SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · CALIFORNIA
Sport Clips franchise in California: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Sport Clips in California have taken 57 SBA loans in the FY1991–present FOIA files (average $191,024). Those approved through FY2020 defaulted at a rate not clearly different from franchise loans made in the same years nationally: 8 charge-offs among 52 resolved loans, where about 6.5 would be expected (1.2×). Sport Clips's national ratio is 0.4×. Its latest FDD Item 20 state table reports 135 franchised outlets in California (fiscal 2016) — about 0.34 per 100k residents.
Loans in CA
57
Charged off (all years)
8 of 52
Loss ratio in CA (not clear)
1.2×
Loss ratio nationally
0.4×
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = CA. 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
9,298
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
23.6
national 26.6
Versus the country
-11%
thinner
Every business in Sport Clips'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 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
$734
California, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$698
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+5%
costlier to staff
What Sport Clips's industry actually pays workers in California, 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.
| Fiscal year | Franchised | Company-owned |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 116 | — |
| 2015 | 129 | — |
| 2016 | 135 | — |
| System | Loans in CA | Charged off (all years) | Loss ratio in CA | Units in CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GREAT CLIPS | 65 | 8 of 57 | 0.9×NOT CLEAR | — |
| Fantastic Sams | 47 | 7 of 39 | 0.9×NOT CLEAR | — |
| European Wax Center | 45 | 1 of 28 | — | — |
| Planet Beach | 35 | 15 of 24 | — | — |
| SUPERCUTS | 32 | 0 of 22 | — | 318 |
| Amazing Lash Studio | 29 | 5 of 22 | — | 34 |
| The Lash Lounge | 15 | 1 of 8 | — | — |
| 18/8 Fine Men'S Salons | 13 | 0 of 12 | — | — |
| Hollywood Tans | 8 | 3 of 6 | — | — |
| WAXING THE CITY | 8 | 0 of 1 | — | — |
| Bishops | 7 | 1 of 7 | — | 9 |
| Hammer & Nails | 7 | 1 of 4 | — | 7 |
Other systems in Sport Clips's sector whose franchisees borrowed in California. 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 Sport Clips’ numbers, including talking you out of a bad deal.