Franchisor name
Industry
Number of Franchise Units
Franchising Status
Initial Investment (Min)
Initial Investment (Max)
Franchisee Fee (Min)
Franchisee Fee (Max)
Number of Lawsuits
Number of Director Bankruptcies
Year Founded
Contact Method
US State
Year Updated
Contact Method
LJS has no predecessors. LJS does business under the name “Long John Silver’s”. Long John Silver’s, Inc. was incorporated in Delaware on June 6, 1969. Effective on December 14, 2011, Long John Silver’s, Inc. converted to a Delaware limited liability company and became Long John Silver’s, LLC. LJS’s principal business and mailing address is 10350 Ormsby Park Place, Suite 300, Louisville, KY 40223. LJS’s agents for service of process are listed on Exhibit B attached to this Disclosure Document.
LJS has granted franchises and licenses to qualified persons to own and operate LJS Restaurants (defined below) since 1969. From 1969 until December 2011, LJS owned and operated LJS Restaurants and, in October 2015, began re-acquiring LJS Restaurants through its wholly-owned subsidiaries LJS Opco One, LLC and LJS Opco Two, LLC. LJS has not offered franchises in any other line of business and does not have any other material business activities that are not incidental to the ownership, operation and franchising of LJS Restaurants. LJS also offers licenses in foreign countries, and provides certain products and services to licensees who are located and do business in those foreign countries. Unless otherwise stated, the information in this Disclosure Document does not concern LJS international operations or licensing.
This Disclosure Document covers franchise offerings for franchise rights for LJS Restaurants in venues such as freestanding, single-use restaurant buildings, and inline strip mall or strip center shopping locations (“Traditional Restaurants” or “LJS Traditional Restaurants”). This Disclosure Document also covers franchise offerings for franchise rights for LJS Restaurants that are to be operated in the same facilities as another restaurant concept (“Co-Brand Restaurants” or “LJS Co-Brand Restaurants”). Currently LJS is operated in Co-Brand Restaurants with KFC, Taco Bell or A&W restaurants. The franchisor for the KFC, Taco Bell or A&W restaurant portion of a KFC/LJS, Taco Bell/LJS or LJS/A&W Co-Brand Restaurant is, respectively, KFC US, LLC (“KFLLC”), Taco Bell Franchisor, LLC (“Taco Bell”) or A&W Restaurants, Inc. (“A&W). The franchise offer of these restaurant concepts is made under a separate disclosure document that should be available to you upon request to the franchisor of that concept. This Disclosure Document also covers franchise offerings for franchise rights for LJS Restaurants that are operated as express franchise units (“Express Restaurants” or “LJS Express Restaurants”). The terms “LJS Restaurants” and “Restaurants” will be used in this Disclosure Document to refer collectively to Traditional Restaurants, Co-Brand Restaurants and Express Restaurants. If LJS approves you as a franchisee, you may be offered the opportunity to sign a franchise agreement that gives you the right to construct and operate an LJS Restaurant at a specified location using LJS’s restaurant system, trade dress, trademarks and service marks. You may, subject to LJS’s approval and using LJS-approved plans, construct a new restaurant or remodel and convert an existing restaurant building or facility. LJS Restaurants offer a limited menu featuring fish, seafood, chicken and related items. The Restaurants are designed to serve food promptly and offer dine-in, take-out and in a significant number of Restaurants, drivethru service. Your Restaurant must be built to LJS’s specifications and operated in accordance with LJS’s standards. For a Traditional Restaurant, LJS may offer you the opportunity to sign a Franchise Agreement in the form attached to this Disclosure Document as Exhibit C. The initial term of the Franchise Agreement generally is 20 years with an option to renew for two consecutive five-year options. You must meet certain criteria to exercise any option to renew, including remodeling the Restaurant to LJS’s then current standards. LJS may offer you certain available incentives in connection with your Franchise Agreement for a new Traditional Restaurant if you meet certain criteria. The 2019 Standard Incentive Program is available to new and existing franchisees who sign a new Franchise Agreement and open a new location in 2019, who have a net worth of at least $500,000, and who have at least $250,000 of that net worth in liquid capital (the “Standard Incentive Qualifications”). The available incentives include the following: (a) the initial franchise fee of $20,000 will be waived; (b) the royalty payments over the first three (3) years of the opening of your new Traditional Restaurant will be reduced as follows: 0-6 months: 0% Royalty; 7-12 months: 2% Royalty; 13-24 months: 3% Royalty; 25- 36 months: 4% Royalty; and after 3 years, the standard 5% royalty will apply; And, (c) you will receive the Digital Drive Thru Hardware and the Drive Thru Audio & Timer System at no cost to you. The 2019 Veterans Incentive Program applies to new and existing franchisees who meet the Standard Inventive Qualifications and who (i) are United States military veterans; (ii) have been honorably discharged from any branch thereof; (iii) provide LJS with a copy of their DD Form 214; (iv) own a majority interest in the franchised Traditional Restaurant; and, (v) otherwise meet LJS’s requirements for the 2019 Veterans Incentive Program (the “Veteran Incentive Qualifications”). The available incentives are the same as