FranchiseVerdict
Winger's Alehouse logo
FV-02977·MODERATEExcellent91

Winger's Alehouse

Food & Beverage - Full ServiceFranchising since 1997Website
Investment
$420K – $1.7M
56th pct Full Service
Avg revenue
$3.0M
52nd pct Full Service
Royalty
Units
21
55th pct Full Service
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $420K – $1.7M including a $40K franchise fee.
  • Average unit revenue of $3.0M/year (median $2.7M).
  • Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 62/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 4 loans (below the industry average).

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
Winger’s Franchising, Inc.
Parent company
Winger’s USA, Inc.
Incorporated in
Utah
HQ
3950 South 700 East #302, Salt Lake City, Utah 84107
Auditor
Kezos & Dunlavy
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$1.2M
vs $1.1M prior year

Yale framework · single-unit ROIC

Returns Analysis

Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.

The model · Yale framework

What would one Winger's Alehouse unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
FDD Item 19 reports $3,035,676
Franchisor take · royalty + ad fund
Royaltytyp 68%
%
Ad fundtyp 35%
%
Operating costs · category default: generic
COGS
%
Labor
%
Rent / occupancy
%
Other operating
%
Total invested capital · what you actually put in
Initial investment
$
FDD Item 7: $420K–$1.7M
Working capital
$
FDD reports $10K–$30K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

45%

In Yale's "attractive" band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$486K
EBITDA margin
16.0%
Total invested
$1.1M
Payback
27 mo
Unit-level only. A multi-unit portfolio gives up roughly 5–15% of this to shared services (corporate G&A) before reaching the ~10-unit break-even Yale describes.

Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing

What would 25 Winger's Alehouse units return on equity?

Edit assumptions

Equity IRR · 5-yr

26.5%

3.24× MOIC

Year-1 DSCR

3.11×

EBITDA ÷ debt service

Equity required

$14.1M

on $27.3M purchase

Total debt

$13.2M

SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note

SBA 7(a) request ($13.7M) exceeds the $5M program cap. Excess capped automatically; backfill via conventional or equity.

Overview

About

Winger's Alehouse franchisees operate casual dining establishments serving wings, burgers, and craft beverages with a sports bar atmosphere. Daily operations include managing front-of-house service, kitchen coordination, inventory management, and staff scheduling across typical lunch/dinner/evening service periods. Franchisees are responsible for local marketing, P&L management, and maintaining brand standards across their protected territory.

CEO
Eric E. Slaymaker
Founded
1997
FDD year
2025
States available
5

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$420K – $1.7M
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$10K – $30K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$40K
Royalty
Currently 4% of gross sales
Ad fund
1.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
5.0%
vs 9–13% typical

Item 19

Financial Performance

Avg gross sales
$3.0M
Per unit, per year
Median gross sales
$2.7M
Item 19 type
Average and Median of Outlets
Sample size
5 units
vs category median 15 · small
Range (low → high)
$2.6M$4.0M
Cohort dispersion
Transparency
7 / 5
vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Revenue rank52th
vs Food & Beverage - Full Service peers
Investment cost rank56th
Lower investment ranks lower (better)
Royalty rate rank93th
Lower royalty = lower percentile (better)
Unit count rank55th
vs Food & Beverage - Full Service peers
Risk score rank45th
Lower risk = lower percentile (better)

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
21
Opened
1
Last reporting year
Closed
1
Turnover rate
4.8%
Company-owned
7
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
67%
vs corporate-owned
Net growth (yr3)
+0.0%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
+0.0%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
14±0
Franchised units
2024
14
Franchised units
2025
14
Franchised units

Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.

Item 20 · 23 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).

AK
ME
VT
NH
MA
RI
CT
NY
NJ
PA
DE
MD
DC
WA
OR
CA
NV
ID
MT
WY
UT
CO
AZ
NM
ND
SD
NE
KS
OK
TX
MN
IA
MO
AR
LA
WI
IL
MS
TN
MI
IN
KY
AL
OH
WV
GA
VA
NC
SC
FL
HI
Registered · 23 states
Not registered

States derived from franchisee phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.

Government records

SBA Loan Data

Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.

Total loans
4
Loan volume
Avg loan
Default rate
0.0%
vs <3% typical · system-wide
5-yr default

FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17

Risk & Legal

62
Risk · 0-100
MODERATE62 / 100

Going concern status combined with undisclosed profitability metrics, stagnant unit growth, and gross-sales-based royalties creates significant uncertainty about franchisee viability and franchisor sustainability.

Score breakdown · what drove the 62 / 100 rating

  1. 01HIGHGoing concern issue — franchisor's ability to support franchisees is questionable
  2. 02MINORNo net income disclosure in Item 19 — unable to assess actual franchisee profitability despite $3M+ average revenue
  3. 03MINORSmall unit count (21 locations) with unknown growth trajectory — suggests stagnant or declining system
  4. 04MINORWide investment range ($419K-$1.7M) with no clear explanation — may indicate inconsistent unit economics
  5. 05MINOR4% royalty on gross sales (not net) — franchisees pay during unprofitable periods
  6. 06HIGHNo litigation disclosed but going concern status is a red flag for potential legal/financial issues

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal

Contract & Territory Detail

Territory
Radius
Protected territory
Yes
Initial term
10 years
Renewal term
10 years
Online sales rights
Restricted
Franchisor can compete
Yes
Hire a manager?
Allowed
Litigation count
0
Right of first refusal
Yes
Franchisor can buy back on resale
Mandatory arbitration
Yes
Jury trial waiver
Yes
Non-compete
2 yrs
Post-termination restriction
Owner-operator
Optional
Governing law
Utah

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
30 hrs
On-the-job training
474 hrs

Item 20

Franchisee Contacts

Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.

Franchisee contacts

30 numbers

Locked
(512) 475-••••
TX
(317) 232-••••
IN
(770) 530-••••
GA

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Winger's Alehouse · FDD (2025) PDF

Single-page checkout · instant download · CSV export of contacts available separately above