Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise unit economics
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchisees run van-based businesses that design, install and maintain landscape, architectural, holiday and permanent lighting for homes and businesses, sold as projects.
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives in the news
- Empower Brands Reports Strong First-Half 2026 Development Growth Across Multi-Brand Franchise Platform · International Franchise Association ·
The Outdoor Lighting Perspectives headline above is the publisher's own and links to the publisher. Averan Advisors checked this Outdoor Lighting Perspectives link on 11 October 2026. Franchise news lists news on 95 brands, including Outdoor Lighting Perspectives. Outdoor Lighting Perspectives is in the Window Cleaning and Exteriors franchise guide.
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise at a glance
The 55 Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchisees in the FDD’s cost table kept 21.1% of revenue after cost of goods and certain required marketing and operating expenses. Outdoor Lighting Perspectives’ FDD names the line total revenue less cost of goods sold and certain required marketing and operating expenses, and rent is not deducted.
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchisees averaged $770,468 of sales in the 12 months to 30 September 2025, with a median of $525,654, according to Item 19 of Outdoor Lighting Perspectives’ 2026 FDD, issued 23 January 2026. The 76 in that group are 54%* of Outdoor Lighting Perspectives’ 141 locations. Fees paid to Outdoor Lighting Perspectives come to about 8.94%* of sales.
- An Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise costs $180,700 to $226,500 to open, including a $59,500 initial franchise fee, according to the brand's 2026 FDD.
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives charges a royalty of 7% of sales, a 1.5% brand fund contribution and a $300 monthly technology fee.
- 36% of reporting Outdoor Lighting Perspectives locations reached the average.
- At the average Outdoor Lighting Perspectives location, wages took 16.6% and cost of goods took 25.5% of sales.
- Work out Outdoor Lighting Perspectives's fees at your own sales with the minimum fee calculator.
These figures come from Outdoor Lighting Perspectives's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, as the brand reported them, and were read by Averan Advisors.
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Talk to Averan → Move your books and accounting to Averan →- The $55,000 advertising minimum is 30.8% of a bottom-quarter single-territory franchisee’s revenue. $55,000 against $178,425 *, and 131.6% of the lowest-selling franchisee’s $41,795.
- A second territory earns about half what the first does. That is $343,311 a territory across the 93 held by multi-territory franchisees, against $665,690 for the 40 running one *.
- Materials and labor take 23.1% of revenue in the highest-selling third and 58.5% in the lowest-selling one. Gross profit is 69.4% against 47.5% *, 21.9 points on the same work.
- Twelve cost lines leave $172,902 on $818,812 before the owner is paid. That is 21.1% of revenue, after labor, materials, royalty, marketing, overhead wages, vehicles, insurance, card fees, tools, licenses and technology.
- A holiday lighting job bills 40.9% of what a landscape install does. $1,900.39 against $4,649.19 *, and holiday work is 12.8% of system revenue from a few weeks of the year.
How much does an Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise make?
The average Outdoor Lighting Perspectives unit reported $770,468 of revenue in the 2026 FDD, and the median reported $525,654. The brand’s disclosure document puts revenue after cost of goods and required expenses at 21.1% of revenue. Fees come off the top first, at about 8.9% of sales across royalty, brand fund and the rest of the stack. Revenue is not income. Cost of goods, required marketing, overhead salaries and the franchise fees come out of that figure, and rent does not. The figures for the highest-selling and lowest-selling businesses are below.
Top performers
What separates the top Outdoor Lighting Perspectives performers
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives splits its locations into groups instead of publishing one average. The top group averaged $1,673,638 a year. The lowest averaged $227,170. Both run the same brand, on the same agreement, paying the same fees. The middle location sold $525,654. The average was $770,468. More than half the system is below the number the brand quotes.
Decided before you open
- Site and trade area.The top band sells 7.4× the bottom band. Catchment, daytime population and neighboring businesses affect where a location falls.
- Territory.This model sells from a territory, with no storefront. Population density sets how much driving sits between jobs.
- Opening cost range.Opening costs $180,700 to $226,500, a 1.3× range inside one brand.
- Fees and the minimum.Fees run about 8.9% of sales. A minimum fee also applies, so lower-selling locations pay a higher effective rate. Work out the sales level where the percentage overtakes the minimum.
