Weed Man franchise unit economics
Weed Man franchisees run a route-based lawn fertilisation and weed control business from an office and warehouse, treating residential and commercial lawns across unit territories of up to 150,000 people each. Across 149 locations trading all of 2025 the average was $2,042,513.75 of gross sales with a median of $1,693,229.65. Royalty and the advertising fund together come to 8.2% of net sales, with zero local marketing requirement attached.
- Primary source
- Turf Holdings Inc., 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document
- Items read
- Item 19 for sales and any profit figure; Item 20 for the location count
- Population
- 149 of 121 locations
- Our calculations
- Marked on the page with an asterisk. Method
- Last reviewed
- 26 September 2026
Disclosure-based. Not a forecast, not an offer to sell a franchise, and not advice.
A unit territory costs $30,000 and covers up to 150,000 people. At the system average it produces about $393,088 a year, which is 13.1 times what it cost and $2.62 for each head of population. The whole franchise fees is 8.2% of net sales, and the franchisor adds 50 cents of its own to every dollar of advertising fund until 2033.
- A $30,000 unit territory produces about $393,088 a year.13.1 times its price, or $2.62 for every head of population *, taking the average location’s $2,042,513.75 across the 5.2 unit territories a location holds.
- The whole franchise fees is 8.2% of net sales.A flat 7% royalty and a 1.2% advertising fund, with zero local marketing percentage, zero dollar minimum and zero cooperative, $167,486 at the average location *.
- The franchisor matches half of every advertising dollar until 2033.50% of franchisee contributions, so a 1.2% contribution funds 1.8% of spend, $12,255 of match at the average location *, and it stops after 31 December 2033.
- The royalty minimum scales with territory, and it bites the bottom quartile.$7,389.18 for each unit territory, so about $38,395 at an average location, which 7% overtakes only at $548,497 *. The bottom quartile averages $347,272 and pays $14,086 more than its rate.
- The top quartile averages 12.1 times the bottom.$4,193,600 against $347,272 *, and the system median of $1,693,229.65 is 82.9% of its average, so the middle of this system is closer to its mean than most.
How much does a Weed Man franchise make?
The average Weed Man unit reported $2,042,514 of revenue in the 2026 FDD, and the median reported $1,693,230. The brand’s disclosure document discloses revenue and not profit, so what an owner keeps depends on the cost structure set out below. Fees come off the top first, at about 8.2% of sales across royalty, brand fund and the rest of the stack. Revenue is not income. Rent, wages, cost of goods and the franchise fees all come out before an owner is paid. The figures for the highest-selling and lowest-selling businesses are below.
Top performers
What separates the top Weed Man performers
Weed Man splits its locations into groups instead of publishing one average. The best group averaged $4,193,600 a year. The worst averaged $347,272. Both run the same brand, on the same agreement, paying the same fees. The middle location sold $1,693,230. The average was $2,042,514. More than half the system is below the number the brand quotes.
Decided before you open
- Trade area and site.A 12.1× gap between bands is not an operating gap. Catchment, daytime population and what sits next door set the ceiling before the first customer arrives.
- Territory, and how much of it is real.This model sells from a territory rather than a building, quoted at 150,000 people. Two owners with the same brand and different ground are running different businesses, and density decides how much driving sits between jobs.
Live operating levers
- Routes, the operating driver.This model bills on routes. The van costs the same whatever it does that day, so the owner works on how many stops fit into it and how far apart they are. It is worth watching every week, because by the time it turns up in a monthly close the quarter is half gone.
- Fees, and where the minimum bites.Fees run about 8.2% of sales. A minimum sits underneath the percentage, so the low-volume location pays the higher effective rate. The brand charges the weakest locations the most. Work out the sales level where the percentage overtakes the minimum and know which side of it you are on, because the answer changes what an extra dollar of sales is worth.
Context you underwrite around
- The reporting screen.149 of 121 locations are behind these figures. Locations open less than the full year, brand-owned, or not meeting the reporting criteria are excluded, so the numbers describe locations that cleared that screen, not the system as a whole.
- What the disclosure leaves out.Item 19 publishes no profit or cost data for franchised locations, no attainment figure. Anything below the sales line has to come from the franchisor or from owners you call.
Best to worst, by sales
Four quarters, twelve times apart.
| quartile | Locations | Average | Median | Fees at 8.2% * |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top quarter | 39 | $4,193,600.39 | $3,910,084.94 | $343,875 |
| Second | 36 | $2,347,330.60 | $2,344,943.14 | $192,481 |
| Third | 37 | $1,173,815.01 | $1,167,166.99 | $96,253 |
| Bottom quarter | 37 | $347,272.33 | $349,248.93 | $28,476 |
| All 149 | 149 | $2,042,513.75 | $1,693,229.65 | $167,486 |
Every quartile and system figure is as the brand reported it and the load column is marked. With the high across the system at $8,044,488.89 and the low at $96,147.97.
The quartiles weight back to $2,042,513.75 exactly. Across 149 locations *, so the quarter table and the headline average describe the same population, which makes both usable together.
