ohDeer Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a ohDeer franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2021), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
ohDeer discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it C.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Reports 12 franchisee units (2025) with gross sales $229K-$5.4M. Median: $559K. Affiliate data included. No audit verification. Cherry-picks 12-month minimum seasoning; excludes newer units.
What a ohDeer franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $49,500 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 6% 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 | 8% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $115,750 – $239,150 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
6% royalty (Year 1 no minimum; Year 2+ $10K annual minimum). 2% Brand Dev Fund. $500/mo tech fee. Multiple ancillary fees.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
ohDeer system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 18 |
| Ceased operations | 1 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 1 |
| Transferred to new owners | 0 |
| Closure rate | 5.6% of outlets |
1 termination, 1 ceased ops in 2025. System grew 3 units net. Low turnover.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2021. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is ohDeer worth it? — how it compares to 85 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 8% of sales | lower than most (median 8%) |
| Startup cost | from $115,750 | about average (median $119,850) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade C | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 5.6% of outlets | worse than 68% of peers |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every home & trade services franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a ohDeer
The franchisor's framing: Reports 12 franchisee units (2025) with gross sales $229K-$5.4M. Median: $559K. Affiliate … 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
See a full sample report → · 30-day guarantee
ohDeer franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a ohDeer franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $115,750–$239,150, including a $49,500 initial franchise fee.
- How much do ohDeer franchise owners make?
- Reports 12 franchisee units (2025) with gross sales $229K-$5.4M. Median: $559K. Affiliate data included. No audit verification. Cherry-picks 12-month minimum seasoning; excludes newer units. We grade this disclosure C for honesty.
- What are the ohDeer franchise fees?
- ohDeer's FDD discloses a $49,500 initial franchise fee, a 6% royalty on gross sales, a 2% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 8% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 6% royalty (Year 1 no minimum; Year 2+ $10K annual minimum). 2% Brand Dev Fund. $500/mo tech fee. Multiple ancillary fees.
- What is the ohDeer franchise profit margin?
- ohDeer does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: Reports 12 franchisee units (2025) with gross sales $229K-$5.4M. Median: $559K. Affiliate data included. No audit verification. Cherry-picks 12-month minimum seasoning; excludes newer units. Recurring fees alone take about 8% 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 ohDeer franchise failure rate?
- 1 termination, 1 ceased ops in 2025. System grew 3 units net. Low turnover.
- How many ohDeer locations are there?
- ohDeer's FDD reports 18 total outlets, with 1 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 0 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does ohDeer have complaints or lawsuits?
- ohDeer 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 ohDeer franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. ohDeer scores C on disclosure honesty, carries about 8% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare ohDeer to similar franchises
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Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2021). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with ohDeer or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.