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indicates the clear winner per row. Ties and missing data are not highlighted.
How winners are chosen
Lower is better for investment, liquid capital, franchise fee, royalty and ad-fund rates, SBA charge-off rate, and owner turnover.
Higher is better for disclosed revenue and owner earnings, verdict score, total units, net unit growth, and franchisee contacts. For the letter grade, A ranks highest.
A row is highlighted only when one brand clearly leads. Ties are never highlighted, and missing data never counts as a win. Some rows (earnings-metric type, loan counts, contract terms) are informational and have no winner.
Focus by buyer type
| Brand |  AStrongest tierPenn Station East Coast Subs Quick-Service Restaurants Remove |  AStrongest tierCarbone's Pizza Quick-Service Restaurants Remove |
|---|---|---|
| Vitals | ||
Investment range | $474K – $765K | $329K – $909K |
Liquid capital | $10K – $21K | $20K – $91K |
Franchise fee | $25K | $25K |
Royalty rate | N/A | 4.0% |
Ad fund rate | 2.0% | 1.0% |
| Performance | ||
Avg gross sales | $815K | $1.3MOutlet subset |
Median gross sales | $771K | $1.1MOutlet subset |
Avg owner earnings Metric varies by brand. Check type below | $117K | N/A |
Earnings metric | EBITDA (in dollar amounts) | Not classified |
| Risk | ||
Rating | AStrongest tier | AStrongest tier |
Verdict score | 85 / 100 | 65 / 100 |
SBA charge-off rate | 0.0% | 25.0% |
SBA loans on record | 14 | 4 |
| Scale | ||
Total units | 322 | 33 |
Net change (latest yr) | N/A | N/A |
Turnover rate | 0.9% | 6.5% |
| Contract | ||
Initial term (years) | 10 | 10 |
Renewal term (years) | 10 | 10 |
Initial training (hrs) | 227 | 188 |
| Contacts | ||
Franchisee phones | 97 | 39 |
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