FRANCHISE·WATCH·DESK

From the filed FDD — automated extraction, check the source

2024 FDD · 1+ year old

SBA-eligible · directory code S0660 since 2017

FLOWERAMA

Florists · parent company: not identified

Flowerama is a florist retail chain selling fresh flowers, bouquets, arrangements, and gifts for everyday purchases and occasions, often at value prices. A franchisee operates a flower shop, managing floral design staff, inventory of perishable flowers, and delivery orders.

FLOWERAMA net unit count declined 7.0% over 2022–2024 per its FDD Item 20.

New to franchising? Start here

A franchise is a business where you (the franchisee) pay a company (the franchisor) for the right to open and run a location using their brand and system — think a local Anytime Fitness or Taco John's owned by a small-business owner, not the corporation.

Before you can buy in, U.S. law requires the franchisor to give you a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) — a long legal filing covering its fees, finances, and history. Most numbers on this page come from that document; others come from federal SBA loan records and labor and census data, each labelled with its source:

  • Franchise fee — the one-time cost to buy in.
  • Royalty — the ongoing cut of your sales you pay the franchisor.
  • Item 20 — how many locations opened, transferred and left the system, the main basis for our verdict, which rates how strong the disclosed record is, or says when the system is too new, the filing too old, or the disclosure too thin to judge.

Our rating · opinion

Too little disclosed history

36 franchised units over 3 disclosed years of Item 20 is too little history for a rating. Judge the disclosures, not a rating. For context, SBA loans to its franchisees approved FY1992–2020 charged off at a rate not clearly different from franchise loans of the same years (21 vs about 17 expected, 1.3×).

Exit rate · fiscal 2024

11.1%

vs 6.5% median across 23 comparable systems (retail & products)

Cost to open

$227K–$855K

Item 7 total investment range

SBA loan losses · vs same-year loans

1.3×

21 of 87 charged off vs ~17 expected

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Data as of 2026-10-29. Figures come from FLOWERAMA's public FDD filings (latest: MN 2024, extracted 2026-06-18) and SBA FOIA loan records (through FY2026), extracted by us and possibly containing errors. The rating is our opinion, not investment, legal, or tax advice. Franchisor or owner and see something wrong? Report a correction — we review every request.

Buying an existing FLOWERAMA? Transfer fee $10,000, resale record and asking-price check →

What each source says

FDD record · SBA loans · model · auditor

Our answer: Too little disclosed history

The Item 20 record is too short or too small to rate; the loan record and model are context, not a verdict.

FDD record · Item 20

Too little history

Units fell 7% (2022–2024: 43 → 40); exit rate 11.1% (fiscal 2024) vs 6.5% median.

SBA loans · vs same-year loans

About as expected (1.3×)

21 charge-offs among 87 resolved loans approved FY1992–2020; about 17 expected.

Modeled risk

Higher modeled risk

Directional only — too few seasoned loans to check it.

Auditor opinion · Item 21

Not extracted

We did not extract the audit opinion.

Behind the verdict

the record, factor by factor · Item 20

hi-1.0.0
Net unit growth41%

latest consecutive years · Item 20 Table 1

Weak
Exit quality29%

terminations + ceased-ops vs. all exits · Table 3

Weak
Transfer / churn18%

transfers vs. base · Table 3

Strong
Promise-keeping12%

actual vs. projected openings · Table 5

Not Disc.
Transparencynot in verdict

Item 19 disclosure + completeness · shown, not counted in the verdict

Weak

Systemwide units

2022–2024

-7.0%
432022442023402024

Survival record

FDD Item 20 · outlet status by year

In fiscal 2024, 4 of 36 franchised outlets left the system — an exit rate of 11.1% (fiscal 2024), vs a 6.5% median across 23 comparable systems (retail & products). An exit is not a failure: this counts terminations, non-renewals and "ceased — other reasons" as reported, and excludes transfers to new owners.

Show the outlet tables ↓
Status (FTC)202220232024
Outlets at start444344
Opened010
Transfers110
Terminations003
Non-renewals000
Reacquired by franchisor000
Ceased — other reasons101
Outlets at end434440
Net change-1+1-4

The lender's view

SBA 7(a)/504 loan outcomes · compared with franchise loans of the same years

Banks have made 106 SBA-backed loans to FLOWERAMA franchisees since 1992. Of the 87 approved FY1992–2020 that have resolved, 21 charged off — where about 17 would be expected for franchise loans made in the same years. That is 1.3× the expected rate: these loans defaulted at a rate not clearly different from comparable franchise loans (a gap this size on this many loans could be chance).

All-time, 21 of 87 resolved loans charged off (24.1%). That raw figure mixes every approval year since 1992 — loans made in 2006–08 failed at several times the rate of loans made in 2010–13 across all franchises — so it is shown as evidence, not as the score.

