Bottom line
- Total investment $450K – $924K including a $45K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.3M/year (median $1.0M).
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 55/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 38 loans (below the industry average).
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 Ziebart unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
25%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Ziebart units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
45.4%
6.50× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.97×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$2.5M
on $10.8M purchase
Total debt
$8.2M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Ziebart franchisees operate automotive rustproofing and undercoating service centers, applying protective coatings and treatments to vehicle undercarriages and interiors. Day-to-day operations include customer intake, application of protective products using specialized equipment, inventory management, and sales of add-on protection services. The business model relies on dealer partnerships, direct-to-consumer walk-ins, and fleet accounts.
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 · 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).
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
Ziebart presents elevated risk due to missing profitability disclosure, shrinking unit base, and franchisor financial uncertainty masking true franchisee returns.
Score breakdown · what drove the 55 / 100 rating
- 01MINORNo Item 19 (Net Income) disclosure — unable to validate profitability claims against $450k-$924k investment
- 02MINORDeclining unit count (96 units with unknown/likely negative growth) suggests system contraction or franchisee struggles
- 03HIGHGoing Concern = False indicates potential financial instability at franchisor level, raising sustainability questions
- 04MEDHigh royalty burden (8% of gross sales) with undisclosed net income makes ROI calculation impossible
- 05MINORWide investment range ($474k spread) suggests inconsistent startup costs and unclear capital requirements
- 06MINORAutomotive aftermarket (rustproofing/undercoating) faces commoditization and declining consumer interest
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
98 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
Ziebart · FDD (2025) PDF