Live operating levers
- Products and materials.Products and materials take 25.5% of sales, against 21.1% left after cost of goods and required expenses. The levers are buying terms, price discipline and waste.
- Jobs.Each job is won separately. Track how many quotes turn into work and the average job value.
Context you underwrite around
- Locations included.These figures cover 76 of 141 locations. Locations open less than the full year, brand-owned, or not meeting the reporting criteria are excluded.
Discounts available
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives takes $10,000 off each territory's fee for established home-services contractors (at least two years operating and $500,000 in prior-year revenue) adding the franchise.
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives takes 15% off one territory's fee for honorably discharged veterans (VetFran).
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives charges $30,000 instead of $59,500 for each additional contiguous territory licensed at the same time as the first.
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives takes 20% off the fee for one additional territory for existing franchisees with at least 18 months of operation and compliance.
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives takes 20% off the fee for existing Empower Brands franchisees in good standing for at least two years.
- Outdoor Lighting Perspectives takes 10% to 50% off the fee for recommended employees of its franchisees with at least two years' service.
From Item 5 of the Outdoor Lighting Perspectives 2026 FDD. The costs on this page use the full initial franchise fee for one unit, before any discount.
Territories and what they earn
Revenue by franchisee and territory, 2025
The same twelve months appear three ways: every franchisee, the 40 running a single territory, and the 36 running several. Read together they answer the question a second territory poses.
| Group | Franchisees | Average | Median | Lowest | Highest | Reaching the average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top quarter | 19 | $1,673,638 | $1,314,602 | $1,000,125 | $2,957,861 | 7 / 37% |
| Second quarter | 19 | $748,815 | $733,380 | $526,028 | $962,550 | 9 / 47% |
| Third quarter | 19 | $432,250 | $434,145 | $332,405 | $525,280 | 10 / 53% |
| Bottom quarter | 19 | $227,170 | $255,159 | $41,795 | $321,592 | 11 / 58% |
| All 76 | 76 | $770,468 | $525,654 | $41,795 | $2,957,861 | 27 / 36% |
Every figure is as the brand reported it.
| Group | Franchisees | Territories * | Average a franchisee | Median | Lowest | Highest | Average a territory * |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single territory | 40 | 40 | $665,690 | $464,036 | $41,795 | $2,707,613 | $665,690 |
| Multi-territory | 36 | 93 | $886,888 | $697,516 | $216,453 | $2,957,861 | $343,311 |
| All | 76 | 133 | $770,468 | $525,654 | $41,795 | $2,957,861 | $440,267 |
Franchisee counts and revenue figures are as the brand reported it; the territory counts and the per-territory column are marked *.
A territory held by a multi-territory owner earns 51.6% of what a single-territory one does. $343,311 against $665,690 *, so the second and third territories add roughly half a business each.
The multi-territory quartiles break at $356,519 against $178,425. The lowest-selling third of multi-territory franchisees averages twice what the bottom quarter of single-territory ones does, because two half-territories still add up.
The highest-selling franchisee bills 70.8 times the lowest-selling franchisee. $2,957,861 against $41,795 *, and the median of $525,654 is 68.2% of the average.
System sales by year
| Year | System sales | Change * |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | $24,939,275 | n/a |
| 2019 | $26,593,827 | +6.6% |
| 2020 | $30,087,144 | +13.1% |
| 2021 | $45,515,302 | +51.3% |
| 2022 | $53,685,550 | +17.9% |
| 2023 | $54,893,459 | +2.2% |
| 2024 | $56,494,236 | +2.9% |
| 2025 | $59,909,822 | +6.0% |
The annual figures are as the brand reported it and the change column is marked *.
Holiday lighting is 12.8% of system revenue. $7,671,222 of $59,909,822, earned inside a season that runs a few weeks, against residential work spread across the year.
Growth has slowed to 6.0% from 51.3% in 2021. The three years since 2022 added $6,224,272 between them *, against $15,428,158 in 2021 alone.
