Bottom line
- Total investment $65K – $432K including a $50K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $1.1M/year (median $785K).
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 49/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 17 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
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 YESCO unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
24%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
YESCO is a neon sign, LED display, and electric sign manufacturing and installation company. Franchisees manage local sales, installation, and maintenance of signage for commercial clients including restaurants, retail, and corporate accounts. Day-to-day operations involve client acquisition, project quoting, crew coordination, equipment management, and service calls.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 29 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 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.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
YESCO presents a CAUTION-level investment with a contracting franchisee base, unresolved profitability questions, litigation history, and aggressive royalty structure that may limit franchisee margins.
Score breakdown · what drove the 49 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-1.8% YoY) suggests system contraction and potential franchisee struggles
- 02MEDHigh initial investment range ($65K-$432K) with no disclosed average net income creates ROI uncertainty
- 03HIGHSignificant litigation history (2015-2018) involving breach of contract, misrepresentation, and covenant violations indicates franchisor-franchisee friction
- 04MINORNo protected territory means intense local competition and revenue cannibalization risk
- 05MINOR6% royalty on $1.09M average revenue equals ~$65K annual ongoing fees—nearly equivalent to franchise fee recovery period
- 06MINORNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure prevents validation of $1.09M average revenue claim across unit diversity
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
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
57 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
YESCO · FDD (2026) PDF