Abbey Road InstituteFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Abbey Road Institute franchise requires a total initial investment of $517K – $2.5M, including a $250K franchise fee. The 2026 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). Verdict grade: B. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $517K – $2.5M
- 56th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 47th pct Education
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 7
- 21st pct Education
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Education avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- Total investment $517K – $2.5M including a $250K franchise fee.
- Item 19 discloses "Student population and tuition fees" rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- Verdict B (Above Average) with a risk score of 62/100.
- Item 19 reports "Student population and tuition fees" instead of annual gross sales. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- ABBEY ROAD INSTITUTE, LLC
- Parent company
- Abbey Road Training Limited
- Ultimate parent
- Universal Music Group N.V.
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- Luca Barassi
- CEO experience
- 2018 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 4 Pancras Square, London N1C 4AG, United Kingdom
- Auditor
- Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $13K
- vs $31K prior year
Overview
About
Abbey Road Institute franchisees operate music production and audio engineering educational facilities, offering courses in recording, mixing, mastering, and music technology. Franchisees manage student recruitment, instructor hiring, facility operations, and course delivery in their protected (or unprotected) territories. Revenue is generated through tuition fees, equipment rental, and potential ancillary studio services.
- CEO
- Luca Barassi
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 1
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing · 12 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial License Fee | $250K | $1.0M | |
| Pre-Opening Training Expensesnot refundable | $7K | $10K | |
| Real Property | — | — | |
| Construction and Leasehold Improvementsnot refundable | $60K | $600K | |
| Equipmentnot refundable | $100K | $650K | |
| Inventory to Begin Operatingnot refundable | $2K | $5K | |
| Permits and Licensesnot refundable | $15K | $30K | |
| Insurancenot refundable | $8K | $13K | |
| Professional Feesnot refundable | $14K | $20K | |
| Signsnot refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| Pre-Launch Marketing and Recruitment Campaignnot refundable | — | — | |
| Additional Funds (initial period - 3 months)not refundable | $60K | $130K | |
| Total initial investment | $517K | $2.5M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $517K – $2.5M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $60K – $130K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $250K – $1.0M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 8-12% of Gross Revenues
- Ad fund
- -n/d
- Total fee load
- 12.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transfer fee | $500K |
| Renewal fee | $50K |
| Total fee load | 12.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This brand's FDD disclosed "Student population and tuition fees" in Item 19 rather than annual gross sales. This metric cannot be directly compared across brands, so we omit it from rankings.
vs Education averages
How Abbey Road Institute Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 7
- Opened
- 1
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 86%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +20.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +20.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 1
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Continuity rate
- 100.0%
- Units that stayed open
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 4 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Abbey Road Institute presents meaningful financial opacity and growth constraints; the lack of disclosed revenue data, unprotected territory, and modest unit expansion create elevated risk for a $500K+ investment with no validated ROI benchmarks.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 62 / 100 rating
- 01MINORNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure — cannot validate revenue/profitability claims despite $517K-$2.46M investment requirement
- 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk; franchisees can cannibalize each other's markets
- 03MEDOnly 7 units with 20% YoY growth is modest expansion for a 10-year-old brand; suggests limited scalability or market demand
- 04MINORHigh franchise fee ($250K) relative to unit count indicates dependency on new franchisee recruitment rather than system profitability
- 05MED8-12% royalty rate on undisclosed revenues creates unpredictable cash flow burden for franchisees
- 06HIGHNo 'Going Concern' status may indicate recent financial instability or restructuring at corporate level
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | non_exclusive |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | New York |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 29 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 14 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Time to open
- 4 mo
- From signing to launch
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Computer and Point of Sale System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Computer and Point of Sale System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
4 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Abbey Road Institute · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Abbey Road Institute franchise?
The total investment to open a Abbey Road Institute franchise ranges from $517K – $2.5M, with an initial franchise fee of $250K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Abbey Road Institute franchise owners earn?
Abbey Road Institute does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Abbey Road Institute's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Abbey Road Institute (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Abbey Road Institute franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Abbey Road Institute has 7 total units in the United States, including 1 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 1 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Abbey Road Institute a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Abbey Road Institute as a B-grade franchise with a risk score of 62 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent Abbey Road Institute, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Claim this brandOther Education franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Education category
Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.