability validation
- 03HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — indicates franchisor may have solvency or operational sustainability issues
- 04MINORHigh investment range ($884K-$1.86M) with only 3 operating units creates disproportionate risk exposure
- 05MED8% royalty on $1.97M average revenue equals ~$157K annual fees with no disclosed path to profitability
- 06MINORExtremely small unit count limits ability to validate performance claims or obtain reliable franchisee references
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Radius or zip codes |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 30 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Missouri |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 25 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 16 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- POS system
- Toast POS
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Toast POS
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
4 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Narwhal’s Crafted · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Narwhal’s Crafted franchise?
The total investment to open a Narwhal’s Crafted franchise ranges from $884K – $1.9M, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Narwhal’s Crafted franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Narwhal’s Crafted FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.0M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Narwhal’s Crafted's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Narwhal’s Crafted (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 Narwhal’s Crafted franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Narwhal’s Crafted has 3 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 3 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Narwhal’s Crafted a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Narwhal’s Crafted as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 39 out of 100, 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.
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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.