Three of the four quartiles have a median within $3,000 of their average. $2,347,331 against $2,344,943, $1,173,815 against $1,167,167 and $347,272 against $349,249 *, unusually even groups, so a quartile average here is a real expectation.
Only the top quarter has a long right tail. Its median of $3,910,085 sits $283,515 below its average, and the system high is $8,044,489, nearly twice that quartile’s own average *.
The system median is 82.9% of the average. $1,693,229.65 against $2,042,513.75 *, one of the tighter mean-to-median relationships across this library, which reflects how evenly the middle two quartiles sit.
The lowest-selling locations billed $96,147.97. Against a system average 21 times larger *, and at an average territory count it would owe about $38,395 of minimum royalty, which is 39.9% of that revenue.
Territory as the unit
Everything here is priced by the unit territory.
| Measure | As the brand reported it | What it implies * |
|---|---|---|
| One unit territory | $30,000, up to 150,000 people | 20 cents a head |
| Two unit territories | $50,000, up to 300,000 people | $25,000 each, 17 cents a head |
| Each further territory | $30,000 | n/a |
| Territories in the system | 795 across 153 locations | 5.2 a location |
| Average location revenue | $2,042,513.75 | $393,088 an unit territory |
| Against the purchase price | n/a | 13.1 times, or $2.62 a head |
| Minimum royalty | $7,389.18 an unit territory for 2026 | About $38,395 at an average location |
Prices, population groups, the 795 territories and the minimum royalty are as the brand reported it, and every per-territory and per-head figure is marked *.
Buying two territories at once costs $25,000 each. $50,000 for up to 300,000 people against $30,000 for up to 150,000 *, a 17% discount, and the brand states most new grants are for two.
The minimum royalty multiplies by territory count. $7,389.18 for each unit territory, with multiple territories given zero separate accounting, so a franchisee who buys reach without building revenue is buying a fixed cost.
At one territory the minimum is overtaken at $105,560 of sales. At five it takes $527,799 *, which is above the bottom quartile average of $347,272, so the minimum applies at five territories.
The minimum rises with inflation and holds its level. Set from a $7,000 base for 2023 and indexed to the consumer price index each November. The rule that a year’s minimum stays at or above the prior year’s. So it ratchets, at $7,389.18 for 2026.
Paying the initial fee early takes 10% off. 10% by 31 July, 7% by 30 September and 5% by 30 November, on a two-territory grant that is $5,000, $3,500 or $2,500 *, which is a seasonal cash discount.
What the fees come to
Eight point two percent, and the brand pays into it too.
| Charge | Rate | Bottom quarter | Third | System average | Top quarter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royalty | 7% of net sales, minimum $7,389.18 a territory | $24,309 | $82,167 | $142,976 | $293,552 |
| Advertising fund | 1.2% of net sales | $4,167 | $14,086 | $24,510 | $50,323 |
| Local marketing | Required in kind, with zero percentage or dollar minimum | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Total | 8.2% | $28,476 | $96,253 | $167,486 | $343,875 |
| Franchisor’s own match | 50% of the fund, until 2033 | $2,083 | $7,043 | $12,255 | $25,161 |
Both rates and the match are as the brand reported it and every dollar figure is marked. With the royalty shown at the percentage rate instead of the territory-scaled minimum.
The load is a flat 8.2% at every revenue level. Above the minimum *, with zero local marketing percentage, zero dollar minimum, zero cooperative and zero technology fee inside it. Is a simpler fee schedule than almost anything a lawn care owner will compare it against.
The advertising fund is matched by the brand at 50 cents a dollar. Until 31 December 2033, so a 1.2% contribution funds 1.8% of actual spend *, and the match ends on a date an owner should already have in their model.
The fund spent 92.5% on work and 7.5% on administration last year. Creative, website, consumer magazines and newsletters, public relations and media placement, with zero fund money going to franchise sales.
The fund rate can rise to 3% after 2033. On the same date the match ends, at the average location that pair of changes is worth $49,020 a year *, which is the single largest known future cost in this agreement.
Local advertising is an obligation with zero number attached. A franchisee must participate and actively promote, and the brand’s disclosure document leaves the percentage and the dollar minimum blank. So the spend is a judgement call, which is rare in this category.
Three ways to count
Agreements, locations and territories are three different numbers.
| Measure | Count | Ratio * |
|---|---|---|
| Franchise agreements | 121 | n/a |
| Physical locations | 153 | 1.26 a franchise agreement |
| Areas served | 278 | 1.8 a location |
| Unit territories | 795 | 5.2 a location, 6.6 an agreement |
| Locations reporting revenue | 149 | 97.4% of locations |
| Company-owned outlets | Zero, all three years | n/a |
Every count is as the brand reported it at 31 December 2025 and the ratios are marked *.
The outlet tables count agreements while the revenue table counts locations. 121 against 153, so a reader comparing the growth tables against the sales tables is comparing two different denominators. The sales figures are the per-location ones.
