SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · KENTUCKY
Penn Station franchise in Kentucky: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Penn Station in Kentucky have taken 7 SBA loans in the FY1991–present FOIA files (average $1,015,800). Fewer than 30 of them were approved through FY2020 and have resolved, so no local loss ratio is published. Penn Station's national ratio is 0.1×.
Loans in KY
7
Charged off (all years)
0 of 6
Loss ratio in KY
—
Loss ratio nationally
0.1×
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = KY. Loss ratio = charge-offs among loans approved through FY2020 ÷ the charge-offs expected if each had defaulted at the national rate for franchise loans approved the same year; 1.0× is the same. Only charged-off and paid-in-full loans count. A ratio is shown at 30+ such loans; “not clear” marks a ratio chance alone could produce. The all-years count mixes every era and is evidence, not a rate to compare. Borrowers are matched to the brand by name and SBA franchise code; some matches may be wrong or missing.
Businesses in this industry
6,831
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
148.9
national 179.9
Versus the country
-17%
thinner
Every business in Penn Station's industry operating in Kentucky — franchised and independent — from the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (2023), against 2024 population estimates. Counter-intuitively, density is not a warning: across the brand-state cells in the loan data, denser markets have historically charged off less often than the thinnest (see the research page). A crowded market is usually proven demand; an empty one is often empty for a reason.
Avg weekly wage, this industry
$452
Kentucky, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$537
same industry, all states
Versus the country
-16%
cheaper to staff
What Penn Station's industry actually pays workers in Kentucky, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This cost signal is independent of the FDD: a market can look demand-rich above and still carry a margin headwind here if local wages run hot for the sector.
| System | Loans in KY | Charged off (all years) | Loss ratio in KY | Units in KY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subway | 145 | 8 of 120 | 0.4× | 343 |
| DAIRY QUEEN | 27 | 2 of 20 | — | — |
| Quiznos | 25 | 11 of 21 | — | — |
| Firehouse Subs | 18 | 0 of 9 | — | 16 |
| Little Caesars | 18 | 0 of 14 | — | — |
| Jimmy John's | 17 | 0 of 8 | — | — |
| Biggby Coffee | 15 | 0 of 4 | — | — |
| Mellow Mushroom | 14 | 4 of 9 | — | — |
| Zaxby's | 14 | 0 of 10 | — | — |
| Culver's | 13 | 0 of 9 | — | — |
| HUDDLE HOUSE | 13 | 1 of 13 | — | — |
| Papa Johns | 11 | 0 of 9 | — | — |
Other systems in Penn Station's sector whose franchisees borrowed in Kentucky. A loss ratio appears only where at least 30 loans approved through FY2020 have resolved; “—” means too few.
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 Penn Station’s numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.