WinzerFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Winzer franchise requires a total initial investment of $6K – $16K, including a $4K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). Verdict grade: C. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $6K – $16K
- 0th pct Retail
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 21st pct Retail
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 27th pct Retail
- Units
- 263
- 35th pct Retail
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Retail · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Retail 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
Franchising since 1991. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $6K – $16K including a $4K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict C (Average) with a risk score of 67/100.
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Winzer Franchise Company, Inc.
- Parent company
- Winzer Corporation
- Ultimate parent
- SV-WD, LLC
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- John (Trey) B. Smart III
- Incorporated in
- TX
- HQ
- 4060 E. Plano Parkway, Plano, Texas 75074-1800
- Auditor
- Baker Tilly US, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $106.3M
- vs $105.1M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2025
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Overview
About
Winzer franchisees operate wine-related retail and/or service businesses (exact model unclear from limited data). Day-to-day operations likely involve inventory management, customer service, sales transactions, and compliance with wine regulations, though specific operational scope requires clarification.
- CEO
- John (Trey) B. Smart III
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 1977
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 40
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 9 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $4K | $4K | |
| Auto Liability, General Liability, including Premises Operations Coverage, and Workers' Compensation Insurancenot refundable | $450 | $1K | |
| Vehicle Expensesnot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Promotional Productsnot refundable | $0 | $500 | |
| Office Equipment and Suppliesnot refundable | $450 | $700 | |
| Computer Equipmentnot refundable | $0 | $2K | |
| Initial Trainingnot refundable | $0 | $500 | |
| Legal and/or Accounting Feesnot refundable | $500 | $3K | |
| Additional funds, for 1st 3 monthsnot refundable | $0 | $3K | |
| Total initial investment | $6K | $16K |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $6K – $16K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $0 – $3K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $4K – $4K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- Service Fee · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $0 |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 8.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Retail averages
How Winzer Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 263
- Opened
- 16
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 27
- Terminated
- 10
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 6
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 10.3%
- Company-owned
- 7
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 97%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -4.1%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -6.9%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Termination rate
- 6.1%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 10.3%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 18 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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 1 7(a) loan on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 1
- Loan volume
- $10K
- Median loan
- $10K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
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
- 1
- 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
Winzer presents meaningful risk due to declining unit count, absent financial disclosure, unprotected territory, and unclear royalty structure that obscures true profitability potential.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Baker Tilly US, LLP⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 67 / 100 rating
- 01MEDUnit count declined 4.1% YoY (263 units) suggesting system contraction and potential market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MEDNo average revenue or net income disclosure (missing Item 19) prevents ROI validation and profitability assessment
- 03MINORWide royalty range (8-16% of gross profits) lacks transparency on how rates are determined and what triggers higher tier
- 04MINORNo protected territory creates direct competition risk from other franchisees and cannibalization potential
- 05MINORLow franchise fee ($3,500) relative to total investment ($5,950-$16,153) suggests 59-71% of costs are in startup capital with unclear allocation and ROI timeline
- 06MINOR5-year term is shorter than industry standard (typically 10 years), creating renewal uncertainty and limiting time to recoup investment
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 | Customer-centered |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 3 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Collin County, Texas |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 12 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and off-site
- POS system
- Winzer Software
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Winzer Software
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
100 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Winzer · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Winzer franchise?
The total investment to open a Winzer franchise ranges from $6K – $16K, with an initial franchise fee of $4K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Winzer franchise owners earn?
Winzer does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Winzer's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Winzer (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 Winzer franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Winzer has 263 total units in the United States, including 256 franchised units and 7 company-owned units. 16 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Winzer a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Winzer as a C-grade franchise with a risk score of 67 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
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Winzer, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Retail franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Retail category
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.