Franchise Payback Period: The Owner's Salary Trick That Makes Bad Franchises Look Profitable
Most franchise payback math counts the owner's 0K salary as 'return' and shows 2-year payback. Strip it out and the same franchise pays back in 5 years.
Blog
Articles about franchise evaluation costs, funding sources, and care planning.
How Much Working Capital Do You Really Need to Open a Franchise? (Hint: Item 7's 3 Months Is Wrong)
Item 7's '3 months additional funds' is a disclosure floor, not a budget. How to size a real working capital reserve for a franchise at 6-12 months.
Franchise ROI Calculator: Why Most Online Tools Overstate Your Returns by 30-50%
Why online franchise ROI calculators overstate returns 30-50%: flat Item 19 revenue, owner's salary as return, no ramp curve. The practitioner fix.
Reading FDD Item 20: The Scoreboard That Tells You If a Franchise Is Actually Growing
How to analyze FDD Item 20 turnover: the four ratios experienced buyers compute before calling a single franchisee.
Semi-Absentee Franchise Reality: Why the 10-Hour Claim Usually Means 30+
Why semi-absentee franchises marketed as 10 hours a week typically require 20-30. How to verify actual hours with validation calls.
FDD Item 19 Red Flags: Why the Average Can Lie and the Median Usually Tells the Truth
Six Item 19 red flags to look for and how practitioners interpret average vs median in the FDD earnings claim.
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