PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $915K – $1.7M
- Disclosed sales
- $590K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Limited · 70 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
PJ's Coffee of New Orleans is a specialty-coffee franchise serving New Orleans-style coffee, espresso drinks, cold brew, and pastries. Franchisees run cafes and drive-thrus managing baristas, beverage prep, and service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchise requires a total initial investment of $915K – $1.7M, including a $15K – $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $590K[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above 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: medium - issued 12 to 24 months ago; a newer filing is likely on file
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 scored8 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $915K – $1.7M
- 91st pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $590K
- Net sales7th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 182
- 82nd 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 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 $915K – $1.7M including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $590K/year (median $534K).
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 58/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHNegative, pipeline stalled: 297 agreements signed but not yet open against 182 open outlets (Item 20).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 26.1% CAGR over 3 years with 182 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- New Orleans Brew, L.L.C.
- Predecessor
- PJ's USA, Inc.
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- President
- David Mesa, Jr.
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- LA
- HQ
- 4480 LA-22, Suite 2, Mandeville, Louisiana 70471
- Auditor
- Reagan & Reagan CPA, LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $5.8M
- vs $5.3M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Affiliated brands
- New Orleans Roast
- company that will roast and distribute coffee beans
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- David Mesa, Jr.
- Headquarters
- LA
- Founded
- 1989
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 14
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 169% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown15 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $15K | $40K | |
| Real Estate Lease Deposit for Premises | $5K | $13K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment | $192K | $243K | |
| Opening Advertising | $13K | $13K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses While Training | $4K | $5K | |
| Insurance | $5K | $8K | |
| Other Prepaid Expenses, Such a Deposits, Licenses and Various Permits | $5K | $8K | |
| Opening Inventory | $10K | $14K | |
| Exterior Signage | $20K | $30K | |
| Free Standing Building or Leasehold Improvements (Not Including the Purchase of Land) | $550K | $1.2M | |
| Small Wares | $8K | $10K | |
| POS System & Back-office Computer System | $3K | $6K | |
| Legal, Accounting & Organizational Costs | $3K | $5K | |
| Construction Drawings | $55K | $75K | |
| Additional Funds | $30K | $30K | |
| Total initial investment | $915K | $1.7M |
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
- $915K – $1.7M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $30K – $30K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $40K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of net sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of net sales |
| Technology fee | $141 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Inventory (initial) | $10K – $14K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 40% below the quick-service restaurants norm.
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
Source: FDD 2025 · 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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans 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
$1.3M
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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans 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: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Reported as net sales, not gross sales
- Avg gross sales
- $590K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $534K
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- sales and p and l
- Sample size
- 117 outlets
- vs category median 19 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $184K→$1.3MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 47 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $331K→$1.0M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- 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 781 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.5x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
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 $590K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.5x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.0% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants 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 26.1% CAGR over 3 years across 182 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 Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans Compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants 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 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 182
- Opened
- 22
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 7
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 4.1%
- Company-owned
- 13
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +26.1%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +26.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 18
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 297
- 1.63 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 28
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 9.9%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 0.5%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 4.9%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 17 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
119 current owners across 17 states; 6 former (terminated, transferred or not renewed) listed separately.
- LA 35
- MD 15
- MS 14
- FL 10
- TX 10
- GA 9
- AL 7
- MO 3
- NJ 3
- SC 3
- AR 2
- CA 2
- +5 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
- 70
- Loan volume
- $31.4M
- Median loan
- $448K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- Limited · 70 loans
- Limited SBA coverage: 70 loans, rate hidden until 10 have resolved and loans reach 2% of franchised units
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- Limited · 70 loans
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 31
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 8.1%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- Jobs supported
- 1,149
- Lender concentration
- N/A
Borrower mix: 88% went to startups / new businesses, 12% to established operators
Top lenders financing PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchisees
Showing 3 of 31 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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Avg interest rate
- 8.10%
- Jobs supported
- 1,149
Top SBA lenders
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Huntington National Bank | 11 | N/A | N/A |
| 2 | United Community Bank | 7 | N/A | N/A |
| 3 | Luminate Bank | 6 | N/A | N/A |
| 4 | Cadence Bank | 5 | N/A | N/A |
| 5 | Hancock Whitney Bank | 3 | N/A | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| TXTexas | 31 | 0 | -- |
| LALouisiana | 12 | 0 | -- |
| FLFlorida | 6 | 0 | -- |
| MSMississippi | 5 | 0 | -- |
| GAGeorgia | 3 | 0 | -- |
| SCSouth Carolina | 3 | 0 | -- |
| MDMaryland | 2 | 0 | -- |
| MOMissouri | 2 | 0 | -- |
| ARArkansas | 1 | 0 | -- |
| VAVirginia | 1 | 0 | -- |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
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
PJ's Coffee presents moderate-to-caution risk: litigation history raises governance concerns, claimed unit economics lack transparency, and modest growth in a saturated segment warrant deep validation.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
1) Whitetail 26, LLC et al. v. New Orleans Brew, LLC (AAA arbitration, filed Dec 2023) — former franchisees alleged Louisiana UTPA violations, fraud in inducement, misrepresentation, breach of contract; arbitrator awarded damages for investment losses but rejected fraud/misrepresentation claims; final award June 2025 not yet confirmed by court. 2) Unique Marie Hankston v. Delaware North d/b/a PJ's Coffee House (La. Civ. Dist. Ct. filed Mar 2025) — plaintiff alleged illness from contaminated food at a franchisee-operated airport location; affiliate Ballard Brands named defendant; New Orleans Brew LLC not named.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Reagan & Reagan CPA, LLC
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: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 58 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHActive litigation involving bad faith termination claims (Whitetail 26) and food contamination personal injury lawsuit (Unique Marie Hankston) suggests operational/legal vulnerabilities
- 02MINORModest unit growth of 8.3% YoY in competitive coffee market raises questions about expansion difficulty and franchisee recruitment challenges
- 03HIGHHigh franchise fee ($40K) combined with litigation history may deter qualified candidates, creating pressure to relax vetting standards
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.0% 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 | 3 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 2 mi |
| 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 | 50 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 15 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Louisiana |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | LA |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
1) Whitetail 26, LLC et al. v. New Orleans Brew, LLC (AAA arbitration, filed Dec 2023) — former franchisees alleged Louisiana UTPA violations, fraud in inducement, misrepresentation, breach of contract; arbitrator awarded damages for investment losses but rejected fraud/misrepresentation claims; final award June 2025 not yet confirmed by court. 2) Unique Marie Hankston v. Delaware North d/b/a PJ's Coffee House (La. Civ. Dist. Ct. filed Mar 2025) — plaintiff alleged illness from contaminated food at a franchisee-operated airport location; affiliate Ballard Brands named defendant; New Orleans Brew LLC not named.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 25 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 35 hrs
- Training location
- Mandeville, Louisiana (initial); Franchisee's location (field training)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 60 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with Franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- PJ's approved POS system
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: PJ's approved POS system
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
125 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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchise?
The total investment to open a PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchise ranges from $915K – $1.7M, 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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $590K. The median is $534K. Important context: Reported as net sales, not gross sales. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans?
PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans is franchised by New Orleans Brew, L.L.C.. The FDD names no parent company. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans 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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans (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 PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans has 182 total units in the United States, including 169 franchised units and 13 company-owned units. 22 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 58 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
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.