The cost lines
Cost model, 2024
Behind these figures are 66 franchisees working 113 of the system’s 146 territories. For the 55 that had traded at least two full years, a twelve-line cost model runs against $818,812 of revenue.
| Line | Average | Share of revenue | Median | Reaching the average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $818,812 | 100.0% | $649,157 | 23 / 42% |
| Cost of goods, labor | $136,267 | 16.6% | $107,760 | 22 / 40% |
| Cost of goods, materials | $208,705 | 25.5% | $168,682 | 20 / 36% |
| Gross profit | $473,840 | 57.9% | n/a | n/a |
| Royalties | $57,317 | 7.0% | $45,441 | 22 / 40% |
| Local marketing | $73,106 | 8.9% | $53,229 | 18 / 33% |
| National branding and marketing fund | $12,282 | 1.5% | $9,737 | 13 / 24% |
| Overhead salaries and wages | $63,623 | 7.8% | $45,104 | 22 / 40% |
| Vehicle expense | $33,361 | 4.1% | $23,821 | 17 / 31% |
| Insurance | $20,902 | 2.6% | $14,972 | 16 / 29% |
| Bank and merchant fees | $19,814 | 2.4% | $15,185 | 21 / 38% |
| Technology and telephone | $14,926 | 1.8% | $9,982 | 16 / 29% |
| Small tools, equipment and uniforms | $4,933 | 0.6% | $1,937 | 16 / 29% |
| Licenses and permits | $673 | 0.1% | $193 | 15 / 27% |
| Left after these twelve lines | $172,902 | 21.1% | n/a | n/a |
Every average, median and attainment figure is as the brand reported it; the share column is also filed.
Marketing and royalty together take $142,705. That is 10.4% of revenue on marketing and 7.0% on royalty *, more than overhead wages, vehicles and insurance combined at $117,886.
The median franchisee bills 79.3% of the average. That is $649,157 against $818,812 *, with 23 of 55 reaching it.
Cost lines by third, 2024
The study also ranks franchisees into thirds on each cost line separately. Materials run 16.8% to 34.5% of revenue and labor 6.3% to 24.0%, which is where a 21.9-point gross-margin gap comes from.
| Measure | Highest-selling third | Middle third | Lowest-selling third | Full range across all 66 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | 69.4% | 58.5% | 47.5% | 28.3% to 85.3% |
| Materials as a share of revenue | 16.8% | 26.6% | 34.5% | 1.4% to 42.4% |
| Labor as a share of revenue | 6.3% | 16.3% | 24.0% | 0.0% to 33.4% |
| Materials and labor together * | 23.1% | 42.9% | 58.5% | n/a |
| Marketing and advertising | 4.9% | 9.1% | 17.5% | 1.4% to 42.6% |
| Vehicle expense | 1.7% | 3.5% | 6.6% | 0.7% to 10.9% |
Every percentage is as the brand reported it apart from the combined row, which adds the two rows above it.
Marketing runs 1.4% of revenue at one franchisee and 42.6% at another. A 41.2-point range on the same line *, against a 57.0-point gross-margin range from 28.3% to 85.3% *.
Vehicle expense costs 6.6% of revenue in the lowest-selling third and 1.7% in the highest-selling one. The gap is 4.9 points *, and on the $818,812 average that is $40,122 a year between the two.
What a job is worth
Average price by project type, 2025
What each project type actually billed comes from 12,926 completed jobs across 74 franchisees. A permanent lighting install is the largest ticket, a holiday job the smallest, and the range within each type is wider than the gap between them.
| Project type | Franchisees reporting | Projects | Average | Median | Lowest | Highest | Low to high * |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Permanent lighting install | 56 | 1,343 | $5,665.63 | $5,395.00 | $1,115.00 | $15,631.00 | 14.0× |
| New residential landscape install | 74 | 6,299 | $4,649.19 | $4,556.00 | $1,639.00 | $13,855.00 | 8.5× |
| Holiday lighting project | 64 | 5,284 | $1,900.39 | $1,776.00 | $307.00 | $5,230.00 | 17.0× |
Counts, project numbers and prices are as the brand reported it; the final column is marked *.
A holiday job bills 40.9% of a landscape install. $1,900.39 against $4,649.19 *, so the holiday season needs 2.4 jobs to match one landscape project, and it produced 5,284 of them against 6,299.
The permanent install is the largest ticket and the smallest volume. That is $5,665.63 across 1,343 projects *, against 6,299 landscape installs, 10.4% of the project count and 16.2% of the three types’ combined value at their own averages.
Ticket varies more between franchisees than between project types. The landscape install runs $1,639 to $13,855 across franchisee averages, 8.5 times *, where the gap from a holiday job to a permanent install is 3.0 times.
