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CULVER'S RESTAURANT

CULVER'S RESTAURANT

Culver’s Restaurants are quick-service establishments offering fresh butterburgers, frozen custard desserts, sandwiches, salads, dinners, beverages, and other menu items in a family-friendly setting. The franchisor, Culver Franchising System, LLC, sells franchises to individuals or existing franchisees, providing support in site selection, training, operations, and supply chain management, with ongoing fees including a 4% service fee and 2.5% advertising fee on gross sales. The target market includes families and customers seeking premium fast-casual dining experiences.

1,034locations
$3406K–$10294K
Food & BeveragePrairie du Sac, WIwww.culvers.comDisclaimer

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Franchise Costs

Franchise Fee
$65,000
Initial Investment
$3,406,350 – $10,294,100
Royalty Rate
4.00%
Brand Fund
2.50%
Fixed Monthly Fees
$600 – $1,000

4% royalty + 2.5% ad fund + $600-$1,000/mo technology fee

Financial Performance


Item 19 Financial Performance

Average Gross Revenue
$4,145,665
Median Gross Revenue
$4,036,522

Data Based On: 975 Franchised Restaurants open during the entire 12 month period ending December 31, 2025. This information does not include the 45 franchised Culver's® Restaurants that opened in 2025, the 1 franchised Culver's® Restaurant that was closed for a period of time during 2025 due to a relocation of the Restaurant, and the 13 Franchised Restaurants that are non-typical locations.

* Average gross revenue and median gross revenue for franchised restaurants are directly extracted from Table 1 'Total Average Sales' on page 6 of the document. The data represents 975 franchised restaurants. The document provides detailed financial performance data (including gross profit and income) only for 'Company-Owned Restaurants' in Table 2 (pages 2-3). As per instructions, company-owned data is ignored unless no franchise data exists, and since there is no equivalent profit and loss statement or expense breakdown specifically for franchised units, no gross profit, net income, net profit, EBITDA, or estimated profit ranges could be extracted for franchised restaurants. The document explicitly lists additional expense items not included in the 'Income' for company-owned units (note 15 on page 4), and notes that franchised restaurants may incur different expenses, further preventing estimation of franchised unit profitability.

Extracted Item 19 Section

Avg. Revenue: $4,145,665

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CULVER'S RESTAURANT Franchise Analysis

Culver's dominates quick-service with its butterburgers and fresh custard, yet its network tilts heavily toward franchisees—corporate outposts are scarce. Item 19 in the 2026 FDD drops revenue stats that spotlight serious sales potential in family-friendly fast-casual. But facing sky-high startup hurdles and steady-but-not-spectacular expansion, can operators turn this premium menu into lasting wealth?

Item 7 lays out the steep financial entry: initial investment spans $3,406,350 to $10,294,100, including a $65,000 franchise fee, driven by prime real estate and buildout for that welcoming vibe. Ongoing costs hit via Item 6's 4% royalty on gross sales, 2.5% ad fund, plus $600-$1,000 monthly tech fees—eating into margins on high-volume days. Item 19 shines brightest, reporting average gross revenues of $4,145,665 and median $4,036,522 across comparable units, suggesting top performers crush it while laggards hover lower. SBA data reinforces viability with 131 loans averaging $1,409,853, proving banks back multi-million commitments here.

System health signals maturity over hypergrowth: 1,034 franchised locations dwarf 7 corporate stores, with units climbing from 990 in 2024 to 1,034 in 2025 (+4%) and 59 new units projected. Just 20 transfers indicate stable ownership, no mass exodus. For investors, the math tempts—$4M+ grosses could yield solid EBITDA after fees if costs control tight—but the $10M ceiling demands flawless execution in competitive drive-thru wars. This isn't entry-level fast food; it's a bet on operational excellence for seven-figure upside.

Analysis based on the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document. All figures should be independently verified before making investment decisions.

How CULVER'S RESTAURANT Compares

Key Insights

  • Higher investment than 99% of Fast Food franchises
  • Higher than average SBA loan default rate in Fast Food
FranchiseInvestmentFeeRoyaltyLocations
CULVER'S RESTAURANT
Current
$3.4M – $10.3M$65K4.0%1,034
MCDONALD'S$1.5M – $2.6M$45KN/A12,772
LITTLE CAESARS$377K – $1.8M$20K6.0%3,788
AFC$45K – $151K$6K9.5%3,572
KFC (NON-TRADITIONAL)$1.2M – $4.2M$45KN/A3,404
SONIC DRIVE-IN$1.5M – $2.5M$15K5.0%3,120
Fast Food Average
132 franchises
$602K – $1.6M$35K6.1%

* Comparison based on latest FDD filings. Investment ranges from Item 7, fees from Item 5. Showing top 5 of 132 Fast Food franchises by location count.

Locations & Growth


Outlet Growth Over Time

Total outlets at end of each year

Geographic Distribution (2025)

Outlets by state across the United States

Top States
1WI
148
2IL
140
3FL
126
4MI
107
5IN
90
6MN
65
7MO
43
8AZ
37
9IA
37
10OH
29
11GA
25
12CO
24
13NC
18
14AL
16
15KY
16

+11 more states

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SBA Loan History


Historical SBA 7(a) loan data for CULVER'S RESTAURANT franchisees (20132018)

Total Loans
131
Average Loan
$1,409,853
Total Volume
$184.7M
Default Rate
0.0%

Loans by Year

SBA 7(a) loan activity over time

* Data sourced from SBA 7(a) FOIA loan records. Default rate calculated from charged-off loans.

131 SBA loans on record

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Franchisee Contacts

994 franchisee contacts on file from official FDD filings.

994 Contacts Available

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Due Diligence


Litigation (Item 3)

Franchisee Cases0
No litigation involving franchisees reported

Bankruptcy (Item 4)

Bankruptcy HistoryNo
No bankruptcy history reported

System Health (Item 20)

Franchise system changes reported in the most recent fiscal year

Terminations
0
Non-Renewals
0
Reacquired
0
Ceased Ops
1
Transfers
20
Sold to Franchisees
0
Projected New
59

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Frequently Asked Questions

The total initial investment to open a CULVER'S RESTAURANT franchise ranges from $3,406,350 to $10,294,100. This includes a franchise fee of $65,000. Ongoing royalty fees are 4.0% of gross sales.