Newk's Eatery Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Newk's Eatery is a fast-casual franchise serving made-to-order sandwiches, salads, soups, and pizzas from fresh ingredients. Franchisees run restaurants managing food prep, dine-in and takeout service, and staffing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Newk's Eatery franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.0M – $1.4M, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.4M[2]. 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
- $1.0M – $1.4M
- 94th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $2.4M
- 32nd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 11th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 95
- 76th 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
- COSTTotal investment $1.0M – $1.4M including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $2.4M/year (median $2.3M).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 68/100 (higher is better).
- DECLINESystem contracting at -9.6% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Newk's Franchise Company, LLC
- Parent company
- Newk's Holding Company, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- CSFC Management Company, LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Frank G. Paci
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- MS
- HQ
- 2680 Crane Ridge Drive, Jackson, Mississippi 39216
- Auditor
- Forvis Mazars, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $78.9M
- vs $77.9M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- using our proprietary recipes
- but directly from our distributor
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Frank G. Paci
- Headquarters
- MS
- Founded
- 2005
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 11
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 85% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $40K | $40K | |
| Business Licenses & Permitsnot refundable | $2K | $3K | |
| Leasehold Improvementsnot refundable | $475K | $650K | |
| Fixtures, Furnishings & Equipmentnot refundable | $375K | $541K | |
| Architect Feesnot refundable | $30K | $46K | |
| Rent and Utility Deposits | $8K | $16K | |
| Other Professional Feesnot refundable | $5K | $6K | |
| Insurance Depositnot refundable | $5K | $10K | |
| Initial Inventory of Food and Paper Suppliesnot refundable | $13K | $18K | |
| Training Expensesnot refundable | $23K | $30K | |
| Grand Opening Advertisingnot refundable | $15K | $15K | |
| Additional Funds (for initial period of operations)not refundable | $33K | $40K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.0M | $1.4M |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.0M – $1.4M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $33K – $40K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $40K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.8%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.8%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.8% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $200 |
| Transfer fee | $20K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $13K – $18K |
| Total fee load | 6.8% of rev |
A 6.8% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 96% above the quick-service restaurants norm.
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
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
$362K
15.2% margin
Unlevered ROIC
29%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
3.5 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Newk's Eatery unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
29%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Newk's Eatery units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
29.8%
3.68× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.71×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$8.7M
on $19.6M purchase
Total debt
$10.9M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Item 19 · Source: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $2.4M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $2.3M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- AUV with P&L breakdown (company-owned); AUV only (franchised and combined)
- Sample size
- 60 outlets
- vs category median 20 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $1.0M→$4.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.5M→$3.4M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 10 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 782 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $2.4M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.9x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 6.8% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants average).
Disclosure
Transparency score 10/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System contracting at -9.6% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven consolidation or franchisee exits.
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 Newk's Eatery Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 95
- Opened
- 2
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- 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
- 29
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 70%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -9.6%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- -9.6%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 2
- Closed (3yr)
- 8
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 1
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 4
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 25.0%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 11 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 7 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 7
- Loan volume
- $8.7M
- Median loan
- $890K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
- limited sample (7 loans) — rate not shown below 10
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
- 5
- Defaults
- N/A
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
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
Newk's presents moderate-to-cautionary risk: declining unit growth, unverified financial claims, and high capital requirements relative to profit margins suggest careful validation is essential before investment.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Forvis Mazars, LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
ⓘ These are the parent company's consolidated financials (the parent guarantees the franchisor), not this brand's standalone results — the figure reflects the whole corporate group, not this brand alone.
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 68 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORUnit count declining 2.9% YoY suggests system contraction and potential franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MINORHigh initial investment ($1.02M-$1.41M) with modest 16% average net profit margin creates extended break-even period
- 03MINORRelatively low royalty rate (5%) may indicate tight franchisor margins and reduced support capacity
- 04MEDMid-tier unit count (95 units) provides limited brand recognition and purchasing power vs. larger chains
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.8% 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 | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 3 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 25 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Jackson, Mississippi (within 5 miles of principal place of business) |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | MS |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 75 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 311 hrs
- Training location
- Support Center in Jackson, Mississippi; Certified Training Restaurants in the field
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisor approves; franchisee selects with franchisor assistance
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Hospitality Control Solutions (Aloha); transitioning to Toast
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Hospitality Control Solutions (Aloha); transitioning to Toast
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
66 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Newk's Eatery · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Newk's Eatery franchise?
The total investment to open a Newk's Eatery franchise ranges from $1.0M – $1.4M, with an initial franchise fee of $40K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Newk's Eatery franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Newk's Eatery FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.4M. The median is $2.3M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Newk's Eatery FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Newk's Eatery FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Newk's Eatery's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Newk's Eatery (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 Newk's Eatery franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Newk's Eatery has 95 total units in the United States, including 66 franchised units and 29 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Newk's Eatery a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Newk's Eatery as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 68 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
Are you the franchisor?
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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.