How Much Does It Cost to Open a Fresh Coat Painters Franchise?

As a leader in the home services industry, Fresh Coat Painters is a residential and commercial painting franchise with over 170 units under the Strategic Franchising Systems umbrella. Since starting in 2004, Fresh Coat has continued to appeal to business-savvy franchisees interested in entering the booming residential and commercial painting segment, and today the brand is one of the leading national painting companies. 

But many interested prospects may be wondering: How much does it actually cost to start a Fresh Coat Painters franchise?

“Fresh Coat is on the low-end of the investment scale when it comes to other franchise brands in home services and painting,” said Wayne Scherger, COO of Fresh Coat Painters. “There are several reasons for that — we recruit most of our franchisees internally, for example, which means we don’t have to pay out big commissions to franchise brokers and factor that into the costs of the franchise. We are always focused on keeping costs down for our franchise owners.”

The Initial Investment

The total investment required to start a Fresh Coat franchise ranges from $66,150 to $96,250. If the population of your territory is greater than 200,000, you must pay an additional $500 for all or part of every 1,000 people over 200,000.

“For that initial investment, franchisees will have access to in-depth training, both in-person and virtually, onboarding assistance and support moving forward,” said Scherger. “This includes everything from equipment, marketing and more. Essentially, we provide a business in a box.”

At Fresh Coat, this in-depth franchisee support comes in the form of a development team, onboarding team, education team and specialized business coaches who maintain ongoing communication with franchisees. The Fresh Coat team provides training, business coaches, digital marketing, PR, estimating/quoting technology, painter-recruitment systems, regional/national conferences, online seminars, peer-to-peer educational programs, national supplier/vendor alliances and more. 

"That support system is one of the best values that you get for this franchise investment," said Brian Santos, Fresh Coat's Director of Education. “What is great about a franchise system is that you are in business for yourself, not by yourself. We have peer reviews and communities you can draw experience from. Moreover, by joining Fresh Coat, entrepreneurs have the chance to leverage the backing of an expert leadership team that has helped grow the brand to nearly 200 locations.”

Fresh Coat also offers over 150 hours of virtual training and 40 hours of hands-on training at their academy in Cincinnati. The training covers both the business aspects and the mechanics of painting, including wall assessment, proper application standards and more. From there, franchisees are provided with over 100 standard operating procedures that have been vetted by the Painting Contractor Association.

The initial franchise fee for a single territory is $44,900 and franchisees are only required to pay small branding and technology fees, royalty minimums and no training fees. Fresh Coat also gives franchisees the opportunity to earn that money back through its Winner’s Circle Program. The program, which is available for all SFS concepts, allows franchise owners to earn back their franchise fee in full as they achieve certain milestones — possibly lowering the startup costs by $44,900.

“Over a period of time, if you hit a revenue target, you qualify for a portion of your franchise fee back,” said Scherger. “There is no other franchise brand that offers that type of program in the painting industry.”

The Strength of the Business Model

Beyond support and training, there are several benefits that come along with Fresh Coat franchise ownership. Most notably, franchisees get the rare opportunity to invest in two franchises for the price of one — the right to serve both residential and commercial markets. Unlike other concepts, there are no extra fees for that dual service, and the franchisee’s exclusive territory includes both red-hot markets to maximize their profits.   

“To position franchisees for success, the Fresh Coat team is proud to be a marketing company first, and a painting company second,” said Scherger. “Our goal is to drive more leads than franchisees can handle, compelling them to grow their staff and profits over time.” 

Fresh Coat’s dedicated HQ marketing teams not only drive residential leads, but also provide access to National Accounts that are already signed, sealed and delivered. Franchisees simply provide the painters. The team will also vet commercial projects in a franchisee’s local area to help them bid and win lucrative painting jobs for stores, restaurants, businesses and medical offices.

Plus, as a home-based business without the need for a brick-and-mortar facility, franchisees’ operating costs will also be significantly lower and their potential profits much higher, Scherger says. 

Return on Investment

So, what can franchisees expect when it comes to a return on that investment? According to the 2022 FDD and Item 19, all reported Fresh Coat locations saw an average gross revenue of $640,756. Those open for 73 months or more saw an average gross revenue of $763,166. Those open for 12 to 36 months saw an average gross revenue of $417,742. These are financial performance representations.

“We provide you with all the tools to succeed, but at the end of the day, Fresh Coat Painters is really a sales and marketing company,” said Scherger. “Home shows, lawn signs, referrals — you have to put in the work to have a good blend of digital and local marketing so you have calls coming in consistently. The return on investment really depends on what the franchisee puts into it — we’ve designed this model so that if you are willing to put in the work, you can succeed.” 

Now, the Fresh Coat team is looking to help more passionate and qualified entrepreneurs to achieve their goals while expanding the brand’s footprint across the country. Fresh Coat is currently looking for franchise partners in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont.

The total investment required to start a Fresh Coat franchise ranges from $66,150 to $96,250. To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit https://1851franchise.com/freshcoat/info