Opening and the brand’s cut
Royalty and advertising minimum
Royalty is the greater of 7% of revenue or $1,400 a month, falling to 5% above $1,000,000 for the rest of that year. The national fund is 1.5% on the first $1,000,000 only, digital marketing is $300 a month. The agreement sets a local advertising investment of at least $55,000 a year for one territory.
| Revenue | Royalty | National fund | Digital | To the franchisor | Share | Advertising minimum | All in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1,673,638, the top quarter | $103,682 | $15,000 | $3,600 | $122,282 | 7.31% | $55,000 | 10.59% |
| $818,812, the benchmarking average | $57,317 | $12,282 | $3,600 | $73,199 | 8.94% | $55,000 | 15.66% |
| $665,690, the single-territory average | $46,598 | $9,985 | $3,600 | $60,183 | 9.04% | $55,000 | 17.30% |
| $178,425, the single-territory bottom quarter | $16,800 | $2,676 | $3,600 | $23,076 | 12.93% | $55,000 | 43.76% |
| $41,795, the lowest-selling franchisee | $16,800 | $627 | $3,600 | $21,027 | 50.31% | $55,000 | 181.90% |
Rates, minimums and the revenue figures are as the brand reported it; every dollar figure and share is marked *.
The minimum royalty applies to any franchisee below $240,000. $16,800 a year *, which covers the whole bottom quarter of single-territory franchisees, whose average is $178,425.
A two-territory franchisee owes $100,000 of advertising against $110,000. The saving is $10,000 a year *, and each territory beyond the second adds $35,000, which is 10.2% of the $343,311 an Outdoor Lighting Perspectives multi-territory franchisee averages per territory *.
The national fund stops at $1,000,000 of revenue. So a franchisee at $2,957,861 pays $15,000 into it, 0.51% of the year against 1.5% for anyone below the cap *.
Cost to open
| Line | Low | High | Share of the low column * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $59,500 | $59,500 | 32.9% |
| Vehicle | $50,000 | $55,000 | 27.7% |
| Start-up marketing, first ninety days | $25,000 | $55,000 | 13.8% |
| Additional funds, three months | $20,000 | $20,000 | 11.1% |
| Inventory and demonstration kit | $14,000 | $16,000 | 7.7% |
| Vehicle wrap | $4,000 | $5,000 | 2.2% |
| Travel and living while training | $2,000 | $3,500 | 1.1% |
| Initial marketing collateral | $2,000 | $3,000 | 1.1% |
| Computer hardware and software | $1,700 | $5,500 | 0.9% |
| Trade show booth | $1,500 | $2,000 | 0.8% |
| Tools and equipment | $1,000 | $2,000 | 0.6% |
| Total | $180,700 | $226,500 | 100% |
Amounts are as the brand reported it and the share column is marked *; both columns add to their stated totals exactly.
Opening costs 23.5% of what an average franchisee bills in a year. That is $180,700 against $770,468 *, and 101.3% of what a bottom-quarter single-territory franchisee bills.
Territories opened and closed, 2023 to 2025
| Year | At start | Opened | Terminated | At end | Transfers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 110 | 20 | 2 | 128 | 2 |
| 2024 | 126 | 11 | 2 | 135 | 10 |
| 2025 | 135 | 8 | 2 | 141 | 16 |
Every figure is as the brand reported it.
Openings fell from 20 to 11 to 8. That is 20, then 11, then 8 *, while terminations held at 2 a year throughout.
Transfers rose eightfold in two years. 2 in 2023 to 16 in 2025 *, so buying an existing territory is now the more common route in than opening one.
Questions we get asked
Questions owners ask.
How much does an Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise make?
Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchisees averaged $770,468 of sales in the 12 months to 30 September 2025, with a median of $525,654, according to Item 19 of Outdoor Lighting Perspectives’ 2026 FDD, issued 23 January 2026. The 76 in that group are 54%* of Outdoor Lighting Perspectives’ 141 locations. Fees paid to Outdoor Lighting Perspectives come to about 8.94%* of sales.
What does an Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchisee bill?
Across 76 franchisees working 133 territories in the year to September 2025 the average was $770,468 with a median of $525,654, ranging from $41,795 to $2,957,861. By quarter the averages run $1,673,638, $748,815, $432,250 and $227,170. Franchisees running a single territory averaged $665,690 and those running several $886,888.
What does an Outdoor Lighting Perspectives territory earn?
