Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $181K – $227K
- Disclosed sales
- $770K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 50.0%
- on 34 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives is a home-services franchise that designs, installs, and maintains outdoor and holiday landscape lighting for homes and businesses. Franchisees run a design-and-install operation handling consultations, installations, and service in a territory.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise requires a total initial investment of $181K – $227K, including a $60K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average revenue per franchisee was $770K. This franchisor reports Item 19 per franchisee rather than per outlet, so the figure is not comparable with per-outlet averages[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 50.0% charge-off rate across 34 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: D (Below average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✓ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored7 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing; the rest are marked “Not cited” beside the figure.
Overview
- Investment
- $181K – $227K
- 52nd pct Business Serv…
- Avg gross sales
- $770K
- Per franchisee, not per outlet
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 21st pct Business Serv…
- Units
- 141
- 51st pct Business Serv…
- SBA charge-off
- 50.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Business Services · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Business Services median · 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 $181K – $227K including a $60K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage revenue per franchisee of $770K/year (median $526K). Averaged per franchisee, not per outlet - not comparable with per-outlet figures.
- RISKVerdict D (Below average), verdict score 31/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 50.0% across 34 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHPositive: net +6 franchised outlets in the latest year (8 opened, 2 closed) (Item 20).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Franchisor, LLC
- Parent company
- Outdoor Living Brands Holdco, LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2026 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- MidOcean Associates V, LP
- FDD Item 1, page 9 of the 2026 FDD
- Predecessor
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Franchising, Inc. (OLPFI) / Outdoor Lighting Perspectives International, Inc. (OLPII)
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Group President - Residential Brands
- Thomas L. Welter
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 2426 Old Brick Road, Glen Allen, Virginia 23060
- Auditor
- Smith & Howard
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $79.5M
- vs $49.5M prior year
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 9
8 other brands on this site name MidOcean Associates V, LP as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
- ArchadeckB
- Bumble RoofingA
- CANOPYB
- Conserva IrrigationA
- Jan-Pro Franchise DevelopmentA
- Koala InsulationD
- Superior Fence & RailA
- Wallaby WindowsB
Portfolio: MidOcean Partners (private-equity sponsor)
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2026 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Thomas L. Welter
- Headquarters
- VA
- Founded
- 2004
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 35
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 53% above the typical business services franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $60K | $60K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $20K | $20K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $101K | $147K |
| Total initial investment | $181K | $227K |
Source: Outdoor Lighting Perspectives 2026 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
- $181K – $227K
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $20K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $60K – $60K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.5% |
| Technology fee | $250 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $6K |
| Inventory (initial) | $14K – $16K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 12% above the business services norm.
Averaged per franchisee, not per outlet - not comparable with per-outlet figures
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Outdoor Lighting Perspectives until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$224K
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
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, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Outdoor Lighting Perspectives unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
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%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
Averaged per franchisee, not per outlet - not comparable with per-outlet figures
- Avg gross sales
- $770K
- Per franchisee, per year — not per outlet
- Median gross sales
- $526K
- Per franchisee, not per outlet
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales and cost benchmark
- Sample size
- 76 franchisees
- vs category median 37 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $42K→$3.0MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 43 of the 2026 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $227K→$1.7M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%, per franchisee
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 10 / 10
- vs category median 3 / 10 · above
Compared against 296 Business Services brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
The average franchisee generates $770K/year in gross sales. Median is $526K — top performers pull the average up, so a typical unit earns less.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 9.0% (near the Business Services median).
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 expanding at 10.2% CAGR over 3 years across 141 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 Business Services medians
How Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Compares
Per franchisee, not per outlet - the category median is per-outlet only, so no comparison is shown
Category median of published Business Services brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 141
- Opened
- 8
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 2
- Terminated
- 2
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.4%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +10.2%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +10.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 2
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 16
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 28 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.
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
65 current owners across 28 states.
