SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $89K – $191K
- Disclosed sales
- $147K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
SweetWater Technologies is a home services franchise providing irrigation system design, installation, and maintenance. Franchisees run local operations, managing crews, installs, and service accounts.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) franchise requires a total initial investment of $89K – $191K, including a $10K franchise fee and an ongoing 33.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $147K[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Limited operating history: franchising since 2024. A system this young has fewer than three years of Item 20 outlet history and rarely enough SBA loans for a charge-off rate, so its grade rests on less evidence than an established system's. Read its Item 20 tables and talk to its first franchisees before relying on the grade. Other new franchisors
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
- $89K – $191K
- 26th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $147K
- 1st pct Home Services
- Royalty
- 33.0% (?)
- Likely extraction error
- Units
- 5
- 11th pct Home Services
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Home Services · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Home 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 $89K – $191K including a $10K franchise fee, 33.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $147K/year (median $134K).
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 50/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHPositive: net +4 franchised outlets in the latest year (5 opened, 1 closed) (Item 20).
- EARLYEmerging franchise: only 2 years of franchising with 5 units. Early-stage systems carry higher risk but may offer better territory availability.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Sweetwater Technologies Franchise, LLC
- CEO title
- Owner, President
- Chad R. Gripp
- Incorporated in
- Illinois
- HQ
- 401 West Main Street, Wyanet, Illinois 61379
- Auditor
- Metwally CPA PLLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $106K
- Most recent fiscal year
Affiliated brands
- does
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Chad R. Gripp
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2024
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 3
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 17% below the typical home services franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
The filing's Item 7 TOTAL row prints $89,145 to $190,930. Its own line items add to $89,145 to $245,930. The total is shown as the franchisor printed it; the lines are listed as printed. Single Item 7 table (Start-Up Franchise), 12 lines, verified against the rendered page image.
Full Item 7 breakdown12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $10K | $10K | |
| Rent Deposit | $0 | $5K | |
| Rent (3 months) | $0 | $15K | |
| Vehicle, Equipment, Signage | $65K | $165K | |
| Office Set-Up, Technology, Hardware and Software | $5K | $6K | |
| Business Licenses & Permits | $575 | $700 | |
| Professional Fees | $2K | $5K | |
| Insurance | $2K | $8K | |
| Training Expenses | $1K | $5K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $2K | $10K | |
| Opening Marketing Package | $520 | $1K | |
| Additional Funds | $2K | $15K | |
| Total initial investment | $89K | $246K |
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
- $89K – $191K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $2K – $15K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $10K – $10K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 33.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 36.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 33.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $250 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $3K |
| Total fee load | 36.0% of rev |
At 36.0% total fee load, roughly $53K per year goes to the franchisor before you pay a single operating expense.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 75% below the home services norm.
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 SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) 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
$149K
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 SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) 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
- Avg gross sales
- $147K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $134K
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
- 4 outlets
- vs category median 32 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $89K→$232KCited, not corroborated — printed on page 42 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- 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 319 Home Services brands
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 $147K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.1x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 36.0% — above the Home Services median of 8.0%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 4 outlets — treat as directional only.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +400.0% over 3 years (5 opened, 1 closed).
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 Home Services medians
How SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) Compares
Category median of published Home 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 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5
- Opened
- 5
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 20.0%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 80%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
- 3-yr CAGR
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 1
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 0
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 0
- 0.00 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 5
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 3 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
3
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
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
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
No litigation disclosed in Item 3.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Metwally CPA PLLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Revenues consist of Royalties from related parties ($81,480) and Initial franchise fees ($24,267) for the period January 19, 2024 (inception) to December 31, 2024.
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 50 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORNegative net worth -$14,383, net loss -$14,383 (early-stage)
- 02MINORVery new/small: 5 units, franchising since 2024
- 03MINORNo litigation or going-concern
- 04MEDItem 19 disclosed, avg gross sales $147,279
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 36.0% 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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 10 mi |
| 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 | 1 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Wyanet, Illinois (franchisor's principal place of business at time dispute arises) |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation disclosed in Item 3.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 15 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 25 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- franchisor approves warehouse location within Territory; franchisee selects
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- NetSuite and Flight Plan
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: NetSuite and Flight Plan
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
8 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 SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) franchise?
The total investment to open a SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) franchise ranges from $89K – $191K, with an initial franchise fee of $10K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $147K. The median is $134K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp)?
SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) is franchised by Sweetwater Technologies Franchise, LLC. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) 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 SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp)'s franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) (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 SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) has 5 total units in the United States, including 4 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 5 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates SweetWater Technologies (powered by Gripp) as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 50 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.