Joshua Tree Experts franchise unit economics

Franchise outlets

How much does a Joshua Tree Experts franchise make?

Source: Joshua Tree Experts 2026 FDD, Item 19 Table 12. Rows are reordered by sales. Average weekly sales are total gross sales divided by 52 weeks; outlets are seasonal and may not operate in some winter months. Territory totals, backlog total and sales a territory are Averan calculations.

The seven outlets had $4,108,524 of gross sales in 2025, an average of $586,932*. The FDD prints the total, an average weekly figure of $11,287.15 and a median weekly figure of $11,836.43. The median outlet is Charlotte, at $615,494* for the year.

The seven are the operational franchise outlets that had been open more than twelve months. The system had 16 franchise outlets in 2025: eight opened during the year and are not included, and one operational outlet is excluded for an interruption in operations, unreliable records or records not provided.

The seven hold 18 territories* between them. A territory is an area of about 250,000 people. Sales a territory ranged from $126,852* at South West Indianapolis to $371,172* at Cranberry Township, which has two territories; across all seven it was $228,251*.

Closing rates ranged from 36.9% to 63.8%. The closing rate is the share of customers given a proposal who then hired the outlet. The average of the seven printed rates is 47.8%*. The company outlet’s rate was 51.1% in 2025, on 6,447 proposals.

Year-end backlog totaled 3,184 hours* across the seven outlets. The FDD defines it as sold work not yet performed, in hours. It ranged from 902 hours at Denver South to 0 at Westchester.

Company outlet

Company outlet sales and expenses, 2024 and 2025

Source: Item 19 Table 1. Other disclosed expenses combine employee health and life insurance, office supplies, utilities, business licenses, professional fees and other operating expenses; that row, its percentages and the combined technology and contact center row are Averan sums of printed lines. Franchise-related expenses are added by the franchisor because the company outlet does not pay them. Local marketing is the difference between the Item 6 requirement and the outlet’s own advertising.

The company outlet had $7,053,682 of sales in 2025 and $1,628,908, or 23.1%, after franchise-related expenses. The FDD calls that line direct gross profit less disclosed expenses and franchise-related expenses. It is not net profit: it excludes depreciation, interest, taxes and some fees owed under a franchise agreement.

Labor lines total 41.4% of 2025 sales*. Direct labor was 22.7%, indirect wages 14.1% and payroll processing and taxes 4.5%, a combined $2,919,133*. Direct labor excludes payroll taxes, benefits and administrative or management pay.

The franchise-related expenses added for comparison total $414,530*, or 5.9% of sales*, including $83,914 of local marketing. The royalty is applied at 3.5%, the rate for weekly sales of $57,693 or more. The company outlet’s sales averaged $135,648 a week* over 52 weeks.

Sales fell 5.2%* from 2024 to 2025 and the bottom line rose $20,768*. Labor hours fell from 70,692 to 55,591 and full-time equivalents from 33.98 to 26.73. Gross sales a labor hour rose from $105 to $127.

Lawn care was the largest service line in 2025, with $3,007,319 of sales. It returned $149 a labor hour, plant health care $127, general tree care $113 and pest control $100. A tree-care visit averaged $1,744 and 15.4 labor hours; a lawn visit averaged $136.58 and 0.9 labor hours.

The company outlet served 6,149 customers in 2025, 1,215 of them new. New customers were 19.8% of the total. The average customer spent $1,147 and the median $429.

A franchise starts with tree care and plant health care. Lawn care and pest control are supplemental services the franchisor may approve later, at an estimated added cost of $50,000 to $100,000 for lawn care and $30,000 to $60,000 for pest control. The company outlet offers all four, so its service mix may differ from a new franchise outlet’s.

Weekly sales and royalty

Weekly sales against the royalty rate and minimum

Source: Item 19 Table 12 for weekly sales and territories; Item 6 Note 2 for the royalty rates and the minimum weekly royalty schedule. The 6% column is an Averan calculation on the 52-week average; actual weeks vary with the season.

