The Decor Group / Christmas DecorFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A The Decor Group / Christmas Decor franchise requires a total initial investment of $22K – $131K, including a $16K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2024 FDD, average unit revenue was $419K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $22K – $131K
- 1st pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $419K
- 11th pct Home Services
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 5th pct Home Services
- Units
- 240
- 71st pct Home Services
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Home Services · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Home Services 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
Each dollar invested generates 5.5x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchising since 1996. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Bottom line
- Total investment $22K – $131K including a $16K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $419K/year (median $226K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 5/100.
- Bankruptcy history disclosed in the FDD. Review Item 4 for details before proceeding.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- The Decor Group, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- TX
- HQ
- 2301 Crown Court, Irving, Texas 75038
- Auditor
- TJ Advisors LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $23.2M
- vs $19.4M prior year
Affiliated brands
- American Christmas Light and Supply
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
Franchisees operate seasonal outdoor Christmas decoration and lighting installation services, managing customer acquisition, design consultation, installation crews, and holiday removal. Revenue concentrates in Q4, requiring careful cash management and off-season planning. Territory-protected model allows franchisees to be primary service provider for residential and commercial holiday decorating in defined geographic areas.
- CEO
- Kevin B. (“Blake”) Smith
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 1984
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 48
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee - Base Fee | $19K | $19K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee - Territory Feenot refundable | $2K | $60K | |
| Initial Rent & Deposit | $0 | $1K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $0 | $1K | |
| Vehicle | $0 | $350 | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $0 | $500 | |
| Insurance | $200 | $3K | |
| Initial Printing Supply Package | $2K | $5K | |
| Legal and Accounting Fees | $250 | $2K | |
| Initial Inventory and Equipment | $13K | $30K | |
| Computer System | $0 | $500 | |
| Quick Start Training - Travel & Living Expenses | $2K | $3K | |
| Additional Funds - Initial 6 Month Period | $1K | $6K | |
| Total initial investment | $39K | $131K |
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
$54K
13.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
68%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
18 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $22K – $131K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $1K – $6K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $9K – $79K
- 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 |
| Technology fee | $4K |
| Transfer fee | $3K |
| Renewal fee | $2K |
| Inventory (initial) | $13K – $30K |
| 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
- $419K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $226K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 192 units
- vs category median 25 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $13K→$7.3M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- N/A→$2.4M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 349 Home Services brands
Revenue is 5.5x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
vs Home Services averages
How The Decor Group / Christmas Decor Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 240
- Opened
- 10
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 10
- Turnover rate
- 4.2%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +0.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +2.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 21 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
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.
- Total loans
- 13
- Loan volume
- N/A
- Amount data pending
- Median loan
- N/A
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
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
- 0
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Declining franchisor financial health (going concern issue), active litigation over franchise breaches, and lack of income disclosure create elevated risk despite decent unit count and protected territories.
Litigation (Item 3)
1 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
Bankruptcy Code; (b) obtained a discharge of its debts under the 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 obtained a
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · TJ Advisors LLC
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 5 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — indicates potential financial viability issues at corporate level
- 02HIGHActive litigation (2023) involving breach of franchise agreement, misappropriation of confidential information, and interference with business — suggests enforcement challenges and IP protection concerns
- 03MEDNet Income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — inability to verify profitability claims despite $418,607 average revenue figure
- 04MINORUnit count stagnant at 240 with unknown growth trajectory — no clarity on system expansion or contraction momentum
- 05MINORHigh investment-to-revenue ratio (up to 31% of first-year revenue) with 5% royalty plus unknown marketing fund — potential cash flow compression
- 06MINORSeasonal business model (Christmas Decor) creates inherent revenue concentration risk and working capital challenges
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 | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Territory type | Geographic Area |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| 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 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
1 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 72 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 11 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Light Right Cloud
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Light Right Cloud
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
93 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
The Decor Group / Christmas Decor · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a The Decor Group / Christmas Decor franchise?
The total investment to open a The Decor Group / Christmas Decor franchise ranges from $22K – $131K, with an initial franchise fee of $16K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do The Decor Group / Christmas Decor franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the The Decor Group / Christmas Decor FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $419K. The median is $226K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is The Decor Group / Christmas Decor's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for The Decor Group / Christmas Decor (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 Decor Group / Christmas Decor franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, The Decor Group / Christmas Decor has 240 total units in the United States, including 235 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 10 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is The Decor Group / Christmas Decor a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates The Decor Group / Christmas Decor as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 5 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.
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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.