Pollo CamperoFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A POLLO CAMPERO franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.5M – $3.8M, including a $40K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $3.2M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.5M – $3.8M
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $3.2M
- 26th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 92
- 41st pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
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
The system grew 36% year-over-year. Fast growth means demand, but can strain support.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $1.5M – $3.8M including a $40K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $3.2M/year (median $3.0M).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 45/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Campero USA Corp.
- Parent company
- Campero, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Campero International Holdings Corp.
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer, CMI Foods
- Jose Gregorio Baquero
- Incorporated in
- FL
- HQ
- 12404 Park Central Drive, Suite 250N, Dallas, Texas 75251
- Auditor
- BDO USA, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $149.2M
- vs $186.8M prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2024
- Status as of 2024; may have been resolved in a later filing we don't yet have.
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
Pollo Campero franchisees operate full-service quick-casual chicken restaurants, managing daily kitchen operations, food prep, customer service, and staff scheduling. They execute the brand's Latin-inspired rotisserie chicken concept, maintain health/safety standards, and drive local marketing to meet weekly sales targets that determine their 5% royalty obligations.
- CEO
- Jose Gregorio Baquero
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 2003
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 18
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 34 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee (Freestanding)not refundable | $30K | $40K | |
| Rent (Freestanding)not refundable | — | — | |
| Real Property: Building / Build-Out Costs (Freestanding)not refundable | $840K | $1.5M | |
| Real Property: Site Development Costs (Freestanding)not refundable | $25K | $800K | |
| Soft Costs (Freestanding)not refundable | $50K | $250K | |
| Additional Development Costs (Freestanding)not refundable | $50K | $125K | |
| Restaurant Furniture, Equipment, Fixtures, and Decor (Freestanding)not refundable | $295K | $600K | |
| Signs (Freestanding)not refundable | $100K | $120K | |
| POS (Freestanding)not refundable | $40K | $60K | |
| Opening Inventory (Freestanding)not refundable | $17K | $32K | |
| Business and Operating Permits (Freestanding)not refundable | $3K | $6K | |
| Initial Training Travel & Living Expenses (Freestanding)not refundable | $13K | $38K | |
| Insurance (Freestanding)not refundable | $10K | $25K | |
| Uniforms (Freestanding)not refundable | $2K | $2K | |
| Miscellaneous Opening Costs (Freestanding)not refundable | $5K | $24K | |
| Marketing Start-Up Expenditure (Freestanding)not refundable | $40K | $80K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 Months (Freestanding)not refundable | $36K | $50K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee (In-Line)not refundable | $30K | $40K | |
| Rent (In-Line)not refundable | — | — | |
| Real Property: Building / Build-Out Costs (In-Line)not refundable | $840K | $1.5M | |
| Total initial investment | $3.0M | $6.6M |
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
$387K
12.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
15%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
6.8 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.5M – $3.8M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $36K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K – $40K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $3.2M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $3.0M
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 80 units
- vs category median 13 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $1.2M→$8.7M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- none
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 1264 Full-Service Restaurants brands
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Pollo Campero Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 92
- Opened
- 11
- 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
- 3.3%
- Company-owned
- 77
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 16%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 10.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +36.4%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -11.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Ceased ops
- 3.3%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 12 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
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 8 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 8
- Loan volume
- $6.0M
- Median loan
- $748K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- 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)
- 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 Pollo Campero'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
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Aggressive growth trajectory with undisclosed profitability metrics and high capital requirements present meaningful risk despite strong top-line revenue.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
Bankruptcy Code; (b) obtained a discharge of its debts under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code; or (c) was a principal officer of a company or a general partner in a partnership that either filed as a debtor (or had filed against it) a petition to start an action under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or that obtain
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · BDO USA, P.C.⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- 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 45 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — cannot validate actual profitability despite $3.2M average revenue
- 02MINORHigh unit growth rate (36.4% YoY) may indicate aggressive expansion with unproven unit economics
- 03MINORWide investment range ($1.45M–$3.75M) suggests high variability in startup costs and potential hidden expenses
- 04MINOR5% royalty on gross sales (not net) creates fixed cost burden regardless of profitability
- 05MINORNo disclosure of franchisee failure rate, break-even timeline, or payback period
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 | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Area of Protection (Radius) |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| 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 | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Dallas, Texas |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Florida |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 74 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 406 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- joint
- POS system
- NCR Aloha®
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: NCR Aloha®
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
24 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
POLLO CAMPERO · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a POLLO CAMPERO franchise?
The total investment to open a POLLO CAMPERO franchise ranges from $1.5M – $3.8M, 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 POLLO CAMPERO franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the POLLO CAMPERO FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $3.2M. The median is $3.0M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is POLLO CAMPERO's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for POLLO CAMPERO (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 POLLO CAMPERO franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, POLLO CAMPERO has 92 total units in the United States, including 15 franchised units and 77 company-owned units. 11 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is POLLO CAMPERO a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates POLLO CAMPERO as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 45 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.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent POLLO CAMPERO, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Full-Service Restaurants franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Full-Service Restaurants category
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.