Many agreements merged on 1 January 2024. Which is why the count drops from 255 to 117 between the two years, on the brand’s own explanation that franchisees elected to merge contracts, a bookkeeping change.
Three agreements opened and three left in 2025. Two terminations and one non-renewal against three openings, leaving the count flat at 121 *, and the brand has owned zero outlets itself in all three years.
An average agreement holds 6.6 unit territories. Against the two most new grants receive *, so the typical owner in this system has bought territory several times over since starting.
The territory is expressly non-exclusive. Boundaries are drawn by map on county, township, municipal and census tract lines. A target of up to 150,000 people and as low as 50,000 in isolated areas. The brand reserves the right to run a mosquito and perimeter pest control business under separate arrangements.
Questions we get asked
Questions an owner asks.
What does a Weed Man location bill?
Across 149 locations trading all of 2025, the average was $2,042,513.75 and the median $1,693,229.65, with a high of $8,044,488.89 and a low of $96,147.97. By quartile the averages were $4,193,600, $2,347,331, $1,173,815 and $347,272. Three of the four quartiles have a median within $3,000 of their own average.
What does the brand take?
7% of net sales in royalty, with a minimum of $7,389.18 for each unit territory in 2026, plus 1.2% of net sales into the advertising fund. That is 8.2% in total, and it covers everything. Local marketing has zero percentage and zero dollar minimum, there is zero advertising cooperative and zero technology fee.
How does the advertising fund work?
Franchisees contribute 1.2% of net sales monthly and the franchisor contributes a further 50% of what franchisees put in, until 31 December 2033. Last year the fund spent 92.5% of its money on creative, website, consumer magazines and newsletters, public relations and media placement, and 7.5% on administration. After 2033 the rate may rise as far as 3% and the match ends.
When does the royalty minimum bite?
It depends on how many unit territories you hold, because the minimum is $7,389.18 for each one. At a single territory 7% overtakes it at $105,560 of sales; at the system’s average of 5.2 territories a location it takes $548,497. The bottom quartile averages $347,272, so at an average territory count it pays about $14,086 more than its own rate. The shortfall is settled with the December payment.
What does a territory cost?
$30,000 for one unit territory covering up to 150,000 people, or $50,000 for two covering up to 300,000, which works out at $25,000 each. Further territories are $30,000. A $12,000 deposit reserves a territory for 30 days. Paying in full early takes 10% off by 31 July, 7% by 30 September or 5% by 30 November.
What is a territory worth?
On our reading about $393,088 of annual revenue, taking the average location’s $2,042,513.75 across the 5.2 unit territories a location holds. That is 13.1 times the $30,000 purchase price, and $2.62 for each head of population in a full 150,000-person territory.
Why do the outlet counts look inconsistent?
Because three different units are in play. At the end of 2025 there were 121 franchise agreements, 153 physical locations, 278 areas served and 795 unit territories. The outlet tables count agreements; the revenue tables count locations. Many agreements merged on 1 January 2024 at franchisees’ election, which is why the agreement count drops sharply between 2023 and 2024.
Which two numbers should run monthly?
Revenue for each unit territory you hold, against about $393,088 for the system average. That is because that is the only comparison that adjusts for how much territory you bought. And revenue against $8,797 a month at a single territory, which is where 7% overtakes the minimum royalty.
- No profit figure. The filing reports sales and not earnings, so what an owner keeps is not disclosed.
- No cost lines. Wages, rent and cost of goods are not broken out, so margin cannot be rebuilt from the document.
- No attainment figure. The filing does not say how many locations reached the average it publishes.
Questions worth putting to Weed Man
The filing answers what it answers. These are the gaps an owner or a buyer should close directly.
- What do locations at the median spend on wages and rent as a share of sales? The filing reports sales only.
- What separates the highest-selling locations from the lowest: trade area, years open, size, or the owner?
- 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 Weed Man locations closed, were sold, or changed hands last year, and why?
Run your own numbers.
The Franchise Finance Diagnostic 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.
Launch the diagnostic →What is a territory earning you?
A structured review of your unit economics, cash forecast. Reporting, built around revenue for each unit territory you hold, the minimum royalty your territory count has. What the 2033 change to the advertising fund does to your model.
Request the reviewthe franchise library, all 243 brands · how franchise unit economics work · running the books across several locations · what Averan does for franchise owners
Weed Man reads against the rest of the lawn, pest and irrigation group: Conserva Irrigation · Lawn Doctor · Mosquito Joe · Mosquito Shield · Mosquito Squad · Pestmaster. The lawn, pest and irrigation 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?How royalty, ad fund and minimums actually work on a monthly statement.
- How much cash do I fund before a new location covers its own costs?A 13-week forecast for the months before break-even.
- My payroll percentage keeps climbing. Is that a payroll problem?Usually it is a revenue problem wearing a payroll costume.
- Do I need a bookkeeper, a controller, or a CFO?What each one owns, and the point at which the next one pays for itself.
- Revenue was the highest it has been. Why did profit not move?Where the extra revenue went, line by line.