SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · ILLINOIS
Smoothie King franchise in Illinois: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Smoothie King in Illinois have taken 29 SBA loans since 1991 (average $416,103), and of the 20 loans whose story has ended, 0.0% were charged off — versus 12.2% for Smoothie King nationally and 14.8% across all rateable franchise brands.
Loans in IL
29
Resolved
20
Local charge-off
0.0%
National charge-off
12.2%
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = IL. 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.
Businesses in this industry
23,167
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
182.3
national 179.9
Versus the country
+1%
denser
Every business in Smoothie King's industry operating in Illinois — 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.
Avg weekly wage, this industry
$555
Illinois, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$537
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+3%
costlier to staff
What Smoothie King's industry actually pays workers in Illinois, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2025), employment-weighted across counties. This is a real cost signal 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 IL | Local charge-off | Units in IL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Culver's | 139 | 2.3% | — |
| Quiznos | 130 | 30.4% | — |
| Dunkin Donuts/Baskin-Robbins Co-Brand | 124 | 2.3% | — |
| Jimmy John's | 92 | 2.7% | — |
| Domino's Pizza | 47 | 11.8% | — |
| Cold Stone Creamery | 43 | 42.4% | — |
| Rosati'S Pizza | 36 | 4.8% | — |
| Baskin-Robbins | 31 | 4.0% | — |
| SCOOTER'S COFFEE | 30 | thin | 48 |
| Papa Johns | 28 | 9.1% | — |
| Burger King | 25 | 0.0% | — |
| Firehouse Subs | 19 | 0.0% | 25 |
Same sector, same state, same public records — how Smoothie King compares to the systems a buyer in Illinois would actually be choosing between. Local rates under 10 resolved loans are marked thin, not hidden.
A broker is paid by the franchisor to place you. I'm paid by you — and the job is pressure-testing Smoothie King's numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.