Crisp & Green Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Crisp & Green franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2024), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Crisp & Green discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it D.
What their own earnings claim actually says
2023 gross sales for 29 restaurants (1 corporate, 28 franchised). 24+ month outlets: avg $1.81M; all 12+ month outlets: avg $1.52M. Single P&L for corporate only. Cherry-picking: excludes newer locations, uses non-audited data, limited sample size.
What a Crisp & Green franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $64,500 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 7% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 2% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 9% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $886,028 – $1,444,038 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
7% royalty + 2% national marketing + 4.5% local marketing requirement (up to 9.5% total). $745/month technology fee. Multiple ancillary fees disclosed.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
Crisp & Green system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 46 |
| Ceased operations | 0 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 5 |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets |
Zero terminations/closures in 3 years; 5 transfers in 2023 suggest some ownership changes.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2024. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is Crisp & Green worth it? — how it compares to 164 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 9% of sales | steeper than 68% of quick service restaurants franchises |
| Startup cost | from $886,028 | pricier than 79% of peers |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade D | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets | better than most (median 1.3%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every quick service restaurants franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a Crisp & Green
The franchisor's framing: 2023 gross sales for 29 restaurants (1 corporate, 28 franchised). 24+ month outlets: avg $… 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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Crisp & Green franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Crisp & Green franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $886,028–$1,444,038, including a $64,500 initial franchise fee.
- How much do Crisp & Green franchise owners make?
- 2023 gross sales for 29 restaurants (1 corporate, 28 franchised). 24+ month outlets: avg $1.81M; all 12+ month outlets: avg $1.52M. Single P&L for corporate only. Cherry-picking: excludes newer locations, uses non-audited data, limited sample size. We grade this disclosure D for honesty.
- What are the Crisp & Green franchise fees?
- Crisp & Green's FDD discloses a $64,500 initial franchise fee, a 7% royalty on gross sales, a 2% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 9% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 7% royalty + 2% national marketing + 4.5% local marketing requirement (up to 9.5% total). $745/month technology fee. Multiple ancillary fees disclosed.
- What is the Crisp & Green franchise profit margin?
- Crisp & Green does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: 2023 gross sales for 29 restaurants (1 corporate, 28 franchised). 24+ month outlets: avg $1.81M; all 12+ month outlets: avg $1.52M. Single P&L for corporate only. Cherry-picking: excludes newer locations, uses non-audited data, limited sample size. Recurring fees alone take about 9% of gross sales, before rent, labor, food or debt service. Margin has to be reconstructed from the disclosure, not read off it.
- What is the Crisp & Green franchise failure rate?
- Zero terminations/closures in 3 years; 5 transfers in 2023 suggest some ownership changes.
- How many Crisp & Green locations are there?
- Crisp & Green's FDD reports 46 total outlets, with 0 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 Crisp & Green have complaints or lawsuits?
- Crisp & Green discloses no material litigation in Item 3 of the filing we reviewed. That's a positive signal, though it covers only what the franchisor is required to report.
- Is a Crisp & Green franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Crisp & Green scores D on disclosure honesty, carries about 9% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Source: MN CARDS 31422-202404-07 (Clean FDD 2024). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Crisp & Green or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.