FranchiseVerdict
Wings Etc. logo
FV-02979·STRONGExcellent91

Wings Etc.

Food & Beverage - Full ServiceFranchising since 2005Website
Investment
$369K – $2.9M
49th pct Full Service
Avg revenue
$1.6M
34th pct Full Service
Royalty
5.0%
15th pct Full Service
Units
80
79th pct Full Service
SBA default
0.0%
vs <3% typical

Bottom line

  • Total investment $369K – $2.9M including a $25K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
  • Average unit revenue of $1.6M/year (median $1.5M). Estimated payback in 7.4 years.
  • Rated STRONG with a risk score of 52/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 64 loans (below the industry average).
  • No protected territory and the franchisor reserves the right to compete in your area. Clarify territorial boundaries before signing.

Item 1 · who you're contracting with

The Franchisor

Legal entity
Wings Etc., Inc.
Parent company
Wings Etc., Inc.
Incorporated in
Indiana
HQ
7337 W. Jefferson Blvd, Suite 200, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46804
Auditor
Bluffton CPA Group
Audited financials
Franchisor revenue
$8.6M
vs $8.7M 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 Wings Etc. unit return on the cash you put in?

Revenue · per unit, per year
$
FDD Item 19 reports $1,599,162
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: $369K–$2.9M
Working capital
$
FDD reports $45K–$500K

Unlevered ROIC · per unit

13%

Below typical band (30–60%)

0%30–60% Yale band80%

Store EBITDA · annual
$256K
EBITDA margin
16.0%
Total invested
$1.9M
Payback
89 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 Wings Etc. units return on equity?

Edit assumptions

Equity IRR · 5-yr

35.2%

4.51× MOIC

Year-1 DSCR

2.32×

EBITDA ÷ debt service

Equity required

$5.1M

on $14.4M purchase

Total debt

$9.3M

SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note

SBA 7(a) request ($7.2M) exceeds the $5M program cap. Excess capped automatically; backfill via conventional or equity.

Overview

About

Franchisees operate casual dining establishments serving wings, burgers, and pub fare, managing front-of-house and kitchen operations, inventory, staffing, and delivery (Wings 2 Go model). Revenue depends heavily on dine-in foot traffic, catering orders, and regional delivery channels. Daily operations involve food prep, vendor management, POS systems, and compliance with franchisor standards.

CEO
Robert Hensmann
Founded
2004
FDD year
2025
States available
13

Item 7 · what it costs

The Vitals

Total investment
$369K – $2.9M
All-in to open one unit
Liquid capital
$45K – $500K
Cash you must have on hand
Franchise fee
$25K
Royalty
5.0%
Percentage of Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
Ad fund
2.0%
typical 3–5%
Total fee load
7.0%
vs 9–13% typical
Payback period
7.4 yrs
From v3 / Item 19

Item 19

Financial Performance

Avg gross sales
$1.6M
Per unit, per year
Median gross sales
$1.5M
Item 19 type
Profit/Loss and Sales
Sample size
79 units
vs category median 15 · large
Range (low → high)
$851K$3.8M
Cohort dispersion
Transparency
10 / 5
vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Revenue rank34th
vs Food & Beverage - Full Service peers
Investment cost rank49th
Lower investment ranks lower (better)
Royalty rate rank15th
Lower royalty = lower percentile (better)
Unit count rank79th
vs Food & Beverage - Full Service peers
Risk score rank18th
Lower risk = lower percentile (better)

Item 20 · unit dynamics

The Growth Chart

Total units
80
Opened
1
Last reporting year
Closed
1
Turnover rate
1.3%
Company-owned
26
Corporate units in the system
% franchised
68%
vs corporate-owned
Multi-unit owners
1.0%
Net growth (yr3)
+0.0%
Net unit change last year
3-yr CAGR
-1.8%
Compounded over last 3 years
2023
54±0
Franchised units
2024
54
Franchised units
2025
55
Franchised units

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

Item 20 · 15 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 · 15 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
64
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

52
Risk · 0-100
STRONG52 / 100

Wings Etc. presents caution-level risk due to unverified financial claims, unprotected territories, stagnant growth, and inconsistent unit economics masked by wide investment ranges.

Score breakdown · what drove the 52 / 100 rating

  1. 01MEDNo disclosed Item 19 financial performance data — franchise claims $219k avg net income but cannot verify
  2. 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk; multiple franchisees could cannibalize same market
  3. 03MINORStagnant unit count at 80 with unknown growth trajectory suggests mature/declining system
  4. 04MINORWide investment range ($368k–$2.88M) indicates inconsistent unit economics and unclear capital requirements
  5. 05MINORVariable royalty structure (0-6% Wings 2 Go) suggests inconsistent franchisor economics and potential for hidden fees
  6. 06MINOR11-year term is unusually long; limits franchisee exit flexibility if underperforming

Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification

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

Contract & Territory Detail

Protected territory
No
Initial term
11 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
Indiana

Item 11

Training & Operations

Classroom training
31 hrs
On-the-job training
285 hrs
POS system
Revel
Operating tech stack

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

61 numbers

Locked
(260) 432-••••
The franchisor is Wings Etc., Inc., located at
IN
(260) 434-••••
The franchise sellers involved in offering and selling the franchise to you are Robert Hensmann,
IN
(865) 392-••••
TN

One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included

FDD download

Wings Etc. · FDD (2025) PDF

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