SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA · FY1991–PRESENT · ILLINOIS
Sport Clips franchise in Illinois: what the public record shows
Franchisees of Sport Clips in Illinois have taken 79 SBA loans in the FY1991–present FOIA files (average $327,015). Those approved through FY2020 defaulted less often than franchise loans made in the same years nationally: 0 charge-offs among 72 resolved loans, where about 8.8 would be expected (0×). Sport Clips's national ratio is 0.4×. Its latest FDD Item 20 state table reports 109 franchised outlets in Illinois (fiscal 2016) — about 0.86 per 100k residents.
Loans in IL
79
Charged off (all years)
0 of 72
Loss ratio in IL
0×
Loss ratio nationally
0.4×
Source: SBA 7(a)/504 FOIA files (data.sba.gov), borrower state = IL. 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
3,593
statewide, all operators
Per 100k residents
28.3
national 26.6
Versus the country
+6%
denser
Every business in Sport Clips'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 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
$699
Illinois, BLS QCEW 2025
National average
$698
same industry, all states
Versus the country
+0%
costlier to staff
What Sport Clips'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 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 | 92 | — |
| 2015 | 102 | — |
| 2016 | 109 | — |
| System | Loans in IL | Charged off (all years) | Loss ratio in IL | Units in IL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fantastic Sams | 26 | 7 of 23 | — | — |
| GREAT CLIPS | 25 | 0 of 20 | — | — |
| SUPERCUTS | 14 | 0 of 12 | — | 28 |
| European Wax Center | 13 | 0 of 10 | — | — |
| MERLE NORMAN COSMETICS | 13 | 0 of 9 | — | 33 |
| Executive Tans | 12 | 8 of 10 | — | — |
| Amazing Lash Studio | 8 | 0 of 4 | — | 7 |
| WAXING THE CITY | 7 | 0 of 2 | — | — |
| COST CUTTERS | 5 | 0 of 5 | — | 7 |
| Planet Beach | 5 | 2 of 3 | — | — |
Other systems in Sport Clips's sector whose franchisees borrowed in Illinois. 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.