Ace Hardware vs Budget Blinds: franchise research comparison

Investment by format

Format-specific estimates only. Do not combine one format's minimum with another format's maximum.

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$5,000 to $10,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

No traditional royalty; Ace is a retailer-owned cooperative wholesaler. Members instead pay various recurring fees (see other_notable_recurring_fees).

Marketing contribution

Not captured

Technology fee

Computer hardware/software for POS: $35,000-$75,000 initial; ongoing maintenance estimated at $700/month, plus $7.50 per payment device/month if using Epicor POS for transactional security.

Other fees

Core Retail Services $315.25/mo (parent store) + $131.50/mo per branch store, +2.5%/yr; Annual Brand Assessment (2% of prior-year purchases after first year, $6,000 flat in first year); Ace Rewards Program $850 initial + $75/mo per store

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

$90,000 - $205,000 working capital for the first 90 days of operation (start-up table; covers inventory, payroll, and market expenses).

Working capital is drawn from Item 7. The Investment source below locates the investment section, not an independently verified working-capital scalar.

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Average and median annual gross sales volume, by retail format, from the 2023 Retail Financial Report (RFR)

Reporting period

2023 (data as of December 31, 2023, prepared by Profit Planning Group)

Sample

689 Reporting Stores (14.3% of total domestic Ace-branded member stores as of 12/31/2023), voluntarily reporting single-store data; broken into 5 formats: Express (13 stores), Convenience (83), Core (343), Super (194), Home Center (56)

Reported average

Not captured

Reported median

Not captured

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Results depend on the disclosed metric, sample and period; consult the full filing.

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

2024

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

4759

Year-end outlets

4885

Net change

+126

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

210

Terminations

65

Non-renewals

0

Other closures

0

Reacquisitions

19

Transfers

112

Transfers are not closures. Net change is ending minus starting outlets for the stated scope and year, or complete openings less terminations, non-renewals, other closures and reacquisitions. Missing inputs stay unknown.

SBA loan history

Loan activity

273 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$685,000

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

111 loans

Historical charge-off share

6.10%

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

18 / 295

Formula

CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100

This is a historical loan-level share, not a franchise failure probability or location survival rate. Loan size is not total investment. Other loan statuses are excluded from the seasoned denominator. Activity combines 7(a) and 504 approvals, excluding canceled and not-funded records; this is not a rolling five-year count. FY2024-25 franchise tags are sparse after directory suspension; fewer tagged loans do not establish brand decline. Recent charge-off cohorts are immature.

Median loan amounts are financing context, not startup cost. The median window is separate from the seasoned charge-off cohort.

Investment by format

Format-specific estimates only. Do not combine one format's minimum with another format's maximum.

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$16,958 to $19,950 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

3.5% · Greater of 3.5% of monthly Gross Revenue or a tier-based minimum ($2,500/$1,875/$1,250 per month for Tier 1/2/3); 3.5% flat on Gray Area sales; drawn on the 15th of the month in arrears.

Marketing contribution

Not captured

Technology fee

$600/month for the first territory plus $300/month per additional territory; may increase up to 3% annually.

Other fees

Insufficient Funds/Late Payment Fee (up to $500/occurrence); Late Reporting Administrative Fee (up to $500/occurrence); Convention Fee (up to $2,000/year)

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

$25,000 - $40,000 estimated additional cash reserve for initial operating expenses before opening and during the first 3 months; franchisor separately recommends $100,000 in working capital for the first year of operation.

Working capital is drawn from Item 7. The Investment source below locates the investment section, not an independently verified working-capital scalar.

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Unaudited average, median, 75th percentile, and 25th percentile annual gross sales, broken out by franchisees owning one, two, or three-or-more territories

Reporting period

Calendar year 2025 (with 2024 comparison figures shown)

Sample

612 reporting franchisees open for all of calendar 2025 (282 single-territory, 202 two-territory, 128 three-or-more-territory, representing 506 territories among the multi-territory group), or 82% of franchisees open the full year

Reported average

$774,915

Reported median

$522,826

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Results depend on the disclosed metric, sample and period; consult the full filing.

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

2025

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

1366

Year-end outlets

1355

Net change

-11

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

16

Terminations

15

Non-renewals

6

Other closures

6

Reacquisitions

0

Transfers

97

Transfers are not closures. Net change is ending minus starting outlets for the stated scope and year, or complete openings less terminations, non-renewals, other closures and reacquisitions. Missing inputs stay unknown.

SBA loan history

Loan activity

166 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$363,500

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

94 loans

Historical charge-off share

5.65%

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

7 / 124

Formula

CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100

This is a historical loan-level share, not a franchise failure probability or location survival rate. Loan size is not total investment. Other loan statuses are excluded from the seasoned denominator. Activity combines 7(a) and 504 approvals, excluding canceled and not-funded records; this is not a rolling five-year count. FY2024-25 franchise tags are sparse after directory suspension; fewer tagged loans do not establish brand decline. Recent charge-off cohorts are immature.

Median loan amounts are financing context, not startup cost. The median window is separate from the seasoned charge-off cohort.