Hickory River Smoke
The total investment to open a Hickory River Smoke franchise ranges from $315,000 to $1.1M. The initial franchise fee is $30,000. Ongoing royalties are 5% plus a 3% advertising fee.
What is the Hickory River Smoke franchise?
Hickory River Smoke is a barbecue restaurant for diners. The estimated total initial investment is $315,000 to $1,084,500, and the initial franchise fee is $30,000, according to the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document.
The royalty is 5 percent of sales, and the advertising or brand fund fee is 3 percent. The franchise agreement term is 10 years. The brand began franchising in 2003.
Loan Activity Score
50/100
SBA Default Rate
0.0%
Active Lenders
2
According to its Franchise Disclosure Document or public business records, Hickory River Smoke has 5 locations, all owned by franchisees. Public SBA loan records show 2 lenders made 2 loans to franchisees of Hickory River Smoke. PeerSense calculates Hickory River Smoke's score as 50 out of 100, using public SBA loan performance and recent lending activity. Cost figures are based on the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document.
5 locations
$315,000 to $1.1M
$30,000
5
5 franchised
Proprietary PeerSense metric
ModerateDistinct lenders in public SBA records for Hickory River Smoke
2
Total SBA loans
$262K
Average loan size
Source: public SBA 7(a) and 504 loan records through December 31, 2025
Referral fee at closing
SBA Lending Activity for Hickory River Smoke
Loan Activity Score Breakdown
New or niche (1 to 2 loans)
Are lenders increasingly or decreasingly funding this brand? Growing trends score highest.
Blended default rate (recent + all time) compared to NAICS sector peers.
Quality lenders actively backing this brand, with penalty for lender pullback.
FDD availability, Item 19 disclosure, and overall data completeness.
Geographic spread of SBA funded locations across states.
SBA Lending Performance
SBA Default Rate
0.0%
vs 10.3% peer avg
SBA Loans
2
Total Volume
$0.5M
Active Lenders
2
1 selective
States
1
vs. SBA Sector Average
SBA loan default rate vs. all franchises in the same NAICS sector, not limited to direct competitors
Key Highlights
Franchise Financing Resources
Data Insights
Key performance metrics for Hickory River Smoke based on SBA lending data
SBA Default Rate
0.0%
10.3% below peer avg
SBA Loan Volume
2 loans
Across 2 lenders
Lender Diversity
2 lenders
Avg 1.0 loans per lender
Investment Tier
Significant investment
$315,000 to $1,084,500 total
Hickory River Smoke: Deep SBA Data
Brand specific metrics derived directly from SBA 7(a) approval records: peak lending year, leading state, average loan size, and lender concentration. PeerSense computes these per brand so capital advisors and prospective franchisees can benchmark this opportunity against the rest of the franchise universe.
Peak SBA Year
2015
1 approval. The best year on record for Hickory River Smoke.
Top SBA State
Ohio
2 SBA financed Hickory River Smoke locations, the densest operator footprint.
Average Loan Size
$262K
Median $262K. Use as a sizing anchor when modeling your own Hickory River Smoke unit.
Lender Concentration
100%
Concentrated
Share of Hickory River Smoke approvals captured by the top 3 SBA lenders.
Hickory River Smoke's SBA lending pipeline peaked in 2015 (1 approval). Operator density is highest in Ohio with 2 SBA financed locations. Average funded ticket sits at $262K, with the median at $262K. Lender mix is concentrated: the top three SBA lenders account for 100% of approvals. Credit decisions concentrate with a small group of incumbents.
Payment Estimator
Estimated Monthly Payment
$3,261
Principal & Interest only
Indicative only, as of October 1, 2026. Not a quote, commitment or offer of credit. Final pricing, leverage and terms are determined by the lender at underwriting, after full transaction materials are reviewed. PeerSense sources the file. The lender sets pricing. What these terms mean.
Locations
Hickory River Smoke, unit breakdown
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Page Review
Reviewed by Edward L. Freeman, Founder and Managing Director, PeerSense
- PeerSense is a capital advisory firm that places commercial financing with direct capital sources; it does not lend, fund, or approve loans, and the capital source sets final terms.
- Edward L. Freeman founded PeerSense in January 2020.
- He is a Registered Franchise Consultant with Business Alliance, Inc., a credential issued in March 2022, and worked as a franchise consultant there from March 2022 to May 2023.
- His recorded experience includes a $22 million SBA construction loan, with about $16 million funded on the deal.
- In the 12 months through September 30, 2026, PeerSense tracked 912 publicly announced financings with a disclosed size of $361.32 billion. PeerSense Capital Data Report · Methodology page
Last reviewed LinkedIn profileAbout Edward Freeman