those available under the Standard Incentive Program plus you will be provided with an additional $5,000 toward opening inventory. For a Co-Brand Restaurant, LJS may offer you the opportunity to sign a Co-Brand Franchise Agreement in the form attached to this Disclosure Document as Exhibit C-2. The initial term and option terms under the Co-Brand Franchise Agreement generally run concurrently with the initial and option terms of the franchise agreement for the other brand in the Co-Brand Restaurant. For an Express Restaurant, LJS may offer you the opportunity to sign an Express Franchise Agreement in the form attached to this Disclosure Document as Exhibit C-3. The initial term of the Express Franchise Agreement generally is 10 years with an option to renew for two consecutive five-year options. You must meet certain criteria to exercise any option to renew, including remodeling the Express Restaurant to LJS’s then current standards. Unless otherwise indicated, all references in this Disclosure Document to “LJS Franchise Agreement” mean each of the Franchise Agreement, Co-Brand Franchise Agreement and Express Franchise Agreement. Before you sign an LJS Franchise Agreement, and at the time you submit a Restaurant site for approval by LJS, you must sign a Site Agreement/Fee Form (“Site Agreement”) in the format that is attached as Exhibit C-1. The Site Agreement requires you to pay a deposit to LJS or its designee before you submit a Restaurant site for approval to LJS. If the site is not approved, the deposit will be refunded; if the site is approved, the deposit is applied to your initial franchise fee when you sign an LJS Franchise Agreement.
Initial Franchise Fees The initial franchise fee for an LJS Traditional Restaurant is $20,000. As described in Item 1, LJS may offer you certain available incentives in connection with your Franchise Agreement for a new Traditional Restaurant if you meet certain criteria. Prospective new and existing franchisees who meet the Standard Incentive Qualifications, in the case of the 2019 Standard Incentive Program, and the Veteran Incentive Qualifications, in the case of the 2019 Veterans Incentive Program, will receive a waiver of the $20,000 initial franchise fee. The total initial franchise fee for an LJS Co-Brand Restaurant is an amount equal to the initial franchise fee charged by the franchisor of the other brand plus either an LJS initial franchise fee of $10,000 or $20,000, based on the combination of the restaurant brands for a newly constructed Co-Brand Restaurant. If the Co-Brand Restaurant is a conversion of an existing restaurant, the initial franchise fee is $10,000. The initial franchise fee for an LJS Express Restaurant is $10,000. You will be required to pay the entire initial franchise fee in a lump sum when you sign the LJS Franchise. Agreement. The initial franchise fee is not refundable and is uniformly imposed. Site Agreement Fee Before you sign an LJS Franchise Agreement, and before you submit a Restaurant site for approval by LJS, you must sign a Site Agreement. The Site Agreement requires you to pay to LJS or its designee the sum of $10,000 at the time you submit a Restaurant site for approval to LJS. If the site is not approved, the deposit will be refunded; if the site is approved, the deposit is applied to your initial franchise fee when you sign an LJS Franchise Agreement. Grand Opening Marketing Contribution Franchisees of Traditional Restaurants will be required to select and pay either $10,000 or $12,000 as a grand opening marketing contribution for pre-opening and opening advertising services. Franchisees of Co-Brand Restaurants will be required to select and pay either $3,000 or $5,000 as a grand opening marketing contribution for pre-opening and opening advertising services. The pre-opening/opening advertising fee is payable in a lump sum upon the signing of the LJS Franchise Agreement. The pre-opening/opening advertising fee is nonrefundable. The grand opening marketing contribution for pre-opening and opening advertising services is not applicable to franchisees of Express Restaurants. Computer System Services In addition to obtaining and using the Computer System, you must sign the LJS Support Services Agreement. Support services under the LJS Support Services Agreement will be performed by LJS. The initial fee for the support services provided under the LJS Support Services Agreement for franchisees of Traditional Restaurants and Co-Brand Restaurants ranges from $2,000-$2,500. The initial fee for support services provided under the LJS Support Services Agreement for franchisees of Express Restaurants ranges from $750-$1,000. The initial fee for support services is non-refundable.
LJS does not offer, directly or indirectly, any arrangements for financing your initial investment or the continuing operation of your LJS business. LJS does not guarantee your note, lease or obligation.
We do not make any representations about a franchisee’s future financial performance or the past financial performance of company-owned or franchised outlets. We also do not authorize our employees or representatives to make any such representations either orally or in writing. If you are purchasing an existing outlet, however, we may provide you with the actual records of that outlet. If you receive any other financial performance information or projections of your future income, you should report it to the franchisor’s management by contacting Stacy Feinberg at 10350 Ormsby Park Place, Suite 300, Louisville, KY 40223, (502) 815-6100, the Federal Trade Commission, and the appropriate state regulatory agencies.
