FRANCHISE·WATCH·DESK

SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · CALIFORNIA

Little Ceasar'S Pizza franchise in California: what the public record shows

Franchisees of Little Ceasar'S Pizza in California have taken 19 SBA loans since 1991 (average $311,847), and of the 16 loans whose story has ended, 6.3% were charged off — versus 5.0% for Little Ceasar'S Pizza nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands.

SBA loan outcomes · Californiavs national

Loans in CA

19

Resolved

16

Local charge-off

6.3%

National charge-off

5.0%

Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = CA. Charge-off rate = charged-off ÷ (charged-off + paid-in-full); open loans excluded. A local rate is published only when the resolved cohort clears our floor.

Market density · California vs nationalTypical density

Businesses in this industry

79,264

statewide, all operators

Per 100k residents

201

national 179.9

Versus the country

+12%

denser

Every business in Little Ceasar'S Pizza's industry operating in California — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across 198 brand-state cells in our loan data, the densest quartile charges off at 5.6% versus 18.1% in the thinnest. A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.

Same-sector systems with SBA loan history in California12 systems
SystemLoans in CALocal charge-offUnits in CA
Quiznos34627.4%
Cold Stone Creamery24415.1%
Baskin-Robbins 31 Ice Cream17016.8%
Togo'S Eatery14617.1%
Mountain Mike'S Pizza12713.4%
Juice It Up9727.3%
Round Table Pizza973.3%
Wienerschnitzel9118.3%
Papa Murphy'S Take & Bake Pizza822.9%
Wetzel'S Pretzel809.4%
Wingstop Restaurant746.7%
Yogurtland735.7%

Same sector, same state, same public records — how Little Ceasar'S Pizza compares to the systems a buyer in California would actually be choosing between. Local rates under 10 resolved loans are marked thin, not hidden.

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