- FL 12
- CA 3
- GA 3
- MI 3
- NC 3
- NY 3
- OH 3
- PA 3
- SC 3
- AL 2
- AR 2
- CO 2
- +16 more states
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 34
- Loan volume
- $8.4M
- Median loan
- $150K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 50.0%
- on 34 loans · rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 50.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 20
- Defaults
- 8
- Typical loan rate
- 8.0%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 16.5%
- brand above franchise avg ↑
- Jobs supported
- 141
- 1.7 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 32%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 71% went to startups / new businesses, 29% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in electrical contractors, franchised businesses charge off at 16.5% vs 15.5% for independents — franchising is associated with 6% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchisees
Showing 3 of 20 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Outdoor Lighting Perspectives from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 9.4%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 77%
- Avg interest rate
- 8.04%
- Avg chargeoff amount
- $99K
- Lender concentration
- 32.4%
- Job velocity
- 1.7 per $100K
- NAICS benchmark
- 23.9%
- NAICS 238210
- Jobs supported
- 141
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 32% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Midwest Savings Bank National Association | 11 | $1.6M | 50.0% |
| 2 | Popular Bank | 2 | $313K | 100.0% |
| 3 | PNC Bank, National Association | 2 | $85K | 50.0% |
| 4 | Stearns Bank National Association | 2 | $596K | 0.0% |
| 5 | Byline Bank | 2 | $725K | N/A |
| 6 | Columbia Bank | 1 | $200K | 100.0% |
| 7 | Banco Popular de Puerto Rico | 1 | $88K | 100.0% |
| 8 | Bank of America, National Association | 1 | $48K | 0.0% |
| 9 | Renasant Bank | 1 | $100K | 100.0% |
| 10 | Regions Bank | 1 | $961K | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| ALAlabama | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| CACalifornia | 3 | 1 | 100.0% |
| KYKentucky | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| GAGeorgia | 2 | 1 | 50.0% |
| MAMassachusetts | 2 | 0 | -- |
| MOMissouri | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NVNevada | 2 | 1 | 100.0% |
| PAPennsylvania | 2 | 2 | 100.0% |
| DCWashington DC | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| DEDelaware | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
A 50.0% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 2 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 50.0% — 212% above the 16.0% national norm, i.e. higher lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Moderate-to-caution profile: solid unit economics and growth offset by absence of financial disclosures, litigation precedent, and structural royalty concerns that warrant detailed franchisee validation.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (plaintiff).
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Smith & Howard
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: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 31 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHLitigation history shows trademark/contract enforcement issues suggesting potential franchisor-franchisee relationship strain
- 02MINORRoyalty structure complexity (7% or $1,100/mo minimum) may create cash flow pressure for units below $157,143 in monthly revenue
- 03MINORStrong YoY growth (16.4%) masks unit quality concerns—rapid expansion can indicate recruitment-focused model rather than unit profitability focus
- 04MINORHigh franchise fee ($59,500) relative to startup range floor ($127,000) represents 47% sunk cost before operations begin
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 9.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 7 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory population | 700,000 |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| 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 | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Virginia |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Virginia |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed in Item 3
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 57 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 31 hrs
- Training location
- Richmond, Virginia
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 31 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 1 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee (home-based or commercial location); franchisor designates Territory only, does not select site
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- ServiceMinder (CRM)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ServiceMinder (CRM)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
65 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise?
The total investment to open a Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise ranges from $181K – $227K, with an initial franchise fee of $60K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Outdoor Lighting Perspectives FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $770K. The median is $526K. Important context: Averaged per franchisee, not per outlet - not comparable with per-outlet figures. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Outdoor Lighting Perspectives?
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives is franchised by Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Franchisor, LLC. Its parent company is Outdoor Living Brands Holdco, LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is MidOcean Associates V, LP. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Outdoor Lighting Perspectives 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 Outdoor Lighting Perspectives FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Outdoor Lighting Perspectives's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Outdoor Lighting Perspectives has a charge-off rate of 50.0% across 34 loans, meaning 50.0% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Outdoor Lighting Perspectives has 141 total units in the United States, including 141 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 8 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Outdoor Lighting Perspectives a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Outdoor Lighting Perspectives as a D-grade franchise with a verdict score of 31 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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.