Item 19 lists each outlet, so this section compares weekly sales with the royalty terms. The royalty each week is the greater of the rate applied to that week’s gross sales or the minimum weekly royalty, which is $225 for each territory in the operating territory.

On 2025 weekly averages, three outlets were below their minimum. 6% of the weekly average was $653.46* at North Charlotte, $439.10* at South West Indianapolis and $169.94* at Westchester, against minimums of $675, $675 and $225. Because the outlets are seasonal, the result in any single week can differ from the average.

The 5% rate starts at $19,232 of weekly sales. Denver South, the highest of the seven, averaged $17,363.34 a week, $1,869* below that level. A week at $19,232 equals $1,000,064* over 52 weeks.

The FDD states each rate as a percentage of the week’s gross sales. The wording is 6% of gross sales if weekly gross sales total $0 to $19,231, and 5% of gross sales if they total $19,232 to $38,462. On that wording, a week in a higher band pays the lower rate on all of that week’s sales.

Brand charges

Brand charges

Source: Item 6 and its notes. The dollar column applies the rates to the seven-outlet average of $586,932. It uses the 6% royalty because each outlet’s weekly average was under $19,231. Local marketing is spent by the franchisee on its own advertising, not paid to the franchisor, and is left out of the total.

Royalty, brand fund, technology and contact center paid to the brand come to 9.25% of sales* at the seven-outlet average. The FDD also lists local marketing as a franchise-related expense; it adds $38,151*, or 6.5% of sales, spent by the franchisee. The fixed technology and contact center fees are $13,200 a year*, 2.2% of the average outlet’s sales*.

The initial franchise fee is $59,500 for one territory of up to 250,000 people. Additional territories bought at signing cost $42,000 for the second and fall to $30,000 each from the seventh; ten territories cost $361,500 in total. A 10% veterans’ discount applies to the first territory.

Local marketing in year one is a fixed $36,000. From year two it is 6.5% of gross sales. At Westchester’s 2025 sales of $147,280, $36,000 would be 24.4% of sales*. A franchisee approved for supplemental services must also spend at least $40,000 on marketing them in the first 12 months.

Supplemental services add a contact center charge. An outlet approved for lawn care or pest control pays 5% of gross sales from those services each year on top of the monthly contact center fee.

Transfer and renewal each cost $10,000. The franchisor may charge 20% of gross sales plus costs if it has to manage the business.

Cost to open

Cost to open

Source: Item 7 Table A. Other items combine construction and leasehold improvements, storage, furniture and fixtures, travel for training, licenses and permits, and uniforms and office supplies; that row is an Averan sum.

Vehicles and machinery are $288,000 to $394,000 of the $438,325 to $618,495 total. That is 65.7% to 63.7%* of the estimate. The FDD names a forestry truck, a woodchipper, a spray truck and a sales car, and says costs may differ if the vehicles are financed.

The estimate assumes a home-based office and one service vehicle. The franchisor expects a growing business to lease a non-retail commercial site, and an outlet approved for supplemental services must lease or buy one.

Several territories cost $480,325 to $920,495 to open. Adding people to one territory brings the range to $438,326 to $658,495. Both totals use the single-territory estimate with a higher initial fee.

The FDD estimates two to four months from signing to opening. The franchise agreement requires opening within 120 days of signing.

Additional funds of $36,000 to $58,000 cover the first three months. They exclude pay to the owners and any financing costs.

Locations

Locations, 2023 to 2025

Source: Item 20. No non-renewals, reacquisitions or other closures were reported in the three years. Table 5 lists 7 franchise agreements signed but not opened at December 31, 2025.

The system had 17 outlets at the end of 2025: 16 franchised and 1 company outlet. It had 2 at the end of 2023. The franchisor began offering franchises in August 2021.

One franchised outlet was terminated, in New York in 2024. Item 19 says the one operational franchise outlet of 2024 closed that year.

Seven franchise agreements were signed but not opened at December 31, 2025. They are in Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Texas (two) and Virginia, and the franchisor projects all seven to open in 2026.

One franchised outlet transferred to a new owner in 2025, in New Jersey. The 2025 franchised outlets were in Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Utah.

Questions we get asked

Questions owners ask