Tire DiscountersFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Tire Discounters franchise requires a total initial investment of $509K – $2.7M, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 3.5% royalty[2]. Per the 2023 FDD, average unit revenue was $2.2M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2023 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $509K – $2.7M
- 37th pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- $2.2M
- 20th pct Automotive
- Royalty
- 3.5%
- 3rd pct Automotive
- Units
- 196
- 30th pct Automotive
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Automotive 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
Bottom line
- Total investment $509K – $2.7M including a $35K franchise fee, 3.5% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $2.2M/year (median $2.0M).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 18/100.
- 67% of franchisees own multiple units, a high repeat-buyer signal suggests strong unit economics.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Tire Discounters Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Tire Discounters, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Tire Discounters, Inc. (TDI)
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer
- Jamie Ward
- CEO experience
- 37 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- OH
- HQ
- 200 West Fourth Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202
- Auditor
- Clark Schaefer Hackett
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- vs $0 prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Franchisees operate tire retail and automotive service centers, managing inventory, performing tire sales/installation, wheel alignments, and general maintenance services. Day-to-day operations include staff scheduling, customer service, inventory management, and coordination with national accounts while paying 3.5-5% royalties on gross sales.
- CEO
- Jamie Ward
- Headquarters
- OH
- Founded
- 1976
- FDD year
- 2023
- States available
- 8
FDD Item 7 · 2023 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $50K | $150K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $424K | $2.5M |
| Total initial investment | $509K | $2.7M |
Source: Tire Discounters 2023 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
$378K
17.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
22%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
4.5 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $509K – $2.7M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $150K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $10K – $35K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 3.5%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 4.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 3.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $1K |
| Transfer fee | $12K |
| Renewal fee | $7K |
| Total fee load | 7.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $2.2M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $2.0M
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 139 units
- vs category median 70
- Range (low → high)
- $1.1M→$7.1M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.4M→$3.2M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 221 Automotive brands
vs Automotive averages
How Tire Discounters Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 196
- Opened
- 0
- 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
- 196
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 66.7%
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 8 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.
8
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
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
- 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
Tire Discounters presents moderate-to-cautious risk: while franchise fee is reasonable and territory is protected, the absence of net income disclosure, stagnant unit growth, and wide investment range obscure true profitability and scalability.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Disclosure Document.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Clark Schaefer Hackett
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: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 18 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo average net income disclosed in FDD — impossible to assess actual profitability or ROI against $509k-$2.67M investment
- 02MEDUnit count stagnant at 196 with unknown/likely flat growth — suggests mature or declining system with limited expansion momentum
- 03MINORHigh investment range ($2.16M spread) indicates inconsistent unit economics and unclear path to stated $2.16M average revenue
- 04HIGHNo going concern statement is positive, but combined with flat growth and hidden profitability, suggests underperforming mature brand
- 05MINORRoyalty structure (3.5-5% + 1% national accounts) compounds margin pressure on service-based business with tight labor costs
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, population, registered motor vehicles, or geographic boundaries |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Cincinnati, Ohio |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Ohio |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Disclosure Document.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 55 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 80 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Time to open
- 13 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Computer System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Computer System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
3 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Tire Discounters · FDD (2023) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Tire Discounters franchise?
The total investment to open a Tire Discounters franchise ranges from $509K – $2.7M, 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 Tire Discounters franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Tire Discounters FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $2.2M. The median is $2.0M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Tire Discounters's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Tire Discounters (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 Tire Discounters franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Tire Discounters has 196 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 196 company-owned units.
Is Tire Discounters a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Tire Discounters as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 18 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.