Loss vs same-year loans

1.3×

21 of 87 resolved (FY1992–2020) vs ~17 expected

All-time charge-off · raw

24.1%

21 of 87 resolved, every approval year

Loss given default

56.3%

charged-off $ ÷ approved $, defaulted loans

Avg. loan · FY2020+

$508,186

what recent franchisees borrowed

Median time to default

86 mo

approval → charge-off, defaulted loans

Lenders · FY21+ vs FY16–20

4 vs 1

distinct banks still lending

Charge-off rate by loan approval year (%) · dashed line = all franchise loans that year

0'9613112233'000433344'05

SOURCE: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA LOAN DATA (DATA.SBA.GOV), FY1991–PRESENT · MATCHED TO FLOWERAMA BY SBA FRANCHISE NAME/CODE · RESOLVED = CHARGED-OFF + PAID-IN-FULL · EXPECTED = SAME-YEAR RATE ACROSS ALL SBA FRANCHISE LOANS, LOANS ≥ ~6 YEARS OLD

The owner's side of the deal

FDD × federal loan record

Who finances it

Readycap Lending, LLC

51.5% of this brand's loans

That lender charges off 31.7% of its resolved SBA loans to other franchise brands in the FOIA file, vs 14.8% nationally — a read on that lender's portfolio mix, not a finding about the bank.

Who buys it

48.3%

borrowers with no other franchise SBA loan on record

The rest already owned at least one other franchise. Across the corpus, brands bought mostly by repeat operators have charged off less often than brands sold mostly to newcomers (see methodology).

Does experience help here?

Not enough resolved loans to split

Computed from 106 SBA 7(a)/504 loans matched to FLOWERAMA by SBA franchise code in the SBA FOIA file. Debt service assumes level amortization at the average disclosed term and rate. Owner-level splits rely on borrower-name matching and may misclassify. A lender's rate excludes its loans to this brand, so it reads the lender, not the brand.

What it costs — and what it drags

FDD Items 5–7 · fees, investment, royalty

Buying in means a $35,000 franchise fee (Item 5) and a total investment of $227K–$855K (Item 7). The franchisor publishes no earnings claim (Item 19) — ask current and former franchisees for real numbers.

To open (Item 7)

$227K–$855K

all-in investment range

Franchise fee (Item 5)

$35,000

upfront, one-time

Royalty (Item 6)

6%

of sales, ongoing

If a unit does this in annual sales…$600K/yr

Starts at a placeholder of $600K — a round figure for the sector, not from FLOWERAMA’s filings. This brand's FDD makes no Item 19 earnings claim; set your own figure and check it with current and former owners.

Royalty you'd pay / yr

$36K

6% of sales, before profit

Over a 10-yr term

$360K

royalties alone, excl. ad fund

This estimate is computed by software from the brand's public filings and any inputs you enter. No CPA prepared it for you and no assurance is provided on it. Actual results will differ, and the differences may be material.

This is not profit. It covers what the FDD fixes: what you put in, and the royalty you owe on sales. Your take-home depends on cost of goods, labor, rent, and the months to breakeven, none of which the FDD fixes for your unit (some Item 19s include cost data — read it).

Build a real pro-forma for FLOWERAMA with a buyer-paid CPA

Modeled risk

FDD Risk Score · a prediction from disclosure and loan-file features

Higher modeled risk · directional · modeled

The model puts this brand in its higher-risk band — but this brand has too few seasoned SBA loans to check the score against, so read it as a band, not a number.

Observed · vs same-year loans

1.3×

21 of 87 seasoned loans charged off

Risk percentile

Higher modeled risk

Directional · no point estimate

Modeled · vs same-year loans

band only

too few seasoned loans to check

Top drivers: Share financed by high-loss lenders (raises) · System size (log units) (raises) · No Item 19 disclosure (lowers) · Item 20 exit rate (raises). Too few seasoned SBA loans to check the score — read it as a band. A linear scorecard trained on brands' vintage-adjusted SBA loss records; full spec and cross-validated accuracy on the methodology page. A score is context, not a verdict.

Public records

Bankruptcy, closure & federal court records · coverage is selective · dockets are not scored

We have no verified public-record signals published for FLOWERAMA. This is not evidence that no events exist. Check PACER, the FDD's Item 3 (litigation) and Item 4 (bankruptcy), and recent news yourself.

10 questions to ask a FLOWERAMA franchisee

Built from this brand's own disclosures · take it to your validation calls

The franchisor will give you a list of owners to call. Most buyers ask whether they like it. These questions come from what FLOWERAMA has disclosed. Each one carries the number it came from, so you can check the answer against the record.

  1. 01

    FLOWERAMA’s own Item 20 shows 4 of 36 franchised outlets left the system in fiscal 2024 — about 11.1%. Do you know any of those owners, and do you know why they left?

    A franchisor will call these “transitions.” An owner three doors down usually knows whether they sold at a profit or handed the keys back.

    FDD Item 20 · FY2024

  2. 02

    The system went from 43 units to 40 over 3 disclosed years. What's the explanation you've been given, and do you believe it?

    A shrinking system means fewer owners funding the ad fund and support staff you're paying for.

