The short answer — eight specific questions, in order
Evaluating a window tint franchise is mostly about asking specific questions and reading the FDD with discipline. Most prospective franchisees do the opposite — they fall for the brand story, the slick discovery deck, and the income claims, then sign a 10-year agreement and discover the structural problems later. The eight questions below cover the entire decision in less than 90 minutes of work.
1. Does Item 19 disclose actual numbers?
Item 19 of the FDD is the financial performance representation — the only legally-binding earnings disclosure in the franchise industry. Look for: combined gross sales, COGS, and gross profit dollars for a sample of operating units. If Item 19 is blank or says “we make no earnings representations” — the franchisor is choosing not to disclose, which usually means their operating units don’t yet support a strong claim. Polar Tint’s 2026 FDD Item 19 discloses the figure disclosed in the current FDD combined gross sales / the figure disclosed in the current FDD combined gross profit / 90.9% weighted gross margin across two affiliate-owned shops in Las Vegas.
2. What is the supply chain?
Window film franchises source film one of three ways: (a) direct from a manufacturer at parent cost (rare — requires common ownership with the manufacturer), (b) volume-discounted from a distributor (most common — but still pays the 20-40% distributor markup), or (c) regional distributor with no special pricing (worst case — same COGS as any independent shop). Polar Tint sources from Glacier Manufacturing under common ownership. Ask the franchisor: “What’s your typical franchisee COGS as a percentage of gross?” Distributor-tier systems run 14-22%. Parent-supplier systems run 8-12%.
3. How long is the initial term?
Industry-standard initial term for service-business franchises is 10 years. Anything longer is operator-hostile (locks the franchisee into the system through multiple economic cycles). Anything shorter than 5 years suggests the franchisor doesn’t have confidence in the renewal value. Polar Tint’s 2026 FDD shortened the initial term from 10 to 5 years specifically to give operators a faster off-ramp. Two 5-year renewals available. Read FDD Item 17 carefully for renewal conditions and any fees.
4. What is the trade-area math in your specific zip?
The franchise brand matters less than your specific market. Get: (a) registered vehicle count within a 15-minute drive of candidate locations, (b) median household income in the same area, (c) number of existing tint shops within 5 miles, (d) the franchise system’s specific territory definition. A great franchise in a saturated trade area underperforms a mediocre franchise in an unserved trade area. Ask the franchisor: “Can you run the trade-area math for my specific zip code?” A serious development team will do it on the discovery call.
5. Did you actually call existing franchisees from Item 20?
FDD Item 20 lists every current and former franchisee with their contact information. Most prospects skip this — they read Item 19 and assume the operating evidence speaks for itself. The single most valuable hour of pre-signing diligence is calling 5-10 franchisees and asking: “If you knew then what you know now, would you still sign?” The answers separate the franchise systems that look good on paper from the ones that perform in operation. Polar Tint’s Item 20 lists are short (new system) — the affiliate-owner phone numbers in Las Vegas are the closest analog.
6. Is the franchise on the SBA Franchise Directory?
The SBA Franchise Directory lists franchise systems whose franchise agreements have been pre-reviewed by the SBA. Listing matters for two reasons: (a) SBA 7(a) loan close times go from 3-6 months down to 30-60 days, and (b) it’s a basic third-party signal that the franchise documents aren’t structurally broken. Polar Tint LLC is listed on the SBA Franchise Directory. Verify at sba.gov/franchise-directory.
7. Is the fee structure transparent?
FDD Item 5 (initial fees) and Item 6 (ongoing fees) should add up. Watch for: hidden technology fees, mandatory marketing co-op contributions, supply-chain markups, vague “system support” fees, transfer fees that effectively trap the franchisee. Polar Tint Item 6: 8% royalty / 1% brand fund / $800 monthly tech fee / 6% or $1,250/wk local marketing minimum. No surprise fees. Compare directly with the systems you’re evaluating.
8. Will your discovery contact answer hard questions directly?
Test the development team with a few uncomfortable questions: “What’s the failure rate in your system?” “What’s the most common reason franchisees leave?” “Can you put me in touch with someone who closed their shop?” Franchisors with confidence in their system answer these directly. Franchisors with weak systems deflect, change the subject, or filter the conversation back to upside scenarios. The franchise development conversation is itself a strong predictor of how the operating relationship will go.
How to actually use this framework
Spend 90 minutes: 30 minutes reading the FDD (Items 5, 6, 7, 12, 17, 19, 20), 30 minutes calling 3-5 franchisees from Item 20, 30 minutes running the trade-area math for your specific zip. If the franchise system passes 6+ of the 8 questions, advance to deeper diligence. If it fails on Items 19 (no earnings disclosure) or 5/6 (opaque fee structure), walk away. The decision is rarely close — strong franchise systems pass the 8-point test cleanly, and weak systems fail visibly on multiple dimensions.
Run the framework on Polar Tint
Apply for a discovery call and we’ll walk through all eight questions with you specifically — including the trade-area math for your zip code, Item 19 in full, Item 20 contact information for affiliate-shop validation, and direct answers on failure rates and common challenges. No upsell pressure, no sales script. Either both sides decide to advance to FDD delivery, or you walk away with a clear sense of fit.