Slim Chickens Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Slim Chickens is a fast-casual franchise built on cooked-to-order chicken tenders, wings, sandwiches, and dipping sauces. Franchisees run restaurants managing food prep, drive-thru and dine-in service, and staffing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Slim Chickens franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.2M – $4.5M, including a $15K – $30K 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
- $1.2M – $4.5M
- 96th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $2.4M
- 32nd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 11th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 207
- 84th 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 $1.2M – $4.5M including a $30K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $2.4M/year (median $2.3M).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 76/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 42.0% CAGR over 3 years with 207 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Slim Chicken's Development Company, LLC
- Parent company
- Slim Chickens Global, LLC
- Predecessor
- Slim Chicken's, Inc.
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Thomas D. Gordon
- CEO experience
- 2011 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 234 E. Millsap Road, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72703
- Auditor
- Frost, PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $23.0M
- vs $29.5M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchisee Advisory Board
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- Slim Chickens Restaurants
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Thomas D. Gordon
- Headquarters
- AR
- Founded
- 2011
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 35
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 333% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown17 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $30K | $30K | |
| Real Property / Site Lease / Site Review Fees | $45K | $1.2M | |
| Construction / Building Conversion | $400K | $1.7M | |
| Site Work | $50K | $600K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment | $295K | $345K | |
| Smallwares | $21K | $27K | |
| Building Signage and Interior Graphics | $45K | $75K | |
| Soft Costs | $90K | $120K | |
| Insurance | $9K | $15K | |
| Opening Inventory | $6K | $10K | |
| Training Costs / Opening Assistance Reimbursement | $60K | $80K | |
| POS System / Drive-Thru / Kiosks / Components / Menu Boards | $85K | $125K | |
| Low Voltage / Security / Network Installation | $40K | $50K | |
| Security and Utility Deposits | $3K | $12K | |
| Business Licenses (excluding beer and wine license) | $400 | $2K | |
| Grand Opening Ad Expenditure | $10K | $10K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $40K | $65K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.2M | $4.5M |
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
- $1.2M – $4.5M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $40K – $65K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Gross Sales · 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 gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $50 |
| Inventory (initial) | $6K – $10K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 102% 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
$366K
15.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
13%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.9 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 Slim Chickens unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
13%
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 Slim Chickens units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
29.8%
3.69× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.70×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$8.6M
on $19.5M purchase
Total debt
$10.8M
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
- gross sales
- Sample size
- 147
- vs category median 20 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $638K→$5.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.4M→$3.7M
- 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
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 782 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.9x 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 $2.4M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.9x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.0% (near the Quick-Service Restaurants average).
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System expanding at 42.0% CAGR over 3 years across 207 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
Multi-unit rate
43% of franchisees own multiple units, a moderate multi-unit rate.
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 Slim Chickens Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 207
- Opened
- 28
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 4
- Turnover rate
- 1.9%
- Company-owned
- 11
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 95%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 42.9%
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +42.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +42.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 1
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Transfers (3yr)
- 7
- Transfer rate
- 3.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 0.5%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.5%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 36 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
- California
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- New York
- North Dakota
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Washington
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 8 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 8
- Loan volume
- $8.5M
- Median loan
- $250K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
- limited sample (8 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
- 2
- 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
207-unit fast-casual franchisor with strong financials (net income $10.5M) but relatively thin net worth ($1.11M), and a June 2025 franchisee-group suit alleging FRAUD, constructive fraud over average unit volumes/COGS/frozen-chicken switch, and breach of development rights. The active fraud/AUV-misrepresentation litigation is the key concern.
Litigation (Item 3)
R Solution Holdings, LLC et al. vs. Slim Chickens Development Company, LLC (pending fraud, constructive fraud, and breach of contract case filed June 4, 2025 in Arkansas); Consent Order with Washington Securities Division (September 29, 2020) for selling franchises without registration and failure to disclose registration status.
Largest disclosed settlement: $1,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Frost, PLLC
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 76 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHActive 2025 fraud/constructive-fraud suit over AUV/COGS
- 02MINORThin net worth $1,107,763 vs system size
- 03MINORStrong net income $10,499,340 offsets financially
- 04MEDItem 19 disclosed, audited
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 | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius or population based |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 2.5 mi |
| Territory population | 45,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| 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 |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 4 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Arkansas |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
R Solution Holdings, LLC et al. vs. Slim Chickens Development Company, LLC (pending fraud, constructive fraud, and breach of contract case filed June 4, 2025 in Arkansas); Consent Order with Washington Securities Division (September 29, 2020) for selling franchises without registration and failure to disclose registration status.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 27 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 306 hrs
- Training location
- at your Restaurant
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 112 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Site selection
- franchisor
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Brink Restaurant POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Brink Restaurant POS System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
205 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Slim Chickens · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Slim Chickens franchise?
The total investment to open a Slim Chickens franchise ranges from $1.2M – $4.5M, with an initial franchise fee of $30K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Slim Chickens franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Slim Chickens 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 Slim Chickens 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 Slim Chickens FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Slim Chickens's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Slim Chickens (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 Slim Chickens franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Slim Chickens has 207 total units in the United States, including 196 franchised units and 11 company-owned units. 28 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Slim Chickens a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Slim Chickens as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 76 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.