David Weaver · September 1, 2026
How much does a franchise cost, all in?
The franchise fee is the number everyone quotes and the smallest part of what you will actually spend. Here is the full picture, including the line most people forget.
Independent franchise advisors
Thinking about owning a franchise? Talk to someone who has.
Dave and Ann Marie Weaver help mid-career professionals work out whether franchise ownership fits their life, and if it does, which brands are worth their time. The aim is to make you an educated buyer rather than a sale, and it costs you nothing.
Listen. Investigate. Guide. Empower.
Out now · A new book by David Weaver
The Franchise Framework
Distinctive Strategies of Successful Franchise Owners
“I want to make you an educated buyer, not a sale.”
Twelve chapters on what actually separates the franchise owners who thrive from the ones who stall. Dave wrote it after more than twenty years in franchise finance and advisory, and after buying, building and selling a franchise business of his own.
It is not a book about shopping for a franchise. It is about thinking like the people who win at owning one, before you sign anything.
Build the business you want to own.
Get the book
Or scan to open it on your phone.
Dave will talk you through the framework on a free call.Ask him about it(opens in a new tab)
Three steps, and you can stop at any one of them.
We talk
A 15-minute call that starts with one question: what is the result you are looking for? Not which franchise. What you want the next stretch of your life to look like.
We build your profile
Goals, budget, skills, how involved you want to be, where you want to operate. We also say the number out loud early: three to five years of focused effort before a franchise business pays out what you went in for.
You meet the right brands
We bring back a short list of franchisors that fit, introduce you directly, and stay alongside you through validation and due diligence until you decide.
Why the Weavers
A guide who has done it.
We have owned franchises ourselves
Dave underwrote franchise systems for lenders before buying into one. Ann Marie bought multiple outlets of a national brand in 2013, built the business and later sold it. When we tell you what the first year feels like, it is not secondhand.
It costs you nothing
The franchisor pays the referral fee when a match works out. You pay us nothing at any stage, and the price of the franchise is the same whether you come through us or walk in off the street.
Nobody here is going to sell you anything
Dave puts it as making you an educated buyer rather than a sale. If franchising is not right for you, we will say so. Read the testimonials and you will notice that not one person describes being sold to.
That last one is not our claim to make.See what they said
Dave and Ann Marie Weaver
A husband-and-wife team based in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Between them they have underwritten franchise systems, owned franchises, and walked candidates through the decision, including the ones who decided not to buy.
David Weaver
Franchise Advisor
David began his education in franchising more than 20 years ago, working in franchise lending and gaining a unique perspective on the financial performance of hundreds of businesses. Over the years, he learned that a business's financial statements tell only part of the story. The real insight comes from understanding the owner behind the numbers: their decisions, leadership, and approach to running the business. That perspective became the foundation of David's coaching philosophy: connecting the financial scorecard to the everyday decisions and actions that drive business performance. Today, he brings that experience to help aspiring and existing business owners understand not just how to own a business, but what it takes to build one that delivers the results they want.
Ann Marie Weaver
Franchise Advisor
Today, through Weaver Franchise Advisors, Ann Marie helps people explore franchise ownership with clarity and confidence. She starts by getting to know each person: what matters to them, what they hope ownership will make possible, and what kind of role they want to play in a business. Her approach is grounded in education, honest conversation, and firsthand experience.
“I never felt like I was being “sold”, which is a testament to the collaborative and consultative approach David employs.”
From the blog
All resources
David Weaver · August 25, 2026
What to ask existing franchisees before you buy
Validation calls are the most useful hours you will spend. Most candidates waste them by asking questions that produce agreeable, useless answers. These ones do not.
David Weaver · August 18, 2026
Can you own a franchise and keep your job?
Semi-absentee ownership is real, and it is more demanding than it sounds. What it requires, which categories support it, and what it costs you in margin.
Not sure where to start? That is what the first call is for.
A 15-minute conversation, no cost, no obligation. We will tell you honestly whether franchising fits what you are after.
Whichever of us you pick, the call is the same.