Fantastic Sams
Wellness & Personal Care · Beauty Salons & Barber Shops
- Active units
- 484
- Royalty
- 6.0%
Franchised, year-end 2025
of weekly Net Sales
About Fantastic Sams
Fantastic Sams is a renowned brand that offers quality, service, and style at an affordable price. With the right team, reasonable prices, and top-notch products, they ensure that your salon experience is nothing less than perfect, just like the perfect cut. Since July 1974, when Sam Ross opened the first Fantastic Sams beauty salon in Memphis, Tennessee, their goal has been to create an accessible and affordable salon experience for everyone. Today, Fantastic Sams is one of the largest full-service hair care salons worldwide, with hundreds of locations across North America. Whether you desire salon color, salon services for men, or a hassle-free and affordable haircut, Fantastic Sams never fails to deliver. Their success lies in a team of skilled professionals who excel at making you look and feel fantastic. Moreover, their trusted range of hair care products ensures that your hair maintains its greatness long after your salon visit. Join Fantastic Sams and discover an approach that truly works.
Key terms
- Franchise fee
$35k
- Existing franchisee additional salon fee
If you already own a Fantastic Sams operating Salon and want to purchase an additional Salon, Initial Franchise Fee is $10,000.
- Multi-Unit Development Fee (in lieu of initial fees)
$55,000 for right to develop three Salons; replaces Initial Franchise Fees for those units.
- Local advertising
5.0% of Net Sales
- Footprint
1,000 – 1,400 sq ft
- Multi-Unit Development Agreement
$55k
- Veteran discount
25.0% off franchise fee — 25% discount off the Initial Franchise Fee (one-time use)
Brand Percentile Rankings
Rankings compare brands in the same operating year. Fee and investment figures come from the FDD (2026 filing); filings on file: 2024, 2025, 2026.
Growth
- Total locations484
Franchised units open at year-end
- New openings11
Gross new units opened during the calendar year
- 1-year unit growth rate-5.5%
Net unit growth versus prior year
- 3-year unit CAGR-7.5%
Compound annual growth rate of unit count over the trailing 3 years
- Unit growth ratio0.3×
Cumulative opens / closures through year-end
Unit economics
- Annual unit volume (Median)—
Per FDD Item 19 disclosure
- Annual unit volume (25th percentile)—
Per FDD Item 19 disclosure
- Annual unit volume (75th percentile)—
Per FDD Item 19 disclosure
- 1-year Median AUV growth rate—
Year-over-year change in median AUV
- Store-level EBITDA Margin—
Median unit-level EBITDA / AUV
Investment profile
- Estimated initial investment$308k
Midpoint of estimated initial investment range
↓ Lower is better - Time to open—
Midpoint of average time from agreement to opening
- Royalty rate6.0%
Percent of net sales paid to the franchisor
↓ Lower is better - Sales-to-investment ratio—
Median AUV / estimated initial investment midpoint
- Cash-on-cash returns—
Median unit-level EBITDA / estimated initial investment midpoint. Steady-state estimate; year 1 returns will be lower as the unit ramps to median volumes.
Franchisee healthLocked
- Unit closure ratio
- Transfer vs. closure ratio
- Percent multi-unit franchisees
- Litigation rate
- EBITDA multiple on sales & transfers
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Location footprint
Showing 427 of 816 mapped locations
Sources
Financial and operating figures are sourced from the brand's Franchise Disclosure Documents. Brand percentile rankings are based on comparisons to other brands that include the same metrics in their Franchise Disclosure Documents.