    FDD Item 20 · FY2022–FY2024

  3. 03

    SBA loans to FLOWERAMA franchisees approved 1992–2020 defaulted at a rate not clearly different from franchise loans made in the same years: 21 charge-offs among 87 resolved loans, where about 17 would be expected (1.3×). Did you finance with an SBA loan, and how close did your first two years come to trouble?

    This is the lender's view of how these loans ended, from public federal records matched by SBA franchise code — independent of anything the franchisor discloses — compared with franchise loans made in the same years. A charge-off is a loan outcome, not proof the business closed.

    SBA 7(a)/504 loan record, seasoned loans FY1992–FY2020 · 1.3× of same-vintage franchise loans

  4. 04

    Item 7 says the low end to open is $227K; the average recent SBA loan to FLOWERAMA franchisees was $508K. What did you actually spend to open, all in — and did your loan cover anything beyond the build-out?

    Lenders size loans to the project they finance. If owners say they spent near the loan figure rather than the Item 7 floor, budget from what they spent.

    FDD Item 7 vs SBA approvals FY2020+

  5. 05

    You pay 6.0% royalty on gross sales, plus the ad fund, before any of your own costs. On your actual revenue last year, what did you take home as the owner — not revenue, take-home?

    Royalty is charged on sales, not profit. This is the number the brochure never shows and the one your life actually runs on.

    FDD Item 6

  6. 06

    FLOWERAMA’s FDD makes no financial performance representation at all — legally, they've told buyers nothing about earnings. What did your first 24 months actually look like, month by month?

    When a franchisor won't publish numbers, existing owners are the only source. Silence in Item 19 is a choice, not a requirement.

    FDD Item 19 · 2024

  7. 07

    How many months did it take to cover your own costs, and how much cash did you burn getting there?

    Ramp-to-breakeven working capital is the most underestimated line in any franchise purchase, and the most common reason otherwise-good units fail.

    Not disclosed in any FDD — ask an owner

  8. 08

    What does the franchisor charge for that you didn't expect — required tech fees, mandatory remodels, approved-supplier pricing?

    Required spending appears across Items 6, 8 and 11 rather than in one place, so buyers routinely miss the total.

    FDD Items 6, 8, 11

  9. 09

    If your agreement came up for renewal tomorrow at current terms, would you sign again?

    The single most predictive question you can ask. A hesitation is the answer.

    Ask every owner you speak to

  10. 10

    Who else should I call — including someone who left?

    The franchisor's list is curated by definition. Former franchisees are where the unflattering truth lives, and current owners usually know how to reach them.

    Ask every owner you speak to

Want this as a checklist you can take to the calls?

I'll email you the printable version, and tell you if FLOWERAMA’s numbers move — a new filing, a rising exit rate, a distress signal. Unsubscribe in one click.

Before you sign anythingfree · 30 min · no commission

A broker is usually paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid only by you, never by a franchisor you're considering — and the job is pressure-testing FLOWERAMA’s numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.

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Own or owned a FLOWERAMA — or represent the franchisor?no appointment · read by a person

This page is what buyers see before they call you for validation. If the record above is wrong — or right in a way the numbers can't show — say so. Franchisors: send corrections with the page reference and we will review them against the filing and update or annotate the page. Corrections are checked against the filings; nothing you write is published with your name unless you agree to it.

FLOWERAMA franchise questions, answered from the filings

How many FLOWERAMA franchised outlets left the system last year?

In FLOWERAMA's latest FDD Item 20 (fiscal 2024), 4 of 36 franchised outlets left the system — an exit rate of 11.1% — compared with a 6.5% median across 23 comparable systems (retail & products) tracked here. That counts terminations, non-renewals, and "ceased operations — other reasons" as the franchisor reported them; it excludes transfers to new owners. The FDD does not say why each outlet left, and an exit is not the same as a failure.

How much does a FLOWERAMA franchise cost?

Per FLOWERAMA's 2024 FDD, buying in requires an initial franchise fee of $35,000 (Item 5) and a total initial investment of $227K–$855K (Item 7).

What royalty does FLOWERAMA charge?

FLOWERAMA charges an ongoing royalty of 6.0% of gross sales, per Item 6 of its 2024 FDD.

Does FLOWERAMA disclose earnings (Item 19)?

No — FLOWERAMA's 2024 FDD makes no financial performance representation in Item 19. That is legal and common, but it means the franchisor publishes no earnings claim; ask current franchisees for real numbers.

How often do SBA loans for FLOWERAMA franchises default?

SBA loans to FLOWERAMA franchisees approved 1992–2020 defaulted at a rate not clearly different from franchise loans made in the same years: 21 charge-offs among 87 resolved loans, where about 17 would be expected (1.3×). All-time, 21 of 87 resolved loans since 1992 charged off (24.1%); that raw figure mixes every approval year, so we compare with same-year loans instead. A charge-off is a loan loss, not proof the business closed. Source: public SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA data.