The Barbershop / The Guy’s PlaceFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place franchise requires a total initial investment of $155K – $282K, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 4.5% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $461K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $155K – $282K
- 12th pct Personal Care…
- Avg gross sales
- $461K
- 11th pct Personal Care…
- Royalty
- 4.5%
- 4th pct Personal Care…
- Units
- 49
- 28th pct Personal Care…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Personal Care & Beauty · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Personal Care & Beauty 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
Franchised units fell from 49 to 47 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $155K – $282K including a $35K franchise fee, 4.5% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $461K/year (median $473K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 51/100.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- The Barbershop A Hair Salon for Men, LLC
- Predecessor
- and Affiliates
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- WI
- HQ
- 1369 Mourning Dove Court, De Pere, WI 54115-9518
- Auditor
- KerberRose SC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $419K
- vs $468K prior year
Affiliated brands
- The Barbershop of SE Wisconsin
- We have offered Salon franchises s
- of ours or a licensee or franchisee of ours or our affiliate
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Franchisees operate a barbershop providing haircuts, shaves, and grooming services. Day-to-day activities include managing staff, maintaining client relationships, scheduling appointments, inventory management, and ensuring brand compliance. Revenue depends on foot traffic, service pricing, and operational efficiency.
- CEO
- Brian J. Bowe
- Headquarters
- WI
- Founded
- 2008
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 10
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 14 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $35K | $35K | |
| Travel and Living Expenses while Training for 2 people | $2K | $4K | |
| Security Deposit and Rent | $2K | $6K | |
| Licenses, Dues, Utilities Deposits | $500 | $2K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $10K | $23K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $70K | $150K | |
| Opening Inventory | $2K | $3K | |
| POS Computer System and Software | $2K | $4K | |
| Office Equipment and Supplies | $1K | $2K | |
| Professional Fees | $500 | $3K | |
| Signage | $4K | $9K | |
| Insurance | $600 | $2K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $10K | $10K | |
| Additional Funds | $15K | $30K | |
| Total initial investment | $155K | $282K |
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
$108K
23.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
45%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
27 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $155K – $282K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $30K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 4.5%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 4.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $1K |
| Transfer fee | $50 |
| Renewal fee | $3K |
| Inventory (initial) | $2K – $3K |
| Total fee load | 6.5% of rev |
A 6.5% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $461K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $473K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 34 units
- vs category median 35
- Range (low → high)
- $86K→$828K
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $242K→$702K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2023
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 186 Personal Care & Beauty brands
vs Personal Care & Beauty averages
How The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 49
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 2
- Turnover rate
- 4.1%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 96%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -4.1%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -4.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 3 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
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
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.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Declining unit count, missing profitability data, and high startup costs relative to average revenue create meaningful uncertainty about franchisee ROI and system health.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · KerberRose SC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 51 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 4.1% YoY (49 units) suggests franchisee satisfaction or system viability issues
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — cannot validate $460k revenue translates to meaningful profit
- 03MINORHigh initial investment ($154.6k–$282k) paired with 4.5% royalty creates significant break-even threshold
- 04MEDSmall franchise system (49 units) means limited economies of scale and supplier leverage
- 05MINOR10-year term is relatively short for barbershop industry; renewal risk unclear
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 | 5 |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Wisconsin |
| Litigation count | 0 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 48 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 47 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- franchisor
- POS system
- MyTime
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: MyTime
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
50 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place franchise?
The total investment to open a The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place franchise ranges from $155K – $282K, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $461K. The median is $473K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place (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 The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place has 49 total units in the United States, including 49 franchised units and 2 company-owned units.
Is The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates The Barbershop / The Guy’s Place as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 51 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.