NaturaLawn franchise review
Entity: NaturaLawn of America Inc.
Parent: Founder-operated (Philip Catron)
Ownership: private (founder)
Franchising since: 1989
88
System Size
franchised outlets, end 2024
$77K–$152K
Initial Investment
includes 12-mo reserves
$101,584
Annual Fees at $300K
#5 of 5 in cohort
+6 units
3-Year Net Growth
Stable niche
Where NaturaLawn Stands vs. Peers
Fee burden (at $300K)
$101,584/yr
#5 of 5
Royalty rate
9% / 7%
reduces to 7% at $500K+ on renewal
Marketing floor
$60,000–$80,000/yr
highest in cohort (annual spend requirement)
2024 attrition
2.0%
moderate
Disclosure quality
Good
3rd of 6
Peer comparisons from
fee burden,
system health,
cost to enter
analysis.
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Biggest Watchouts Editorial
- △ Requires $150,000–$250,000 line of credit IN ADDITION to the $77,500–$152,650 cash investment — the only brand requiring a credit line.
- △ $60,000–$80,000 annual marketing spend is ongoing, not one-time — creates the highest ongoing fee burden in the cohort at low revenue levels (45.8% at $200K).
- △ System contracted in 2024 (−2 net units) after growing +4 each in 2022–2023.
- △ Active TCPA lawsuit (Ford v. NaturaLawn) — potential liability for telemarketing practices.
- △ Item 3 contains contradictory disclosure: heading says “no litigation required” but then discloses the TCPA case.
Strongest Positives Editorial
- ✓ Highest revenue per customer in the cohort ($810 avg franchised) — organic-based premium positioning commands higher prices.
- ✓ Founder-operated (Philip Catron) with 36-year track record — no PE layers.
- ✓ Zero transfers across all 3 reported years — unique in the lawn cohort.
- ✓ Royalty reduces to 7% upon renewal at $500K+ Gross Sales.
- ✓ Franchisee avg revenue ($2.19M) exceeds company-owned ($1.73M) — franchisees outperform corporate locations.
Fee Burden Position Modeled
| Revenue Level |
Annual Fees |
% of Revenue |
Rank |
| $200,000 |
$91,584 |
45.8% |
5 of 5 |
| $300,000 |
$101,584 |
33.9% |
5 of 5 |
| $400,000 |
$111,584 |
27.9% |
5 of 5 |
| $500,000 |
$121,584 |
24.3% |
4 of 5 |
Year 5 assumptions, single territory. See full methodology.
Marketing is not a fee — it is a spend requirement
The $60K–$80K annual marketing spend goes to third-party vendors, not the franchisor. But it is a mandatory expense that materially affects unit economics and is modeled as part of the fee burden.
System Health
| Year |
Opened |
Closed |
Net Change |
End Count |
| 2022 |
3 |
0 |
+3 |
84 |
| 2023 |
6 |
0 |
+6 |
90 |
| 2024 |
0 |
2 |
-2 |
88 |
Disclosure Quality Editorial
Item 19 provides both company-owned and franchise data. Company-owned gross margin 60.7%–65.2% (includes labor). Franchisee avg revenue $2.19M (median $1.1M). Revenue per customer $810 (highest in cohort) reflects organic-based premium positioning. Population count discrepancy: stated 44 but detail tables sum to 47.
Get the NaturaLawn Decision Report
Full fee burden modeling, Item 19 translation, risk flags, investment breakdown
analysis, and specific discovery day questions — the analysis that takes
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What’s in the report
1Fee Burden Deep Dive
Dollar-level modeling at 4 revenue levels with component breakdown, minimum triggers, and year-by-year escalation
2Item 19 Translation
What the financial performance data actually says — and what it conspicuously omits
3Investment Breakdown
Where the initial investment goes, what’s negotiable vs. fixed, what the FDD footnotes bury
4System Health Narrative
Churn context, closure patterns, transfer trends — what the Item 20 numbers actually mean
5Risk Flags & Litigation
Regulatory history, entity changes, franchise dispute outcomes, and what they signal
6Discovery Day Questions
Specific, data-informed questions to ask the franchisor — derived from this brand’s FDD
7Peer Positioning
How this brand compares across the full lawn care category with narrative context
Compare Other Brands
See how NaturaLawn compares to other lawn care franchise brands in the cohort.