Franchise Facts Report → compare → Tide Cleaners vs Lapels
Tide Cleaners vs Lapels
Two cleaning & restoration franchises, compared on the numbers their own Franchise Disclosure Documents put on record — investment, fees, Item 19 earnings, outlet churn, and litigation. Not marketing copy.
| Tide Cleaners | Lapels | |
|---|---|---|
| Total initial investment FDD Item 7 | $40,320 – $2,517,300 | $113,065 – $796,742 |
| Initial franchise fee FDD Item 5 | — | $60,000 |
| Royalty FDD Item 6 | — | 6% |
| Item 19 earnings disclosed FDD Item 19 | Yes | Not disclosed |
| Avg unit revenue (headline) FDD Item 19 | $548,202 | — |
| Franchised outlets FDD Item 20 | 256 | 83 |
| Net outlet change (latest yr) FDD Item 20 | +10 | +2 |
| Closure rate FDD Item 20 | 0.8% | 1.2% |
| Franchisee lawsuits FDD Item 3 | 0 | disclosed |
| Risk level our read | Low | Medium |
| FDD year registration | 2025 | 2026 |
Are Tide Cleaners and Lapels the same company?
No — Tide Cleaners and Lapels are franchised by separate companies. Tide Cleaners's franchisor is Agile Pursuits Franchising, Inc.; Lapels's is Next Step Franchising, LLC. Each registers and files its own Franchise Disclosure Document, and you would be signing with a different entity depending on which you chose. Note that a registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent — two brands owned by the same parent company can still have separate franchisors.
Cost to open
Lapels is the cheaper franchise to open: its FDD Item 7 puts the total initial investment at $113,065 – $796,742, against $40,320 – $2,517,300 for Tide Cleaners.
How much does each make? (Item 19)
Only Tide Cleaners disclosed earnings: it makes an Item 19 financial performance representation (headline average unit revenue $548,202), while Lapels's most recent FDD makes none. That asymmetry is itself a data point: one franchisor puts its unit economics on paper, the other doesn't.
Closures & failure rate
Tide Cleaners reports 256 franchised outlets, net change +10 in the latest reported year, a 0.8% closure rate (FDD Item 20). Lapels reports 83 franchised outlets, net change +2 in the latest reported year, a 1.2% closure rate (FDD Item 20). Outlet churn — closures, terminations, non-renewals — is the closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate; the full report puts both brands' churn against cleaning & restoration medians.
Litigation
Tide Cleaners discloses no franchisee-initiated proceedings in FDD Item 3. Lapels discloses litigation in FDD Item 3 (case detail in the full report).
This page is the headline numbers. The Deep report compares up to three brands on the complete FDD record — every fee line, the actual Item 19 figures and what they represent, each lawsuit, and churn benchmarked against cleaning & restoration peers.
Only looking at one of them?
Tide Cleaners vs Lapels — frequently asked
Are Tide Cleaners and Lapels the same company?
No — Tide Cleaners and Lapels are franchised by separate companies. Tide Cleaners's franchisor is Agile Pursuits Franchising, Inc.; Lapels's is Next Step Franchising, LLC. Each registers and files its own Franchise Disclosure Document, and you would be signing with a different entity depending on which you chose. Note that a registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent — two brands owned by the same parent company can still have separate franchisors.
What is the difference between Tide Cleaners and Lapels?
Tide Cleaners and Lapels are cleaning & restoration franchises from different franchisors (Agile Pursuits Franchising, Inc. and Next Step Franchising, LLC). Lapels is the cheaper franchise to open: its FDD Item 7 puts the total initial investment at $113,065 – $796,742, against $40,320 – $2,517,300 for Tide Cleaners. Only Tide Cleaners disclosed earnings: it makes an Item 19 financial performance representation (headline average unit revenue $548,202), while Lapels's most recent FDD makes none. That asymmetry is itself a data point: one franchisor puts its unit economics on paper, the other doesn't.
Is Tide Cleaners more profitable than Lapels?
Only Tide Cleaners disclosed earnings: it makes an Item 19 financial performance representation (headline average unit revenue $548,202), while Lapels's most recent FDD makes none. That asymmetry is itself a data point: one franchisor puts its unit economics on paper, the other doesn't.
Which is cheaper to open — Tide Cleaners or Lapels?
Lapels is the cheaper franchise to open: its FDD Item 7 puts the total initial investment at $113,065 – $796,742, against $40,320 – $2,517,300 for Tide Cleaners.
Is Tide Cleaners or Lapels growing faster?
Tide Cleaners reports 256 franchised outlets, net change +10 in the latest reported year, a 0.8% closure rate (FDD Item 20). Lapels reports 83 franchised outlets, net change +2 in the latest reported year, a 1.2% closure rate (FDD Item 20).
Go deeper on each brand
Cleaning & restoration rankings
Figures are as disclosed in each brand's most recent registered FDD (Tide Cleaners 2025, Lapels 2026). “—” means the FDD does not disclose it or the table did not parse cleanly — never an estimate.