Coastal Angler Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Coastal Angler franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Coastal Angler discloses little or no owner-earnings data (Item 19) — the franchisor won't put real profit in writing.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Franchisor explicitly declines to provide any financial performance representations. No actual or potential financial performance data disclosed.
What a Coastal Angler franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $25,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 50% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 58% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $28,975 – $34,600 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
8% royalty on gross revenues; 50% split on regional/national ad revenue; $2,500 monthly magazine printing required.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
Coastal Angler system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 34 |
| Ceased operations | 4 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 5 |
| Closure rate | 11.8% of outlets |
4 ceased operations 2023-2025; flat growth 33 franchised outlets since 2023.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2026. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is Coastal Angler worth it? — how it compares to 436 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 58% of sales | steeper than 99% of other franchises franchises |
| Startup cost | from $28,975 | cheaper than most (median $138,750) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 11.8% of outlets | worse than 90% of peers |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 1 | about average |
Benchmarked against every other franchises franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a Coastal Angler
The franchisor's framing: Franchisor explicitly declines to provide any financial performance representations. No ac… We reconstruct what an owner actually keeps, from their own FDD.
- Reconstructed owner P&L — net take-home after royalty, ad fund, rent, labor & debt
- Break-even timeline + cash-on-cash ROI
- Full fee stack + required-purchase markups
- Decoded real failure / closure rate
- How it ranks vs comparable franchises
- Validation-call playbook — the exact questions to ask
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Coastal Angler franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Coastal Angler franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $28,975–$34,600, including a $25,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do Coastal Angler franchise owners make?
- Coastal Angler discloses little or no earnings data (Item 19) — meaning the franchisor won't put real owner profit in writing. That's a red flag worth questioning.
- What are the Coastal Angler franchise fees?
- Coastal Angler's FDD discloses a $25,000 initial franchise fee, a 8% royalty on gross sales, a 50% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 58% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 8% royalty on gross revenues; 50% split on regional/national ad revenue; $2,500 monthly magazine printing required.
- What is the Coastal Angler franchise profit margin?
- Coastal Angler discloses no Item 19 earnings representation, so no profit margin can be derived from the FDD at all. Any margin figure quoted elsewhere is an estimate, not a disclosure.
- What is the Coastal Angler franchise failure rate?
- 4 ceased operations 2023-2025; flat growth 33 franchised outlets since 2023.
- How many Coastal Angler locations are there?
- Coastal Angler's FDD reports 34 total outlets, with 4 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 5 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does Coastal Angler have complaints or lawsuits?
- Coastal Angler discloses 1 legal matter in Item 3 of its FDD. Item 3 covers the franchisor's litigation history, which is the closest thing to a public record of how it treats franchisees — read the case descriptions, not just the count.
- Is a Coastal Angler franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Coastal Angler scores F on disclosure honesty, carries about 58% of sales in ongoing fees, and discloses 1 legal matters. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare Coastal Angler to similar franchises
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Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Coastal Angler or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.