A single-territory franchisee averages $665,690 from one territory. The 36 multi-territory franchisees hold 93 territories between them and average $343,311 each, so the second and subsequent territories earn about half what the first does. Across all 133 territories the average is $440,267.
What do the costs look like at Outdoor Lighting Perspectives?
On the filed model, revenue of $818,812 costs $136,267 of installation labor and $208,705 of materials, leaving $473,840 of gross profit. Royalties, marketing, overhead wages, vehicles, insurance, card fees, technology, tools and licenses take a further $300,938. That leaves $172,902 or 21.1% before the owner is paid or rent, professional fees, depreciation, interest and tax are deducted.
What does a job bill at Outdoor Lighting Perspectives?
A new residential landscape install averages $4,649.19 across 6,299 projects, a holiday lighting project $1,900.39 across 5,284, and a permanent lighting install $5,665.63 across 1,343. Franchisee averages for a landscape install run from $1,639 to $13,855. Item 19 reports that these 12,926 Outdoor Lighting Perspectives projects generated $38,902,000 of retail sales, 64.9% of all franchisee retail sales in the 12 months to 30 September 2025.
What fees does Outdoor Lighting Perspectives charge?
The Outdoor Lighting Perspectives royalty is the greater of 7% of revenue or $1,400 a month, falling to 5% above $1,000,000 for the rest of that year. Outdoor Lighting Perspectives charges a 1.5% national branding fee on the first $1,000,000 only, and $300 a month of digital marketing. On top, the agreement requires at least $55,000 a year of local advertising for one territory, $100,000 for two contiguous territories and $35,000 more for each further one.
How much does an Outdoor Lighting Perspectives franchise cost to open?
$180,700 to $226,500, of which $59,500 is the franchise fee, $50,000 to $55,000 the van and $25,000 to $55,000 start-up marketing. The franchise fee is 15% lower for a qualifying veteran, $10,000 lower for an existing home-services contractor. A second contiguous territory bought at the same time costs $30,000.
Questions worth putting to Outdoor Lighting Perspectives
These are questions the Outdoor Lighting Perspectives filing leaves open. An owner or a buyer can put them to Outdoor Lighting Perspectives directly.
- Is the profit figure in Item 19 before or after owner pay, and how many locations sit below it?
- Which factors does Outdoor Lighting Perspectives see in its highest-selling locations, such as trade area, years open and size?
- How long does a new location take to reach the average you publish, and what does the build-up look like month by month?
- At what level of sales do the minimum charges stop applying and the percentage take over?
- How many Outdoor Lighting Perspectives locations closed, were sold, or changed hands last year, and why?
Run your own numbers.
The Franchise Numbers Check runs the same checks on your own numbers. It scores where you stand and compares you with Item 19 of your brand’s FDD. It works out what one location earns and spends, and builds a 13-week cash forecast. Checks whether you are ready to open another one. It is free and it runs in your browser.
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Outdoor Lighting Perspectives reads against the rest of the window cleaning and exteriors group: Fish Window Cleaning · Shine Window Cleaning · Window Genie. The window cleaning and exteriors guide compares all of them on the same figures.
Questions owners ask next
The figures above raise these, and each one is answered on its own page.
- At what level of sales does a minimum fee stop costing me more than the percentage?It works out the sales level where a minimum fee stops applying.
- How much cash do I fund before a new location covers its own costs?It builds a 13-week forecast for the months before break-even.
- My payroll percentage keeps climbing. Is that a payroll problem?It shows how to tell whether payroll is rising or revenue is falling.
- Revenue was the highest it has been. Why did profit not move?It traces where the extra revenue went, line by line.
- At what point do spreadsheets stop coping?It explains what changes at around ten units and why lenders care.
Where these figures come from.
Every figure here comes from Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Franchisor, LLC’s 2026 FDD and is unaudited by us. We are unaffiliated with the brand. Calculations of our own are labeled where they appear, the figures describe past performance at other businesses and are not a projection of yours. This page is an educational summary. It is not an offer to sell a franchise, and it is not financial, legal or tax advice. Outdoor Lighting Perspectives® is a registered trademark of its owner. How Averan reads a Franchise Disclosure Document.
These figures come from the brand's disclosure. They are not a forecast, an offer to sell a franchise or advice. Source: Outdoor Lighting Perspectives Franchisor, LLC, 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, issued 23 January 2026.