Sub Station IIFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Sub Station II franchise requires a total initial investment of $318K – $926K, including a $20K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $615K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 30.0% charge-off rate across 13 loans[1]. Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $318K – $926K
- 62nd pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $615K
- 15th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 13th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 37
- 58th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 30.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Quick-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
30.0% of SBA loans charged off across 13 loans, above the 16% franchise average.
Franchising since 1976. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 34 to 32 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $318K – $926K including a $20K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $615K/year (median $592K).
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 68/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 30.0% across 13 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- System contracting at -5.9% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Sub Station II, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- None
- CEO title
- President, Secretary & Director
- Sandra R. Corbett
- CEO experience
- 37 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- SC
- HQ
- 914 Richland Street, Suite A200, Columbia, South Carolina 29201
- Auditor
- Mauldin & Jenkins, LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $3.5M
- vs $3.6M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Sub Station II franchisees operate quick-service submarine sandwich restaurants, managing inventory, food preparation, customer service, and daily P&L. Day-to-day operations include sandwich assembly, order fulfillment, staff management, and maintaining food safety standards in a small-format retail location.
- CEO
- Sandra R. Corbett
- Headquarters
- SC
- Founded
- 1975
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 4
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $20K | $20K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $35K | $70K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $263K | $836K |
| Total initial investment | $318K | $926K |
Source: Sub Station II 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
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
$92K
15.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
14%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
7.3 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $318K – $926K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $35K – $70K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $10K – $20K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Net 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 |
| Technology fee | $129 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $10K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $615K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $592K
- Item 19 type
- net_sales
- Sample size
- 33 units
- vs category median 28
- Range (low → high)
- $180K→$1.3M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $328K→$927K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 1.0x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Sub Station II Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 37
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- 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
- 3
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 92%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 50.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +3.2%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -5.9%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
- Projected new
- 3
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 2.9%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 5 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.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 13
- Loan volume
- $1.8M
- Median loan
- $73K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 30.0%
- 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)
- 70.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 10
- Defaults
- 3
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Sub Station II's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 6 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 10-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
A 30.0% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 3 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Sub Station II presents caution-level risk due to missing profitability data, stagnant unit growth, and unclear franchisor financial health despite reasonable royalty rates and protected territories.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Mauldin & Jenkins, LLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 68 / 100 rating
- 01MINORNo Net Income disclosure (Item 19) prevents ROI validation and profitability assessment
- 02MINORMinimal unit growth of 3.2% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
- 03MINORWide investment range ($318K–$926K) indicates inconsistent startup costs and unclear capital requirements
- 04HIGHNo 'Going Concern' statement indicates potential franchisor financial instability
- 05MEDAverage revenue of $614K with undisclosed net income suggests thin margins or hidden losses
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 | 1 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 7 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 20 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | South Carolina |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | South Carolina |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 0 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 150 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- POS system
- Clover
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Clover
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
34 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Sub Station II · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Sub Station II franchise?
The total investment to open a Sub Station II franchise ranges from $318K – $926K, with an initial franchise fee of $20K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Sub Station II franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Sub Station II FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $615K. The median is $592K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Sub Station II's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Sub Station II has a charge-off rate of 30.0% across 13 loans, meaning 30.0% 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 Sub Station II franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Sub Station II has 37 total units in the United States, including 34 franchised units and 3 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Sub Station II a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Sub Station II as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 68 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
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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.